CSUN MEChA members claim harassment by undercover LAPD officers

Photo Caption Needed

Photo Courtesy of Teresa Vazquez

CSUN student organization, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan (MEChA) said they were made the target of surveillance during their first meeting of this semester.

Faculty adviser of MEChA, Dr. Jorge Garcia said that on Sept. 2 they were holding their first meeting on the lawn between Jerome Richfield Hall and Barman Hall when they observed the surveillance groups.

“They looked older than traditional students and some were wearing cargo pants, fatigues,” Garcia said. “We were joking among ourselves about who they could possibly be. They looked militaristic.”

“We then noticed that they were doing some maneuvers. They would spread out then move back in together,” he explained.

MEChA President Abraham Ramirez and the community liaison Felicia Rivera said what happened next caused them to take greater interest in the group.

“We saw this guy rushing us, coming toward us really fast,” Rivera said. “We were backing them. At the corner of our eye we saw that his group caught up to him and restrained him.”

“We heard them say something to him like, ‘It’s not time yet,’ then they huddled up again,” Ramirez said.

According to a report compiled by associate chair of the Chicano studies department Gabriel Gutierrez, “As the meeting continued, it was announced that the meeting would be moved to the Chicano/a house… In the mean time, the group that had at this time taken what appeared to be a rather aggressive posture toward the participants of the MEChA meeting gathered their belongings and proceeded on the walk going north along the library.”

“Somebody told us that they were over at the Chicano/a Studies House. Jesus Flores, Jake Prendez, Gabriel Gutierrez, Rudy Acuna and I went over there, and they were in a cluster in front of the Chicano House,” Garcia said.

He said he approached the group after they began questioning his student, Jesus Flores, after he took out his cell phone and asked him for his ID.

“I told them that I was a CSUN professor and former dean of the College of Humanities and asked what they were doing here. One responded with a sarcastic remark. They were very arrogant, giving us orders to move on. I told them that if they had a problem with us that they should contact our CSUN police, that we didn’t have to deal with other police,” Garcia said.

He added that, “One then said that he was LAPD and that they were conducting a training exercise and that they were not armed. He told me that they were not armed several times. I found that suspicious. It was starting to get confrontational. They were really nasty to us.”

Urban studies professor, Dr. Teresa Vasquez, said she was on her way to her office in Sierra Hall when she noticed the group of people with cameras, bags and suitcases. She said she stopped to talk to Dr. Garcia when she witnessed the incident.

“It felt very hostile. Unusual. They were being aggressive. My first impression was that it was a hate group. They didn’t behave like police. I even thought that they were from the Minutemen,” said Vasquez.

Vasquez said she began to take pictures of the incident when a member of the group approached her.

“One saw me taking pictures and asked, ‘Who are you?’ what department I was from and he took my pictures. I do not think anyone has the right. They took recording and pictures of everyone.”

According to Ramirez, the group, who he calls “undercovers”, left when the campus police arrived.

“They (CSUN police) said they knew the group would be here and that they had a permit, but that they were only supposed to be at the bookstore, not here,” Ramirez said.

CSUN Police Captain Scott VanScoy confirmed that the group was indeed from the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and that CSUN police was aware of their presence on the campus.

“No permit is required,” said VanScoy. “It is a public university. They called us as professional courtesy and let us know that they would be carrying on a training session practicing their observational skills for about two hours.”

The witnesses of the incident felt the group racially targeted their organization.

Vazquez, skeptical of the reports that the group was conducting training, said because the MEChA group was mostly Latino, the incident seemed like an exercise in racial profiling.

“They saw us and decided to use us for their experiments. Because we were students of color, they felt they could use us as their freaking test subjects,” said Ramirez. “If it were a sorority, they wouldn’t have used them.”

“We were targeted for a good 20-30 minutes. I cannot imagine what type of training that was,” Garcia said.

He said he was unsure whether the group had planned it, or took their meeting as an opportunity to “target brown people, but that was what it became.”

“In the 70s we had undercovers in the classrooms. We had spies hiding behind vending machines at a MEChA conference. We have been the target of direct surveillance and harassment in the past. It is not farfetched for us to say this. It is historical,” Garcia said.

VanScoy said that although the group had not done anything illegal, including taking the pictures, his chief requested that they not grant open permission to the LAPD following this incident but that they still have the right to come.

“If this group were to call again, we would have a more lengthy conversation about who, what and where now,” said VanScoy. “We put some measures in place to prevent this from happening again.”

“If we don’t agree that it will not work out in the best interest of the school, then we can request that they refrain from the activity,” VanScoy explained.

Garcia said MEChA’s faculty would discuss their next plan of action regarding this incident.

“What we want is that there is no possibility of them coming back here. I’ve got a few suggestions where they can go, maybe Beverly Hills,” Garcia said.

Ramirez said he wants the student body to be informed and aware that the “LAPD is on our campus and using students of color as their test subjects.”

“I do not believe that they should have jurisdiction here. Hopefully this will stop them from coming back,” he said.

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  • Bobby

    It’s interesting what the different posters with latin names have to say. You have those that understand that there ARE certain latinos in this nation, who like MECHA, totally HATE AMERICA and AMERICANS. Then you have the actual posters who are the America and American haters that support MECHA. A lesson to us, that all Mexicans/Latinos’ must not all be thrown into the same stereotype.

    The strange thing about all of this is not that MECHA is any danger. Groups like the FBI and other law enforcement monitor them but their too stupid to know it. What is strange is the fact that some MEXICANS, despite ALL the U.S. has offered them, and conversely how LITTLE, THAT Mexico has offered them, still are loyal to Mexico. It is weird how deluded some people can be.

  • Juan Torres

    I was almost fooled into joining Mecha! I never understood uniting together to stand against the white man mentality.

    Did it ever occur to you, that maybe a person within your group might have been a person of interest for some crime. Believe or not, people don’t always tell you the truth. I’m not siding with Mecha or LAPD, but we only have one side of the story. Like SAM2 stated “where’s LAPD’s comment on this incident Ms. Collison.

    The deletion of the photo… the only thing I can say is that maybe the undercover copper didn’t feel like having his photo published revealing his identity. Bad way to go about things, but who knows.

    Just to let you know where I come from. Born to immigrant parents who came this country for a better opportunity. They became residents during the late 80s amnesty. 1st generation to go to college. We live our lives grateful for what we have received, and don’t demand that this country owes us anything.

    One other thing I will say is that most Mexican American like myself if you want to call me that. but anywho… we are not Aztecas. Don’t take my word for it. Go and read it for yourself.

    I bet you a dollar that a group like Mecha, La Raza or any brown racial group will call me white washed, but you know what.

    I’m an American.

  • Jay Mckim

    Manuel should try Mexico first before he accused White American
    White Anglo society. Mexico is the most rotten and corrupted
    society on earth. The gov’t of Mexico is run no different than
    the most racist and racially segregated policy against typical
    Mestizo. Mexican Mestizo race is treated like animal by Mexican
    gov’t. I saw the video about Swine Flu epidemic from Mexico City.
    The man with disease was turned back from hospital because he is
    a Mestizo, and listening to his wife complaining is like Mestizo
    can’t do anything about the racism in Mexican society. Now this
    stupid Mexcan guy like Manuel complained at White Anglo. He
    should be thankful at living in White Anglo society, if not,
    Manuel should move back to Mexico and try Mexico first.

  • ormandy

    It appears that Manuel has tripped through the dictionary and Thesaurus and come across a bouquet of polysyllabic entries to impress the participants in this brouhaha. How collegial of Manuel.

  • http://www.numbersusa.com James H.

    Say no to the Chamber of Commerce cheap labor lobby and the racist ethnocentric advocacy hate groups like La Raza (THE Race), Mecha, and Lulac.

    Say no to illegal aliens, the Outlaw Employers who profit from them at OUR expense, and the corrupt Rogue Politicians who ENABLE both. Say no to SHAMnesty!

    We need to revise our legal immigration system so that it serves the needs and interests of American citizens instead of the globalists, various ethnocentric hate groups and lefty America haters; all of whom seek to use immigration to remake America according to their messed up visions of what they think it should be.

    REAL Comprehensive Immigration Reform:

    Moratorium on legal immigration for 5 to 10 years.
    Limit it to 250,000 annually thereafter
    End chain migration.
    Emphasize assimilation over multiculturalism.
    Focus on skills, capital and ability to contribute.

    Secure the border.
    Enforce existing law.
    Make E-verify mandatory.
    End birthright citizenship.
    Require proof of citizenship or legal status for all benefits including education and health care.

  • Mecha Fifth Column

    Say no to the Chamber of Commerce cheap labor lobby and the racist ethnocentric advocacy hate groups like La Raza (THE Race), Mecha, and Lulac.

    Say no to illegal aliens, the Outlaw Employers who profit from them at OUR expense, and the corrupt Rogue Politicians who ENABLE both. Say no to SHAMnesty!

    We need to revise our legal immigration system so that it serves the needs and interests of American citizens instead of the globalists, various ethnocentric hate groups and lefty America haters; all of whom seek to use immigration to remake America according to their messed up visions of what they think it should be.

    REAL Comprehensive Immigration Reform:

    Moratorium on legal immigration for 5 to 10 years.
    Limit it to 250,000 annually thereafter
    End chain migration.
    Emphasize assimilation over multiculturalism.
    Focus on skills, capital and ability to contribute.

    Secure the border.
    Enforce existing law.
    Make E-verify mandatory.
    End birthright citizenship.
    Require proof of citizenship or legal status for all benefits including education and health care.

    • gezzy

      HELLO!!!! DO ALL ILLEGAL IMIGRANTS PAY TAXES? OFCURSE THEY DO THEY PAY TAXES AND ALL THAT ITS NOT PAYED BACK TO THEM WITH MANY SOCIAL SERVICES SO PLEASE DONT TELL ME ILLEGAL IMIGRATION ITS AFFECTING YOU BECAUSE RATHER YOU ARE GETTING BENEFITS BY THAT. AND YES THERE WOULD ALWAYS BE ILLEGAL IMIGRATION AND IT HAPPENS EVERYWHERE!!!! NOT ONLY IN THE US!!!!!!

      • gezzy

        Ok. Just to be clear Jose Sanchez there all types of taxes that we all pay, did i metioned INCOME taxes? noo!!!! right read before you talk man. Besides arent you getting benefit by illegal immigration cheap food and all? I mean rather than criticize the illegal people community we would think about other alternatives to stop illegal immigration I’m not a supporter but the REALITY is that ILLEGAL immigration WONT EVER STOP!!! even if we do something about it people have a necessity to be in this country to WORK!!! THATS WHY we have to find alternatives so they wont keep on stealing our identities.

  • Manuel

    Europeans are here as colonist anchor babies. how dare they question Indigenous People pursuing education! That rogue LAPD KLAN needs to arrested on domestic terrorism charges, hate crimes, and ethnocidal crimes against humanity.

  • Mecha Fifth Column

    Illegal immigration is literally a cancer. It grows, spreads and feeds off its host until the host dies.

    Mexico is our enemy using the illegal immigration Fifth Column as a Trojan horse to wage demographic warfare against America. Illegal aliens are invaders who come here to colonize and displace Americans.

  • Alberto Garcia

    MEChA is a racist militant group and thank God the LAPD is keeping an eye on those racists!

    • Alberto Pendejo

      Alberto look at your skin color and your last name before you talk shit about MEChA. You white washed coconut.

      • M.Gonzalez

        “you white washed coconut” –How can you say that? It angers me that there is hate within this group. I have had Mexicans tell me I’m not Mexican enough and white people tell me to go back to Mexico.
        I have been told I’m white on the inside brown on the outside, and that since I do not fluently speak Spanish I’m not good enough to be a “real” Mexican. I have had Latinos talk badly about me in Spanish assuming I don’t understand them (when I do) and white people attempt at speaking to me in Spanish, which is uncalled for, how can they assume all brown people speak Spanish?
        Stop hating on each other! It was a horrible way to grow up, I hope when I have children they don’t endure the same hate that I have.
        I am 3 generations American on my mother’s side and first generation American on my fathers side. So what am I? American? Mexican? Both? Am I good enough for any one side?????
        It’s ridiculous that these things even matter.

    • gezzy

      HAHAHA SO MECHA IS RACIST LIKE I ASKED SOMEONE BEFORE HAVE THEY BEEN RACIST TO YOU?? HOW CAN YOU MAKE SUCH ARGUMENT IF YOU HAVENT BEEN APROACH THEM??? AND YEAH I DONT KNOW IF YOU ARE LATINO OR YOUR ROOTS ARE LATINO BUT RATHER LOOK AT YOUR HISTORY

  • Bonnie

    Armando Broncas Mecha want to take back the American southwest even though
    they only stole it themselves for 26 years.
    They stole it from Spain and they have the nerve to say the U.S. stole
    it from them?
    Even the American Indians (Apache) wanted to help the U.S. get Mexicans out
    of their homeland.
    That is how awful the Mexicans were even back then.
    Even the Apaches wanted them the hell out.

    • gezzy

      Do you got any clue who was here first? The spaniards or the indian people who were from aztlan? Look at the history behind it before you talk. May be because of your ignorance in the history or because in many history books its not published you might think that way. And TO INFORM ALL!!! MECHA ITS NOT ANY RACIST ORGANIZATION AS FAR I KNOW BECAUSE I BEEN PRESENT TO SOME OF THEIR METTINGS BEFORE THEY NEVER SAY “OH ONLY BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT BROWN OR WHAT EVER COLOR YOU CANT COME IN TO OUR MEETINGS” NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! WE FOCUS IN HELPING OUR COMMINITIES HISPANICS TO PERSUADE HIGHER EDUCATION BECAUSE THERE ARENT MANY OF US IN COLLEGE. BESIDES IF WE DONT HELP OUR OWN COMMINITY WHO ELSE WILL??? THATS OUR MAIN GOAL. SO FOR THOSE HATERS WHO ARE SAYING MECHA IS A RACIST OR WHATEVER OGRANIZATION GET TO KNOW US A LITTLE BIT BEFORE YOU SAY SH!+ BOUT THEM. BONNIE GET MORE INFORMED PLEASE!!!!

  • Armando Broncas

    all the trash you folks are spreading is hate based.
    M.E.Ch.A. IS LOVE BASED AND ITS SOLE MISSION IS TO MAKE HIGHER EDUCATION ACCESIBLE TO ALL!!(GET YOUR FACTS RIGHT)

    SEIZING

  • Joel

    “Because we were students of color, they felt they could use us as their freaking test subjects,” said Ramirez.

    What? They were colored students?

  • http://freeCANADA anthony diago

    the ACLU cause trouble when a Minuteman walks down the street.When out of toilet paper use mexico rag- i mean flag.

  • Jorge Nelson

    I have heard of cliques within LAPD. Maybe they are similar to surviellance groups during Viet Nam. Lighten up people.

  • Bonnie

    Mecha is not exactly an ALL AMERICAN ORGANIZATION.
    To many Mecha is no better than the KKK.

    Go to this link:

    http://www.ccir.net/mecha.html

    - MEChA was founded for the sole purpose of infiltrating our educational system and, by lies and propaganda, literally “brainwashing” students with anti-American sentiment, hate and violence with the ultimate goal of revolution and the overthrow of the U.S. government.

  • Kathleen

    I find it humorous that Vasquez stated she thought they were “a hate group…or the Minutemen.” This woman, who most likely received her education on our dime, should be made aware of the fact that unlike the radical group MEChA, dedicated to destroying America’s sovereignty, the Minutemen are dedicated to preserving it. Legal, taxpaying Americans would use hate group to describe MEChA, not the Minutemen.

    I enjoin with millions of other Americans who are intent on having radical groups such as MECha removed from our colleges/universities and any other tax-paid/subsidized locations in the U.S. Ms. Vasquez should also be made aware of the fact that the tired-out “racist” or “racism” tag line no longer works. It stopped working for Hitler when he advised using a derogatory term to describe those who opposed his movement and LaRaza, MEChA, MALDEF, LULAC and other anti-American groups incorporating this decades-old tactic is laughable, pathetic, and an insult to anyone with an IQ above 50.

  • Rene_1993

    Isn’t the mandate and creed of MEChA: “for all those in the race, everything, for all those outside the race, nothing.” How can an on campus Latino group that espouses such racist beliefs and attitudes be activist against institutional racism? I’m a student here on campus and find their attitude and behavior very puzzling and even disturbing. Racism in the name of racism doesn’t exactly give you the moral high ground.

  • Pancho

    MEChA racist toward Anglos

    I am a strong supporter of the Constitution and the rights it bestows upon Americans. I also believe that people are entitled to hold particular beliefs expressed through freedom of speech and religion. The right to express such rights are guaranteed by this country as expressed by our Founding Fathers in the Constitution.
    Recently I was asked if I wanted to join an after school club at my high school named MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan). I had little idea what MEChA’s purpose was, but I wanted to keep an open mind, and it seemed to hold some appeal. In the meantime, I went on the Internet and looked up MEChA and one site drew my attention.

    As I read I was appalled by the racism of MEChA towards Anglos, not to mention Mexicans who did not hold their same views on particular issues such as bilingual education, police brutality toward Mexicans, and the so-called oppression by “the white man.” In their documentations they used vulgar and insulting names toward those who see things in a more conservative inclusive fashions.
    Any Mexican person who has become too Americanized would be called such names as “Vendidos” (sellout) “Tio Taco” (uncle Tom), and “Coconut” (brown on the outside and white on the inside). I was embarrassed at their inability to communicate their beliefs like civilized human beings.

    It became clear to me that what MEChA wants to do is inject minorities with the mentality that they are victims. Considering the low achievement rates of Mexican students, MEChA should concentrate on helping out Mexican students with their academic attitudes, which from my understanding was its initial intent. Instead MEChA has victimized students into believing that the reason that many Mexicans are unsuccessful is as a result of “the oppression of the white man.”

    - DAVID CONTRERAS

  • Pancho

    “Por La Raza todo. Fuera de La Raza nada.”
    “Everything for the race. Everything outside the race, nothing.”

    “General membership shall consist of any student who accepts, believes and works for the goals and objectives of MEChA, including the liberation of AZTLAN, meaning self-determination of our people in this occupied state and the physical liberation of our land.”

    From “El Plan de Aztlan”: In the spirit of a new people that is conscious not only of its proud historical heritage but also of the brutal “gringo” invasion of our territories, we, the Chicano inhabitants and civilizers of the northern land of Aztlan from whence came our forefathers, reclaiming the land of their birth and consecrating the determination of our people of the sun, declare that the call of our blood is our power, our responsibility, and our inevitable destiny.

  • LURPS

    I hope they were Border Patrol!

  • The Redskin Redneck

    Hey, I want a job at ACORN. EEEEEEhAAAAAAA….. I think Mecha is even associated with them.

  • The Redskin Redneck

    If colleges and universities had European ethnic organizations as devious and corrosive as MECHA, which they allow in ALL colleges and most high schools, THEY WOULD BE SHUT DOWN IN AN INSTANT BY THOSE COWARDLY COLLEGE BEUROCRATS THAT ALLOW MECHA TO OPERATE FREELY.

    • Loc

      They do, they’re called fraternities and sororities, and they’re ten times as devious

  • Bobby

    victor says: For “brown” people everything is racially motivated to them. That’s why they get bent out of shape over any perceived slight.”

    Well, as one La Raza leaders said about ten years ago, involving the struggle against illegal immigration by the Amerian citizenry,
    and I paraphrase him, “We accuse people of racism even when we know they aren’t, becaue accusing them accomplishes our goals.”

  • JS

    I do not support MEChA or its ideology. I want all students to be aware of their rights when dealing with police.

    Info on MEChA from http://www.mayorno.com/WhoIsMecha.html

    The official national symbol of MEChA is an eagle holding a machete-like weapon and a stick of dynamite. The acronym MEChA stands for “Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan.” or “Chicano Student Movement of Aztlan.”

    MEChA is an Hispanic separatist organization that encourages anti-American activities and civil disobedience. The radical members of MEChA who refer to themselves as “Mechistas,” romanticize Mexican claims to the “lost Territories” of the Southwestern United States — a Chicano country called Aztlan.

    In its national constitution, MEChA calls for self-determination by its members to liberate Aztlan. MEChA’s national constitution starts out: “Chicano and Chicana students of Aztlán must take upon themselves the responsibilities to promote Chicanismo within the community, politicizing our Raza with an emphasis on indigenous consciousness to continue the struggle for the self-determination of the Chicano people for the purpose of liberating Aztlán.”

    These anti-American “Mechistas” live with the false illusion that they are being racially discriminated against because they are Latinos while totally dismissing the idea that maybe it is their ideology that is being discriminated against.

  • Pancho

    The MEChA mantra

    All of the laws should be enforced equally, regardless of race, religion, and/or national origin. That is with the exception of mexicans, and they should be above the law and exempt from the law. And the only purpose that a tonto gringo serves is to pay taxes to support the superior and noble mexican.

    Anyone who disagrees with this philosophy is Xenophobic and a Racist.

    Pancho

    All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
    George Orwell, Animal Farm, ch.10, 1945

  • JS

    As for the LAPD taking pictures of the attendees, police cannot detain a person and take their picture without some legal justification. That is, during a police detention not amounting to an arrest and with no other evidence of criminality present, a person may refuse to give consent to have his/her picture taken.

    If the police take the picture anyway and picture is later used against the person, its admissibility could be challenged.

  • victor

    For “brown” people everthing is racially motivated to them. That’s why they get bent out of shape over any perceived slight.

  • Bobby

    Too bad so many AMericans are so utterly clueless about treasonous organizations like MECHA, that have infliltrated the schools and colleges that they send their children to. I guess it’s more important to play golf, and watch Oprah, than to be inquiring as to what goes on in the schools that they send their kids to. Whatever…….

  • JS

    “VanScoy said that although the group had not done anything illegal, including taking the pictures, his chief requested that they not grant open permission to the LAPD following this incident…”

    Really??? The group [LAPD] had not done anything illegal???

    Perhaps they need refresher training in constitutional law. Since when are the police allowed to confiscate your camera and delete pictures that are not illegal to possess and when no crime has been committed?

    These officers were in a public place for all to see them. Thus, they have no expectation of privacy. If a person takes their picture, the police have no right to seize the camera and delete the pictures. This is a violation of one’s 4th Amendments rights protecting against unreasonable seizures as guaranteed by the UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION.

    Furthermore, LAPD should be thankful that CSUN PD has allowed them the right to come back to practice their “observational skills.”

    “…his [VanScoy's] chief requested that they not grant open permission to the LAPD following this incident but that they still have the right to come.”

    • David

      Hey JS!

      The article says that each side “took pictures”; it does NOT say that the LAPD took anyone’s camera or forced anyone to delete their pictures.

      You might want to take a deep breath and read the article more carefully.

  • sam2

    Was there any attempt to contact the actual LAPD for comment?
    Journalism 101, my friends.

    • What happened to objective news?

      This is a biased “news” article. In fact, it’s more of an opinion (possibly *fiction*) piece.

      I don’t know the history of MEChA, and I don’t know what happened that day. LAPD are not always saints, either.

      That said, this is not journalism. This is propaganda. If you want to be credible, try contacting LAPD.

      You dramatized what sounds like a simple training operation by the LAPD. Our mayor is Hispanic, and so is half of Los Angeles. It’s time for MEChA to stop being both radical and paranoid.

      • Loc

        You would think it was dramatized… I was there. Do you know what it feels like to have multiple run ins with police in a certain time frame. Especially to have poice show up at a meeting for a group in which you serve your community? Its very scary… people don’t realize that we all have racist tendencies, M.E.Ch.A. doesn’t put them out there more than anyone else. The military discriminates against gays, fraternities and sororities both discriminate in more than one way ad we all know the government is openly racist, as has been proven throughout history. Thats why there’s an Affirmative Action… think people. My point is put it in perspective. Imagine you’re trying to do all you can to open up doors to youth that come from the same places you do, and police show up at the first meeting your organization has asking for ID… I think that should frak you out. If it doesnt… its probably because you did’t even notice, you were so oblivious. Thats why this group notices… is because we’re not oblivious. We take notice of things that are going on around us and we engage in our environment instead of coming on to campus every day and being a robot. We choose to acknowledge things we see as unjust and we don’t avoid conflict. Instead, we deal with the issues no one else cares about. While everyone is relaxing on their afternoons or on their weekends having a beer, or watching tv, or playing video games, we are out meeting, planning events, fundraising, fighting fee hikes for EVERYONE. Everyone needs chill time, just as much as everyone needs to help with COMMUNITY issues. Community issues are issues we SHARE. A shared burden equals a shared responsibility… and things are a bit lopsided right now. If you’re not completely ignorant, please come check out our meetings… we meet in Jerome Richfield 118 on Wednesdays at 3:30. Meetings are open to EVERYONE, and plesase don’t walk out if some concepts seem different or foreign. Stick around and ask questions if theres something you don’t fully understand or think needs improvement. Put as much stick into creating a better organization as you do at talking trash about it. I guarantee you, if you come in with the serious notion of confronting “racism” within the organiaztion and it isn’t either addressed or dealt with promptly, M.E.Ch.A will have one less member. We really aren’t bad people, and I think deep down inside, its just fear that makes people say such mean and hurtful things. Peace to everyone. One Love, lets keep it tight like a fist.

        • Shogun Mark Joslin

          Loc, I hope someone takes you up on the offer (notably made several times) to attend a M.E.Ch.A. meeting and witness for themselves that these meetings are not clandestine moments to plot terror, carnage, job stealing, and identity theft. I wouldn’t hold your breath, however. That would mean someone would have to be accountable for their words, and that requires a spine, something in short supply from most of those writing their attacks. Wouldn’t it be something if name tags were given out and posters here would have the stones to write “Bobby,” “Armando,” “‘Dr.’ Stevens,” and other names to own up to their words and “ideas.” That’s one difference between M.E.Ch.A. students and them. M.E.Ch.A. meets publicly and actively posts the time and place. No hiding here, ballsy enough to create a voice to be heard backed by actual people. Can these attackers claim the same? Methinks not.

          There’s always hope, though. I’d love to be proven wrong on on this matter.

          I remain,

          Mark Joslin
          Secure enough to claim the title of “professor,” context notwithstanding. Fraud researchers, carry on. It’s your time to waste.

          :o)