OUTSIDERS THROW GAUNTLET ON DE LEON, B'TOWN, RRUN2

"After Mr. De Leon resigned we felt that the community (?) had spoken and were staunchly against racism towards minorities, principly (sic) (BLACKS). We were ready to let it go, for community stability. No one wants protests in their backyard or national attention regarding racism but, that is what you have. A racist City Official who refuses to properly apologize to the people harmed by his comments. So he recinds (sic) his resignation..can't this person see the writing on the wall. This individual is asking for negative national attention and you know, he is about to get it. Our organization in conjuction (sic) with Washinton (sic) D.C. and State legislatures fight racism of any kind everyday, everywhere. We are thousands strong in all 50 states and we make a very strong presence where ever we go. Brownsville is in our itinerary, see you soon. We were advised to keep up with your blog and we will."

By Juan Montoya

When local attorney Michael Cowen started to raise signatures for a petition demanding that City of Brownsville Commissioner Cesar de Leon resign because of remarks he made in a secretly-recorded five-hour private conversation in an isolated ranch where he used the "N" word in a 15-second outburst, he said the first signers were 100 lawyers from throughout the United States.

The Cowen petition contained 312 signatures including the 100 lawyers from outside Brownsville. Of the people singing the petition, 208 had Anglo surnames. A white friend of ours who has lived in Brownsville most of his life said he was disturbed that the list was so replete of Anglo names, 66.6 percent, in fact.

The latest U.S. Census indicates that Brownsville's population is more than 90 percent Hispanic, 93.9 percent to be exact. (see graphic.)

Now, merely by looking at the names on the Cowen petition, it is difficult to tell whether these are all upstanding individuals with no blemish to their names, or whether there is a grab bag (as is statistically the case in most populations) of angels and sinners in the bunch. (Click on list below to enlarge.)

That's why we were somewhat surprised that other elected Hispanic officials would place their Juan Hancock on the petition. What would Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz, State Rep. Eddie Lucio III, Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, and Southmost College trustee Trey Mendez do if some of the outside individuals turned out to be convicted felons or guilty of some other, perhaps heinous, crime?

And are these officials, elected by the public as was De Leon, willing to disenfranchise the 4,300 voters who put him into office? Would they – if some of their private remarks were caught on tape denigrating some group – be willing to step down as they are demanding that he do?

Perhaps more importantly to the democratic process, can they, and our community, be cowed by these folks with their agenda to let them decide for us who can represent us and – conversely – who can't?

Some have been quick to place the blame on the Democratic Party leadership, but we must remind you (if lightly) that city commission elections are non-partisan (like the port , school district, and TSC) and political party affiliation is only nominally of any significance.

As it pertains to DA Saenz, he took it a step further to ally himself with these outside petitioners and worked to coerce De Leon into stepping down by personally filing a petition with the City of Brownsville Municipal Court to prevent the 28-year-old De Leon from practicing his profession as an attorney in city court and other matters involving the Brownsville Police or other departments.

Saenz told Judge Rene De Coss that De Leon had a clear conflict of interest and that he should not be allowed to practice. Saenz did not say that he understood that if De Leon was bale to acquire a waiver from his client and the city attorney stating that they understood his position as city commissioner and were willing to accept him as a legal representative for his client the conflict would be cured.

Which is curious given the fact that Saenz's purview is the state courts, not the municipal courts. By injecting himself personally in this very municipal issue, Saenz is acting way outside his jurisdicrtion, a question bordering on abuse of his official power. After all, Saenz is among those who signed the petition demanding De Leon's resignation. We understand that there is already a move underway that is questioning Saenz's motives and the propriety of his acts before officials with the Texas Ethics Commission and the Texas Attorney General's Office.

Saenz routinely allows the lawyers on the county commissioners court – the firm of Judge Eddie Treviño, Alex Dominguez, and Gus Ruiz, all attorneys – to practice before the county-courts-at-law and district court judges whose salaries they set without requiring them to submit the waivers. By not objecting to them working in the local courts, he tacitly gives the the green light to do exactly what he is objecting to De Leon doing in the municipal court.

(We are filing an information request to the county's legal counsel Dylbia Jefferies-Vega for copies of the waivers that Sawnz has granted to these three over the last eight years when Dan Sanchez, also an attorney, was on the court.)

De Leon has apologized publicly for the remarks he made in a private conversation a half dozen times. And it has been reported that he has personally written the two black Cameron County Asst. DAs who he offended apologizing for his words. Yet, as can be seen from the letters of the crusading politically-correct crowd above, no apology will suffice to assuage their offended morality. They want blood, or else.

We're sure that there are still  places in Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and elsewhere where they use the "N" word unabashedly and utter it to their faces. Why don't they start there and impose their will on them?


While they're here (as they have threatened), perhaps they will take the time to demand that the City of Brownsville Commission post haste remove the monument to Confederate States of America President Jefferson Davis located in Washington Park. Then they can take their crusade to the board
of Texas Southmost College and demand that they change the name of the Robert E. Lee Youth Center in the old Civic Center.

This might set off the so-called Sons of Confederate Veterans who have vowed to fight the removal. But we're sure they can cope with those boys.

And let's not stop there. They can also ask that the city shut down (or rename) the Stillman House, after all the servant's quarters where the "founder" of Brownsville kept his slaves are still standing. As a famous SCOTUS decision said, if they're serious about eliminating racial discrimination, "it should be eliminated root and branch."

But that isn't a consideration for this group bent on teaching Brownsville a "lesson." They later wrote:

"Negative attention coming your way. do yourself a favor, get rid of your public official, you will still get the attention but, at least it will be for getting rid of your national blemish. The city official has to go, not good for the valley and business. The whole RGV will suffer business wise and finacially (sic). Time to sever ties with this city commissioner. Business wise and financially, not good for RGV. You don't want protests in your backyard, not from well known figures, not from CNN, FOX NEWS or major media markets. Yes, he said things and was caught on tape, this is news, this is journalism and he is a public official (He is public news worthy). We are bound to cover it, it's our job. Mr. Runn Runn (sic), we will see you soon."