Pirate's Cove

You remember Ferguson, right? That’s where a violent young man brazenly stole cigars, assaulted the clerk, walked in the middle of the road like a fool, caught the attention of a duly sworn officer of the law, then attacked the officer in his card, struck the officer, attempted to take the officer’s gun, ran away when the weapon discharged, then charged the officer, which led to the officer using deadly force. Well, it’s been awhile, so, hey, let’s gin up something, OK?

Killing in Washington State Offers ‘Ferguson’ Moment for Hispanics
Pasco Police’s Shooting of Rock Thrower Draws Comparisons to Michael Brown Case

Members of the Zambrano family began arriving here three decades ago, picking apples in nearby orchards. Over time they have become part of the fabric of this harvesting town, growing to more than 50 and settling in tiny candy-colored homes, some ringed by white picket fences.

Except for the part in which quite a few, if not all, are illegal aliens.

Then, last week, one of their own was killed by the police, his death caught in a video that has sped around the Internet. Antonio Zambrano-Montes, 35, is shown running from three Pasco officers. He turns and swings his hands upward, before he is felled by a spray of bullets, his body slamming the concrete. He had been throwing rocks at cars and police officers.

It was the third killing by the Pasco police since July, and the video has brought international attention, with a flurry of online commenters criticizing the use of force against a man without a gun or a knife, making comparisons to the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo.

The accounts and the video make it appear as if, yes, the police used deadly force that was unwarrented. We do not know all the details. Of course, said man had been throwing rocks at cars and the police. Oh, and he was most definitely an illegal alien. That in no way means he should have been shot and killed, but, hey, like Michael Brown, the man was a violent criminal.

But here in Pasco, a city of 68,000 that is 56 percent Hispanic, the public killing has pierced the immigrant enclave, spurring protests that have attracted hundreds and highlighting a division between the city’s increasingly Latino populace and its power structure — the police, the city government — which remains largely white.

Well, it’s rather tough to get Latino’s in to the power structure if they do not try themselves. Oh, and if a good chunk of that population is comprised of both illegal aliens and legal residents, neither of which is eligible to be part of the power structure.

While many Hispanics have found work and stable, if not particularly affluent, lives here, the killing has drawn attention to their lack of clout. And, as with blacks in Ferguson, it has intensified feelings among Hispanics that they remain second-tier residents, despite their deep roots here, defined by the many Latino shops that now dominate the main thoroughfare, Lewis Street.

Maybe they shouldn’t be illegals? Anyhow, an interesting sidebar to all this is that the Hispanic population hasn’t rioted and looted, unlike in Ferguson. Strange, eh?

Of the city’s 68 officers, 14 are Hispanic. A dozen officers speak Spanish fluently, and some residents cite language barriers that complicate interactions with the police.

Here’s an idea: learn to speak English. You are in the United States, after all. Why do we need to bend our knee to people who are illegals/legal residents/migrant workers?

He was arrested for assaulting a police officer in January 2014. The police said he had thrown objects at officers and tried to grab an officer’s pistol. He pleaded guilty in June.

So, again, not exactly the best of people. But, doesn’t necessarily mean, again, that he should have been shot. But, the Times is attempting to gin up outrage. Are they also trying to create riots and looting?

Of course, here’s a wonderful idea: don’t be a criminal. Don’t throw rocks at cars and cops.

(video available here)