ADL's new report on nativist extremism is out, and the winners are...

The Anti-Defamation League has a new report out on anti-immigration nutbars entitled, "Immigrants Targeted: Extremist Rhetoric Moves into the Mainstream." Naturally, AZ was well-represented, with Minuteman Chris Simcox and Rusty Childress' United for a Sovereign America getting mentions, and urban cougar Michelle Dallacroce scoring a whole section to herself. Of Dallacroce, the report states,

Through media appearances, connections with extremists, and personal appearances at anti-immigration events, Dallacroce echoes the anti-immigrant themes of a “mass invasion” of unintelligent, disrespectful, conspiratorial criminals while targeting her message to women and families. She focuses on immigration as a threat to American children and denigrates the values of immigrant families, branding immigrant children as “dumb” and violent.

Dallacroce probably doesn't like much of what the ADL has to say about her any more than she digs what M.A.D.D. opines. (M.A.D.D. recently hit her with a cease and desist letter, claiming the rights to the phrase "Mothers Against.") But, hey, Michelle, look at it like the nativist Olympics, and you just got the gold medal for, um, anchor-baby bashing.

J.T. Ready, the Ernst Rohm of the East Valley, is also noted by name, but fails to secure his own section in the write-up. And Mexican flag-torcher Laine Lawless earns nary a mention. (Sorry, Laine, better luck next year!) Hey, where's Russell Pearce? He's the biggest bigot in the state, unless you count Johnny-come-lately Joe Arpaio, who's only recently jumped aboard the anti-Mexican prejudice express.

The ADL white-paper (get it?) also targets FAIR, The Federation for American Immigration Reform, and identifies the ties between FAIR and FAIR-related orgs like Choose Black America and the allegedly-Hispanic You Don't Speak for Me. As far as locals go, I really think KTAR's Darrell Ankarlo deserved recognition for his contribution to the radio hatewaves this year. Ankarlo beats a steady, racist, anti-Mexican drum day-after-day on his morning show. He's AZ's Imam of Intolerance, our Sultan of Supremacy, our Wretched Spewer of Wing-Nuttery. I want to nominate Ankarlo for mention in a future ADL report. Where do I write to Abe Foxman?

From my native North Carolina (sadly) comes uber-extremist William Gheen of ALIPAC (Americans for Legal Immigration Political Action Committee), a Carolina cracker that gives me but one more reason to be ashamed of the Tar Heel State. Gheen's conspiracy-minded gutter rhetoric is the propaganda of fear and misinformation. Like many nativists, he vomits forth crass canards about how immigrants bring disease to the U.S., and how they're all criminals, etc. Gheen's a real piece of work, one of the many far-right opportunists whose living depends upon trashing immigrants.

Most intriguing to me are the references to the late Madeleine Cosman, a wackjob "medical lawyer" who toured the country spreading lies about how illegal immigrants bring antibiotic-resistant TB and leprosy to the U.S. Cosman lives on in YouTube videos posted to various anti-illegals sites, like Rusty Childress' immigrationbuzz.com. She's also cited by mainstream media types like CNN's Lou Dobbs. The ADL report states, "Her mainstream exposure added a veneer of legitimacy to the anti-immigrant movement."

Great report from the ADL. I'm fascinated by moonbat fanatics, so this is right up my alley. Maybe the AZ ADL could do a Zona version of this and spotlight all of the local players, many of whom have national reach. In the meanwhile, I'll continue my own investigations into local wacko nativists. Sand Land seems to draw them like George Noory draws UFO nuts.