16
Nov
Barack ‘N Roll
I am a break-in-case-of-emergency teacher at a Los Angeles charter school, or as I’m more affectionately referred to: a sub. But I’m not a typical sub; I’m not retired or retar…I’m just not a typical sub.
The kids, 99.9% Mexican (if you count Guatemala, El Salvador, etc), are fascinated with my Italian roots and consider me to be more like “them” than “the white devil.” We have found common ground in things such as soccer, romance languages and Catholic-guilt.
I recently held discussions with the older students regarding the U.S. Presidential Election. This is where things changed. The students wanted to know who I voted for. Fearing I would isolate a child of misguided parents who believed that Romney would fight to add Mexico as the 51st state, I declined to share my political convictions. This led to a barrage of verbal lynchings, where I was accused of voting for “the enemy.” I calmly explained that I wasn’t voting for “the enemy,” because I didn’t view Roseanne Barr as a strong candidate, most because of her singing and public ties to fast-food franchises.
One student told me, “My dad is voting for Romney because he’s going to help get the Mexicans their papers.” To which I responded, “You’re absolutely right. If deportation papers are what your family wants, Romney’s they way to go!”
All kidding aside, it scares me how uneducated and misguided many of these immigrant families can be. If they truly believe that Romney is fighting with their best interest at heart, just imagine the damage they could do at the polls if they rallied around him. Or don’t imagine it, because most of them aren’t citizens and therefore can’t vote.
