Last week, local media was abuzz with news of President Obama's visit to San Francisco. Unfortunately for immigration policy and for the noble cause of immigrant rights, the media coverage didn’t reflect the problems brewing for the President in Latino America. Instead, the media coverage of his visit reflected the pro-immigration positions put out by the Administration and then echoed by the multi-million dollar media apparatus set up by Obama's immigrant rights allies in DC. These groups are still seen by the press as the official voice of immigrants in the US. As a result, nothing was said of the increasing amount of fear and terror President Obama’s policies are creating among immigrants.

This unwillingness to mention, much less denounce Obama's radical immigration policies has so conditioned the ears of journalists and editors to the faux applause and the Jumbotroned sound of support, to the sickly "Si Se  Puede" legalization talk, that anyone talking about Obama's repressive and devastating policies sounds and looks like what a journalistic hack wrote about activist Prerna Lal, who is in deportation proceedings: marginal and out of the mainstream.

Dangerous stuff. I’ve been traveling alot around the country lately and am beyond sickened of stories like what’s happening to Prerna, countless stories of immigrant children forced to watch in terror as their parents are treated like criminals and taken away forever by ICE, the agency Obama has the power to tell “stop it, stop it immediately.”

Failure to bring the Obama Administration to some reasonable, concrete relief for DREAMers or around 287g/Secure Communities will bring the bar of immigrant and Latino respect to even more dangerous lows. Democratic and Republican pols and their allies will see that they can get away with continued repression without paying a political price. Such perception will, I fear, result in even more unprecedented terror and devastation of a community perceived to know no lower limits to its self disrespect when its says “Si Se Puede” in support of the Administration that is breaking records as the most violent and repressive in the history of the immigrant US.

Fortunately, we, not they, are the ones we have been waiting for. I know and have spoken to many of you who will not allow Obama and his supporters to glide thru Latino communities as if he has not been the Commander in Chief of the War on Immigrants. If things don’t change soon, any and all Obama Latino events should be subject to disruption, protest, civil disobedience and any and all other non-violent actions that defend both immigrants and our self respect and dignity. Even his closest allies have communicated the need to take action on urgent matters like deporting DREAMers or 287g/Secure Communities. If he doesn’t heed them, then he is clearly committed to moving beyond being a frenemy of immigrants, one deserving of having his electoral campaign aspirations dropped and devastated in Latin@ communities with the same zeal with which he and his administration prosecute the War on Immigrants in Latin@ communities.

For the record and to repeat: the ideas shared here are about politically, nonviolently attacking Obama’s campaign goals among Latin@s. We cannot again prove that you can humiliate, attack and terrorize Latin@s and still have Latin@s singing your praises. Without relief for immigrants, we should make support for Obama’s re-election or for the election of violent Republicans synonymous with being what we used to call “vendidos” or “sellouts” in a previous political era. The moral reality is there to do so as is the urgent necessity.

Thankfully, I think the will and courage are there too. I am very proud of and love those of you who are and will teach Obama and his allies what living Hope and heart-driven Change look like. Please do continue enlisting me in your heroic effort as I find great edification and inspiration in you, your actions. Gracias.

For his own dignity and for ours, I hope President Obama does the right thing and stops the terror and devastation against immigrants.

Respectfully,

Roberto Lovato

BlackCommentator.com Guest Commentator, Roberto Lovato is a contributing Associate Editor with New America Media. He is also a frequent contributor to The Nation and his work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Salon, Der Spiegel, Utne Magazine, La Opinion, and other national and international media outlets. Prior to becoming a writer, Roberto was the Executive Director of the Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), then the country’s largest immigrant rights organization. Click here to contact him or via his Of América blog or on facebook.