Alex Padilla Tangles With Race and Politics

Frank del Olmo’s screed (Commentary, Aug. 12) against Alex Padilla’s alleged naivete rings like a voice from the past, specifically from that still-angry generation of Chicanos now known as “Chicanosaurus.” Del Olmo’s accusation that Padilla “lack[s] the street smarts to balance [his] book smarts” and his use of the term “Pacoima homeboy” to refer to Padilla only serve to reinforce the stereotype of the “authentic” Mexican American as someone who is “from the streets.”

Del Olmo embraces that same ethnic stereotype as he talks about going back to Pacoima, where he grew up. Please note that he doesn’t live there anymore. But Padilla still does, and like many of us who grew up in working-class circumstances and graduated from universities, he doesn’t feel the need to talk like a gang member to prove it.

Perhaps Padilla may be faulted for not handling the situation better, but he certainly shares any blame with those who successfully racialized a political fight for their own advantage. Although Del Olmo criticizes Padilla for not realizing how his committee appointments might “upset the black community,” he does not explain why Latinos shouldn’t have been equally upset that no black council members voted for Padilla. Either way, it’s a racialization of a nonracial issue, and it’s wrong.

Patricia Suarez

Los Angeles