{"article":{"id":146946,"heading":"Costa Mesa: Council member says Guinness Beer justifies immigrant crackdown","author":"John Earl","created":"2006-02-11 22:40:41","modified":"2006-02-23 08:33:04","last_modified":"Thu, 23 Feb 2006 15:33:04","article":"

On a recent Thursday night (February 2) about eight demonstrators showed up in front of Co

sta Mesa city councilman Gary Monahan’s restaurant business (Skosh Monahan’s Steakhouse and Irish Pub, 2000 Newport Blvd, Costa Mesa on the corner of Newport Blvd and 20th) to protest his recent vote to have Costa Mesa police act as quasi immigration officers.

A Republican Party fundraiser to benefit Diane Harkey, a far-right contestant for the 35th state senate district, was the other featured attraction. There was some chanting and hollering--one demonstrator walked back and forth in front of the pub yelling out “Mr. Mansoor, come out! You are being arrested for violating the First Amendment of the United States Constitution,” and others shouted “racist go home” and similar slogans.

But the circus began when members of the neo-fascist Minuteman Project came to counter-protest and engaged in shouting matches as well as polite debates with immigrant rights advocates. The highlight of the evening was when Minuteman Project co-founder Jim Gilchrist arrived and, as usual, began to rant about the little Green men who he imagines are out to get him and claimed that the neo-fascist group had 240 million supporters in the United States, up from his previous claim of 200 million about a week earlier.

As the demonstrators left, Monahan came outside and was engaged by one of the demonstrators, Naui Huitzilopochtli, who allegedly yelled out “Gary, you’re a racist pig. Ha ha! We’ll be back!” To which, Monahan allegedly replied “You...you’re a fag.”

The following day, just after attending a press conference of a coalition of unions and community groups announcing a future boycott of Costa Mesa businesses and police, OCO caught up with Monahan at his restaurant. Accompanied by Duane Roberts, who witnessed the racist\/fag shouting incident, I was cordially allowed inside where Monahan spoke about the demonstration, boycott and the city’s plan to have police trained by Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE), which he voted for. Most notable is Monahan’s admission that he has no statistical basis whatsoever for the claim that making local police immigration agents is necessary because criminal “illegal aliens” are falling through the cracks. –

Read and hear the full interview at http:\/\/www.ocorganizer.com\/html\/monaham.html<\/a>

See and hear Jim Gilchrist worry about little Green men at http:\/\/www.ocorganizer.com\/html\/j__gilchrist.html#sequel<\/a>

<\/p>\n","contact":"admin@ocorganizer.com","link":"http:\/\/www.ocorganizer.com\/html\/monaham.html","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"video\/x-ms-wmv","summary":"Protester: "Gary, you're a racist pig! Ha! Ha! We'll be back!"\r\nReply from city councilman: “You...you’re a fag!”\r\nMonahan says that his experience selling Guinness instead of Coors Light justfies Costa Mesa’s immigrant (ICE) crackdown\r\nExtra: Jim Gilchrist goes crazy over Green men","numcomment":13,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/2006\/02\/losing_it_two.wmv","filesize":"3.1 mebibytes","article_url":"\/news\/2006\/02\/146946.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":146956,"heading":"john doe, i mean earl","article":"well waddaya know, he wrote the darn thing! get ready for my email! mr. earl! :D","author":"Mike Almeida","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-12 00:15:37","modified":"2006-02-12 00:15:37","fileurl":""},{"id":146992,"heading":"His email","article":"jearl@ocorganizer.com \r\n","author":"Roger","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-12 03:12:09","modified":"2006-02-12 03:12:09","fileurl":""},{"id":146999,"heading":"Riddled streets and Addled minds.","article":"Quote--"one demonstrator walked back and forth in front of the pub yelling out \u201cMr. Mansoor, come out! You are being arrested for violating the First Amendment of the United States Constitution,\u201d and others shouted \u201cracist go home\u201d and similar slogans."\r\n\r\nIs this person making a citizens arrest? or is he creating a childish nuisance?\r\n\r\nI think a greeting to the Mexican Sen. Reymundo Cardenas of Zacatecas and Armando Navarro, at the Mexicano\/Latino Leadership Bi-National Summit at Riverside Convention Center would be a better suited venue to exercise ones right to be heard.\r\n\r\nBi-national, cute.","author":"Quizling","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-12 03:38:03","modified":"2013-11-11 00:38:12","fileurl":""},{"id":147015,"heading":"DON'T FEED THE TROLLS","article":"there are lots of trolls on LA Indymedia. SD has a don't-feed-trolls policy and it works well.\r\n\r\ncheers!","author":"witness","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-12 09:03:31","modified":"2006-02-12 09:03:31","fileurl":""},{"id":147190,"heading":"SOS meeting up and begging for $$$","article":"Hello Everyone:\r\n\r\nIf you live in California and know 10 registered \r\nvoters (like friends and\r\nfamily), it is imperative that you respond to this \r\nemail. I need your\r\nhelp with a simple task. It requires no money, no \r\ninteraction with anyone\r\nin our opposition, no protest or rally. In fact, you \r\ncan do this with\r\nyour friends and family...no strangers. It is very \r\nsimple and will take\r\nonly minutes of your time.\r\n\r\nWith your help, we can make a very powerful statement \r\nin the illegal\r\nimmigration debate. Please reply immediately.\r\n\r\n\r\n---------\r\n\r\nPlease note that on Wednesday, Feb 15th at 6PM, \r\nillegal immigration\r\nactivists will be meeting in Los Angeles at Diane \r\nFeinstein's office to\r\nencourage the senator to vote against amnesty\/guest \r\nworker programs.\r\n\r\nFor more information, please visit the following link:\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.saveourstate.org\/forums\/index.php?showtopic=7919\r\n\r\n\r\n---------\r\n\r\nIn case you missed it, Save Our State was recently \r\nmentioned in a Chicago\r\nTribune article that picked up by hundreds of papers \r\naround the country. \r\nThe story focused on Home Depot and day laborer \r\ncenters. You can read it\r\nhere:\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.saveourstate.org\/forums\/index.php?showtopic=7764\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThanks again for all of your support.\r\n\r\n\r\nJoseph Turner\r\nExecutive Director\r\nSave Our State - 501(c)(3)\r\n\r\nIf you would like to donate via PayPal or via credit \r\ncard and take\r\nadvantage of our 501(c)(3)status, please go to the \r\nfollowing link and\r\nclick on the appropriate donation icons:\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.saveourstate.org\/donate.html\r\n\r\nIf you would like to contribute with a check or money \r\norder, please make\r\npayable to:\r\n\r\nSave Our State\r\nPO Box 91000\r\nSan Bernardino, CA 92427\r\n\r\n[If you would like to be removed from this email list, \r\nplease respond with\r\n'remove' in the subject line. My apologies for the \r\ninconvenience.]","author":"justice","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-14 07:26:01","modified":"2006-02-14 21:13:11","fileurl":""},{"id":147550,"heading":"MIKE ALMEIDA, SOS\/NAZI, (enhanced pic)","article":"MIKE ALMEIDA, SOS\/NAZI WHO RESIDES IN REDONDO BEACH, IS IN THE MIDDLE\r\nCLICK....\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/64.4.61.250\/cgi-bin\/getmsg\/m%2ejpg?&msg=EF2D3669-8290-4083-9BF0-AB1FEC111C6E&start=0&len=25133&mimepart=3&curmbox=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001&b=427297dcd412a5a54bd525db72959f46&disk=10.1.106.202_d363&login=raul70&domain=hotmail%2ecom&_lang=EN&country=US&SafeRedirect=%26hm___ts%3d1140125292%26hm___cacheh%3d1%26hm___ha%3d8a0f8b0c4b6a486b357de6d1c34efa2f\r\n\r\nOH YEAH!!!!\r\n\r\nGWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK GWAK ","author":"THIS IS LORI SILVA","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-17 21:31:55","modified":"2006-02-23 06:15:25","fileurl":""},{"id":148066,"heading":"Costa Mesa Boycott a Bust","article":"http:\/\/www.dailypilot.com\/opinion\/story\/38469p-57136c.html\r\n\r\nJudging by the letters that have come into the Daily Pilot, the proposed boycott of Costa Mesa businesses that don't show their opposition to the city's planned enforcement of immigration laws is backfiring, and in a serious way. Letter-writers have been unanimous in their objection to the boycott, which would target businesses that don't post signs announcing they oppose the enforcement plan. Many even have said they would boycott only businesses that post such signs.\r\n\r\nThe protesters, led by Santa Ana's Nativo Lopez and his group, Citizens for Constitutional Rights, are pursuing nonviolent means of protest. Civil disobedience of this sort has a rich and powerful history in the United States, highlighted by the Civil Rights movement, as well as beyond our borders -- India's Mohandas Gandhi being the most obvious example.\r\n\r\nHowever, the protesters in Costa Mesa are targeting the wrong people in this case. The businesses they are threatening do not deserve to be pulled into this fight. (Protesting outside Councilman Gary Monahan's restaurant at least targets one of the three councilmen who voted for the policy.) Residents of Newport-Mesa clearly understand that.\r\nWe wish that the opponents of the Costa Mesa plan -- and there are reasons to oppose it, including that it essentially adds nothing to how sheriff's deputies already handle serious criminals and will cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars -- had understood that as well and thought through their boycott more thoroughly.\r\n\r\nWere the boycott to succeed, who, really, would suffer? The owners of bigger businesses likely could ride through the reduced revenue. But owners of smaller businesses -- the ones most likely to be locally owned -- don't have the same financial cushion. They could see their livelihoods dry up.\r\n\r\nAnd who do the protesters think would suffer first? It would be the workers, especially those with low-paying jobs. In a worst-case scenario, given the racial overtones that are inescapably a part of this debate, it is not hard to imagine hundreds of Latino workers tossed out of work because of the boycott's success.\r\n\r\nIf the opponents of the city's plan want to put a halt to it, they should renounce their boycott and pursue a different type of protest.\r\n\r\n \r\n","author":"Mexicana","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-23 06:16:04","modified":"2006-02-23 06:16:04","fileurl":""},{"id":148073,"heading":"I dunno... seems shrewd to me","article":"The boycott seems to be a shrewd one to me. It pressures employers to defend their employees, if they have Latino workers. It pressures businesses to acknowledge their customers who are affected by the law.\r\n\r\nNo business owner ever wants to take sides and alienate customers. But, if he has some Latino employees, and they helped him make payments on his $900,000 house, maybe, just maybe, he can be sympathetic to their plight.\r\n\r\nOr maybe he has a nanny from Central America, and maybe he's got a little teeny-tiny soft spot in his heart for the woman who is raising his child, and he could be motivated to oppose the law. Just maybe.\r\n\r\nMaybe he's just interested in money, and doesn't want to lose customers to businesses in other cities that don't have the law. This would depend on the business and its customers, of course.\r\n\r\nI'd assume that all the businesses have formed an opinion about this law, but, as usual, they aren't saying anything. Taking sides is often bad for business. They'd rather just make donations to candidates.","author":"johnk","parent_id":146946,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-23 08:33:04","modified":"2006-02-23 08:33:04","fileurl":""}]}