Tyrrell on Jesse Jackson

“Irresponsible rogue” was latched to the name of the Rev. Jesse Jackson on the Op-Ed Page (Jan. 12). The accuser is the present editor-in-chief of the American Spectator, a well-read magazine regarding politics. Whether his affiliations are liberal (which they are not), or conservative is his own prerogative.

My concern with R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. is his accusation that Jackson is anti-American. This is a word that seems to slip out of so many Republican lips more and more frequently. Whatever happened to the “American way,” a choice good or bad, left or right? Perhaps my educational upbringing is not as qualified as the good editor; maybe my East Los Angeles blood runs too thick to grasp his way of thinking.

I’m not in favor of all the Democratic Party platforms, but I do know that the Republicans have had more than a few who have been convicted of political crimes such as Spiro Agnew, H.R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman and Oliver North. And a few others who should be convicted.

There have been days in my life when I was lucky to be alive at nightfall. It is a real eye-opener to have someone drive slowly next to you as you walk on the sidewalk and say, “Where are you from?” Living in the barrio has its risks, and I accept that. These petty gangsters are not educated, have not seen what the world has to offer outside of their small turf. But people who endanger the fabric of “true Americanism” are the ones I see as despicable. People who have been educated at the finer institutions, but resort to petty gangster methods to achieve their goals.

To call someone anti-American for being a Democrat is what Tyrrell is emphasizing. He’s the kind of guy Sen. Joseph McCarthy would have been proud of.

FRANCISCO ZAPATA

East Los Angeles