The “Woke Taliban” Come for Gov. Pete Wilson’s Statue in California

The radical left-wing iconoclasts in North America and Western Europe demanding that historic statues be taken down (or pulling them down themselves) have been dubbed the “woke Taliban,” after the radical Islamist fanatics notorious for smashing statues – and anything else associated with an “impure” past – during their tyrannical rule over Afghanistan. Recently, the San Diego statue of former California Governor Pete Wilson (R) also fell victim to pressure by the “woke” mob, in large part as a result of Wilson’s no-nonsense stance on illegal immigration in the 1990s.

Wilson was the mayor of San Diego for more than a decade, from 1971 to 1983, after which he represented the Golden State in the U.S. Senate from 1983 to 1991. During his tenure as governor (1991 – 1999) Wilson became famous – and on the left, infamous – for supporting Proposition 187. The ballot initiative passed with 59 percent support in November 1994 (the proposition won a majority in all parts of California, except for the ultra-liberal San Francisco Bay area). The intent of the legislation was to discourage illegal migration to California by ensuring that only U.S. citizens and legal immigrants have access to public benefits and services, including taxpayer-funded non-emergency healthcare and education. Following lawsuits by the ACLU and ethnic, pro-illegal-alien advocacy groups, the law was blocked in federal district court. Wilson’s successor, Gray Davis (D), withdrew the state’s appeal of the ruling.

However, according to long-time ethnic and pro-illegal-alien activist Enrique Morones, who led the charge to remove Pete Wilson’s statue, the former governor’s initiative was “racist” and “unified the Latino community and supporters of human rights, against him” (the implication  being that taxpayer-funded public services for people in the country unlawfully are somehow  “human rights”).

Under such pressure, the statue – which had been standing since 2007 near Horton Plaza Park in San Diego – was removed by Horton Walk, the nonprofit that owns the property on which the offending statue was located. The company’s president, Steve Williams, stated that “all property … whether statues or real property … must be protected,” and the statue was therefore moved to another location for “safekeeping.” No decision had been made on when, or if, it will ever return. Given Williams’ language, it is likely that the company feared that the statue would be vandalized.

The notion that the statue faced the threat of vandalism or destruction is further bolstered by the comments of Wilson’s law partner and former chief of staff, Sean Walsh, who said that it is “regrettable that intimidation tactics similar to those used in Seattle, Portland, Oakland and other cities across the country are causing individuals and businesses to protect themselves.” He added that “our country, our society cannot be ruled by the threat of intimidation and violence.”

Unfortunately, the “woke” mob – including radical pro-illegal-alien activists – arrogantly believes that such threats are fair game in its self-righteous, Taliban-like quest to erase any history it does not like, be it America’s Founding Fathers or a governor who attempted to stem and discourage mass illegal migration into his state.