I don't think any comment on that site sums it up more than that one.
I don't think any comment on that site sums it up more than that one.
This conviction is a pretty fucking vile turn of events, and it is fundamentally tied to the racist fears about voter fraud that are, themselves, sublated attempts to prevent "illegitimate" populations from voting:
"It's very much about voter intimidation: “I don’t think I’ll ever vote again,” she told the news outlet after her indictment. “That’s being honest. I’ll never vote again.”"
The vast majority of folks in Texas are, IMO, racist, and often in ways that they don't understand. Like, they are often not Klan members. But they do often think that "hispanics" are simultaneous "lazy" and willing to out work them to "take their jobs". This conviction is yet another example of that kind of bigotry... it just seems like a natural, common sense kind of thing to the racists in Texas (note that I didn't say all Texans, thanks).
These are common ideas here among the white folks, who largely are the folks who have the political power to make crazy, fantasy-based laws about voting practices and then equal power to create and enforce these laws. This woman is basically a sacrifice on the alter to reifying those fantasies about voter fraud.
And the people here are indeed very much about retributive, rather than restorative or transformative justice. So on that account, yes, you're totally right: this conviction is 100% about the happy reification of a fantasy that people are out to commit fraud.
This lady is basically a sacrifice to that fantasy:
“This case shows how serious Texas is about keeping its elections secure, and the outcome sends a message that violators of the state’s election law will be prosecuted to the fullest,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said after Ortega was sentenced. ”
So fuck Ken Paxton, and fuck anybody who thinks that this is a reasonable kind of thing.
Is that referring to "Aufheben"?[1]
Is the relevant group predominantly white? Yes, probably. That doesn't make it acceptable to paint all white people with that brush. Imagine if I made a similar comment about black people and shootings.