2,000 tacos delivered to 'I might have tacos' mayor [View all]

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2,000 tacos delivered to 'I might have tacos' mayor

Jessica Hill / AP

Dixon Jimenez, right, delivers tacos to East Haven, Conn. Mayor Joseph Maturo Jr., Jan. 26. Maturo has expressed remorse for saying he "might have tacos" to do something for his town's besieged Latino community - but he has no plans to step down.

By James Eng, msnbc.com


A Connecticut mayor who sparked a firestorm of criticism for quipping “I might have tacos” when interviewed by a TV reporter about the arrest of four town police officers accused of racially profiling and bullying Latino residents got more than he bargained for.

More than 2,000 tacos were delivered to the office of East Haven Mayor Joseph Maturo on Thursday, ordered by people who found his comments insensitive racially offensive. The send-the-mayor-a-taco campaign, which took off via tweets, cellphone texts and social-media shares, was organized by Reform Immigration for America, a group that advocates comprehensive immigration reform.
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A bulk order of 500 tacos was hand-delivered to the mayor’s office by members of Junta for Progressive Action, a Latino nonprofit in New Haven, Conn. Others texted in individual orders.

In a letter accompanying the bulk delivery, Junta for Progressive Action said:

“These are serious allegations against the state of civic affairs in your community – yet when asked what you personally would be doing to address racial discrimination in East Haven, you made a mockery of the crisis by suggesting that eating tacos is enough to help the Latino community in the wake of this tragedy.

Your subsequent apology isn’t enough to make up for allowing institutionalized racism in a police force and city government.

Maturo wasn’t in the office when the delivery was made, the group said.

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