Is email a cause to question the attack on Julián Castro?

Victor Landa, NewsTaco

I get that there are some people who don’t like the way Julián Castro is running specific parts of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. I understand that they think he could do better or do more. I see what they mean when they disagree with the way he handeled  the sale of mortgages to Wall Street firms and not to non-profits (it makes perfect sense when the criticism comes from the non-profits that feel slighted).

What I don’t get is why this issue became a personal attack. This is part of an email circulated by Presente.org:

“It’s a situation where the Clinton campaign wants Castro to be a major asset to her chances of winning the White House, and unless he changes his position related to foreclosures and loans, he’ll be a toxic asset to the Clinton campaign,” said Matt Nelson, the managing director for Presente.org, the nation’s largest Latino organizing group that focuses on social justice.

It’s one thing to say that Castro is mucking-up the job. It’s another to say he’s toxic and would be a bad Vice-President, as Presente.org did. There is no need to stab at the rumored Veep nomination unless the intent has nothing to do with mortgages. Why do that?

And let’s be clear about one thing. I think it’s healthy and needed for Latinos to call-out Latino leaders. And it’s just as healthy to keep a skeptical eye on motives.

Case in point: Yesterday Presente.org,  distributed another email, this one is a fund-raising email with Castro as the central rallying cry. Here’s what it says.

Dear ____,

You’ve probably seen that thousands of members like you have joined our campaign “Tell HUD Secretary Julián Castro to stop selling our neighborhoods to Wall Street”.1 Instead of assisting Latino and other families vulnerable to losing their homes, the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Distressed Asset Stabilization Program (DASP) is on the side of reckless big Wall Street banks. You read that right—the very banks that caused the housing crisis continue to profit off our communities.

Will you contribute to stop Big Banks profiting from the ongoing housing crisis?<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=1&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>

HUD’s program claims to help homeowners stay in their homes, but big Wall Street banks are buying mortgages (at deep discounts!) from families who are struggling to avoid homelessness. But here’s the good news. DASP could prioritize selling distressed properties to community-based organizations that help families get back on their feet. That’s why we are urging Julián Castro to stand with us and champion Latino families, not Wall Street banks.

YES! I’ll help stop Wall Street from hurting Latino families.<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=2&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>
[stopsellingourhomestowallstreet]<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=3&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>

Latino communities are still recovering from the predatory subprime mortgage crisis. Millions of Americans lost generations of wealth. Did you know that Latinos lost more than two-thirds of our wealth between 2007-2011, and African-Americans lost more than a third? We can’t condone this cycle of big banks profiting off our neighbors.

Will you help us see this fight through? Tens of thousands have already joined us to call for Julián Castro’s immediate intervention to stop selling our families to Wall Street—but we can’t waste any time. I think you’ll understand what’s at stake for Latino families. Can you chip in $5, $10, or $25 to help see this campaign through?<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=4&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>

We urgently need your help. Presente and our partner organizations are already under attack for this bold campaign.2 That means people are paying attention to your emails and petitions! Please, will you support Presente today with $5 to help stay the course?<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=5&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>

Your gift will directly impact our ability to continue strong, independent efforts to hold all elected officials accountable—regardless of their political party or positions of power! Let’s make sure Sec. Castro hears our voices on this critical housing issue. Together, we can encourage him to make the right choice and distance himself from ongoing Wall Street exploitation of Latino families.

We want to emphasize to you exactly what’s at stake if we fail. In 2015, Julián Castro’s HUD promised to sell more mortgages to nonprofits and community organizations. But incredibly, HUD continues to sell more mortgages to Wall Street and fewer to nonprofits and community-based financial institutions!3 Without a change, you can imagine what’s next. More people losing their homes. More families experiencing homelessness. More vulnerable Latinos losing out while big banks win. Will you chip in $5 today to stand with Latino families?<https://act.presente.org/go/1887?t=6&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3>

Thank you for all you do and ¡adelante!

– Favianna, Matt, Oscar, Erick, and the Presente.org<http://presente.org> team.

P.S. Can you donate $5 to support our work?<https://act.presente.org/go/1888?t=7&akid=1446.55853.NJg-a3> We rely on contributions from people like you to see campaigns like this through.

Granted, there’s no mention of Castro’s toxicity in the fund-raiser, neither is there mention of Castro being on a VP list. But it makes you look at the personal attack in a new light. As if the original strike served to tee-up the consequent fund-raiser.

And that’s OK too, becasue that’s part of the big-time game and fund-raising is a pesky part of the non-profit world.

So there is no problem here, just a big-tent reality: you will be measured by the same yardstick.

It’s OK to criticize leadership, and it’s OK as well to suspect the motives of the critic.