The Latino demonstrators were responding to comments by Mayor Nicholas Capozzi, who called Hispanic residents "Spaniolis" and called the sections of the village where they live "a --- hole," according to a taped conversation he had with a local contractor. The 10 demonstrators, who said they were undocumented construction workers, held American flags and signs saying "Amamos a America" (we love America), "Capozzi is a racist - stop the hate," and "Nosotros no somos Spanyolees" (we are not Spanyolees). Drivers passing on Manorhaven Boulevard honked and gave thumbs-up signs or pumped their fists in the air, apparently expressing support for the protesters.
One Salvadoran man, 39, who has lived in Manorhaven since 1981, said: "We pay taxes like everybody else. Why is he a wise guy about us?" "He's a racist guy," said the man, who declined to give his name because he is undcoumented.
Another man, 28, came to Manorhaven from Mexico nine years ago, and who also declined to give his name because he is undocumented, said the mayor "doesn't want Spanish people working here. I don't understand it. We pay taxes like everybody else.
To me it's not fair for him to call us names." The four-term mayor of the 6,000 resident village on the North Shore, made the comments in a 41-minute cell phone conversation with local contractor Danny Aiello, according to a news report. "The Spaniolis are rolling all over the --- place.
They rent out the place and put locks on every door. It's gotta stop," Capozzi said, according to taped conversations first played on WCBS 2 news Monday night. Referring to a heavily Latino area in Manorhaven, Capozzi was recorded as saying, "Do you drive down that --- block?
It looks like --- Harlem. It looks worse than Harlem. It's a --- hole over there.
" In interviews with CBS, Capozzi initially denied making the comments. In a subsequent interview to be aired Tuesday night, he said the word "Spanioli" was not derogatory. "They don't think it's derogatory because they use it themselves," Capozzi told CBS.
Manorhaven has become increasingly diverse in the last decade. Nearly a quarter of its population is now Latino.
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