Times Poll : Latinos Split Over Plan for Border Ditch

Although Latino leaders have consistently condemned the controversial proposal for a 4.2-mile ditch along the U.S.-Mexican border in San Diego, fewer than half of local Latinos oppose the idea, the Times Poll has found.

The poll showed that San Diegans are divided in their views of the project and many remain undecided about the ditch proposal, which federal authorities contend is intended primarily to thwart smuggling and channel rain runoff.

Although those who have made up their minds about the ditch favor it, 36% to 27%, another 37% remain undecided about the plan to cut a swath through flatlands near the port of entry at Otay Mesa to prevent vehicles carrying drugs from crossing the border illegally.

Many Latino leaders, however, have expressed skepticism about the motivation behind the proposal, believing that its real purpose is to curtail illegal immigration. Viewing the ditch as an affront comparable to the Berlin Wall, they predict that it will become a symbolic embarrassment to the United States that will do little to stem drug trafficking but may lead to unnecessary injuries among illegal aliens.

But the poll found that, after three months of public debate, Latinos themselves are still divided over the ditch proposal. Forty-one percent of San Diego County Latinos polled said they disapprove of the ditch, 35% expressed support for it and 24% were undecided.

That apparent ambivalence surprised some Latino leaders, many of whom regard the ditch as a litmus issue that should be especially distasteful to Latinos.

“I would have expected the negative feelings to be stronger,” said Roberto Martinez, a South Bay activist who heads the U.S.-Mexico Border Program for the American Friends Service Committee. “But this just shows that we’re not always 100% united on these issues.”

Another explanation offered by Martinez and others for the relatively balanced pro and con opinions among local Latinos is that the issue has been obscured by the government’s description of the ditch as a means of reducing drug smuggling. Others pointed out that San Diego Latinos, particularly those living near the border, are perhaps more adversely affected by illegal immigration than any other group, and therefore might welcome any solution.

“Hispanics who live in San Ysidro or Otay Mesa probably want to solve this problem more than anyone,” said San Diego City Councilman Bob Filner, whose district includes the border area. “They’re the ones who have to put up with the crime in their community and the police running all over the place trying to track down aliens.”

Among other key findings in the poll, people are undecided over whether the ditch will be effective in controlling illegal entry from Mexico, but feel that it will be harmful to U.S.-Mexican relations. In addition, 61% of those polled said they favor more controls at the U.S.-Mexican border, with military troops and electronic surveillance being the preferred options.

The Times Poll is based on telephone interviews conducted Saturday of 811 San Diego County residents. The poll’s overall margin of sampling error is plus or minus 5 percentage points, while the breakdowns on the positions of Latinos, who constituted roughly one quarter of the poll’s respondents, are accurate to within 7 percentage points.

The poll’s finding of a lack of a clear preference either for or against the ditch proposal differs from the results of another poll released earlier this week by a lobbying group that advocates tougher immigration policies. That poll, conducted for the Washington-based Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), showed that 60% of Californians and 57% of San Diego County residents favor construction of the ditch. However, the FAIR poll sampled only registered voters and provided less opportunity for respondents to indicate that they were undecided.

Jess Haro, executive director of the San Diego County Chicano Federation, expressed surprise that the Times Poll found only 36% of San Diegans favoring construction of the ditch and 37% still undecided.

“I think if you put slavery on the ballot, it would win by about 80%,” Haro said. “I’m not being facetious. I really believe that. I think this ditch idea is racist, it’s aimed at keeping Mexicans out, and I’m frankly surprised a lot more people didn’t say they’re for it.”

At the same time, Haro said he is not surprised that only slightly more Latinos--41% to 35%--dislike the ditch proposal than favor it.

“I don’t think there’s much of a knee-jerk reaction where people say, ‘Everything that could be perceived as anti-Latino, I’m against,’ “‘ Haro explained. “Lots of Latinos see themselves first as citizens of this country with a stake in what happens with things like the importation of drugs. To the extent that Mexico is seen as the origin of part of that problem, Latinos want to do something to solve it just as much as anyone else.”

Asked how they believe the ditch would affect U.S.-Mexican relations, 41% of those polled said it would be harmful, 28% saw a positive effect and 30% were undecided. By a 48%-34% margin, Latinos said they believe that the ditch will damage relations between the two countries.

Another question asking whether the ditch will be effective “as a means of stopping illegal entry from Mexico” produced an almost equal division of opinion, with 48% saying it would be successful and 45% disagreeing. Latinos have greater doubts about the feasibility of the plan, as evidenced by the fact that, by a 54%-37% margin, they said the ditch would not be effective.

In contrast to the indecisiveness about the propriety and likely effectiveness of the ditch, San Diegans favor more controls at the border by a more than 2-1 margin--61% to 28%. Although there was less support for that suggestion among Latinos, they, too, favored more border controls by 50% to 41%.

Related Story: Part 11, Page 1