McCarthy Tactics Are Unfair to Villaraigosa.

I feel compelled to respond to Joel Kotkin's Sept. 4 commentary, "Gadfly Could Represent Trouble for Antonio Villaraigosa's Bid (for L.A. Mayor)." Mr. Kotkin obviously is employing McCarthy tactics and trying to damage Assemblyman Antonio Villaraigosa's bid for mayor and in the process assassinating the character of those with whom Kotkin has a problem.

Fact, he bases his information on Hal Netkin's Web page (which incidentally solicits funding). Netkin, for the record, has been active for some time in anti-Latino crusades, i.e., Proproposition 187 and 227, the anti-immigrant and anti-bilingual education initiatives. If I wanted to use Mr. Kotkin's tactics, I would also point out that Netkin is close to Barbara Coe and Glenn Spencer, two other anti-Latino zealots who occupy the extreme right of the political spectrum.

Kotkin points out that Villaraigosa was once a member of MECHA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlana). Besides getting the spelling of the name wrong, Mr. Kotkin misrepresents the group. MECHA is hardly a monolithic organization. It differs from campus to campus, has a diverse ethnic membership, and its members hold diverse ideologies. Its members are involved in university outreach and community activities, such as helping immigrants to fill out citizenship papers.

Kotkin accuses MECHA of having a nationalist ideology that he calls Aztlan. In baiting fashion, he makes Aztlan appear as something sinister, which it is not. The truth is the notion of Aztlan varies among most Chicanos. Roughly, it means that Chicanos have indigenous blood, and that those of Azteca lineage originated from AztIan, which was supposedly in the American Southwest.

The notion is similar to Zionism. In any case, a belief in Aztlan is not a litmus test to belonging to MECHA. I, for one, do not believe in Aztlan. I do, however, believe that the U.S. invaded Mexico and that there has been injustice here.

Then Kotkin quotes Netkin as saying, "Dime con quien andas y te dire quien eres." ("Show me who you hang out with and I'll tell you who you are.")

In the context that Kotkin uses it, it is pure and simple guilt by association. If you know a communist, you are a communist, in other words. He then says that netkin is calling for Villaraigosa to dissociate himself from me and two of my friends.

Here Kotkin exposes himself. He lays the blame on Netkin. Well, I searched Netkin's Web site and could not find any reference to me, although there was a reference to my friends. Mr. Kotkin in the past has taken occasion to malign me, so he played loose with the facts. Then he insinuates that my friends and I are racist against whites, which is a lie. In fact, I would have welcomed the accusation in print so I could have sued Kotkin for malicious libel. He has established a pattern of egregious behavior.

Lastly, Kotkin intentionally mixes ideas such as nationalists and radical academics. His rhetoric is sophomoric, and intended to play Jews against Mexicans. I think people should be honest about whom they are.

Kotkin is hardly an academic himself. He is a research fellow at Pepperdine's ultraconservative School of Social Public Policy. He is not a faculty member and does not have a terminal degree. Given his associates at Pepperdine I could repeat Netkin's saying, "Dime con quien andas y te dire quien eres," and point out that he is an associate and disciple of James Q. Wilson, co-author of "Crime in the Human Nature," which draws the link between genes and crime. Wilson's co-author was Richard Hermstein, who was co-author of "The Bell Curve." Nevertheless, this would serve little purpose.

For the record, I am not supporting anyone in the mayoral election. I am disappointed with most Latino elected officials, specifically for their lack of leadership during the Rampart scandal and for allowing the corporate takeover of the Los Angeles Unified School District. I was born in this city, and I know that all of the animals are not equal, in spite of the doublespeak of the

Kotkins of this world.

Rodolfo F. Acuna, Ph.D., is a professor of Chicano Studies at California State University, Northridge.