LPOA Volunteers, Milwaukee Police And Mexican Fiesta Ban Suspected Gang Members From Annual Event

MPD Officer Alexander C. Ayala wearing white cap.

Numerous people were wearing yellow and black at Fiesta.

Photos: HNG/HNNUSA

Anyone identified (profiled) as a possible gang member, wearing colors, face tattoos or affiliated to any suspected gang by police intelligence at the Summerfest grounds is being denied entrance to the festival.

By H. Nelson Goodson

August 24, 2013

Milwaukee, WI - On Saturday, Milwaukee Police Officer Alexander C. Ayala, an acting Latino Peace Officers Association volunteer for security at Mexican Fiesta 2013 denied entrance to a 30-year-old man and didn't even refund his money at the festival front gates. The 30-year-old man was kicked out on Friday because he was wearing yellow and black and was apparently identified by Milwaukee police as a gang member.

Hundreds of people were wearing yellow and black at the festival, including on Saturday and they were still allowed to remain at the event.

The 30-year-old man on Saturday was wearing a t-shirt saying Texas and was entering the fiesta grounds with family members to enjoy a day of festivities when Milwaukee Police Officer Borst stopped him and told him he was not welcome to the Summerfest grounds. The incident drew attention publicly and people entering the grounds stopped to noticed the incident.

Officer Borst then talked to Officer Ayala who was called to the scene about the man. Ayala told family members that they and Mexican Fiesta had a right to refuse admittance to anyone, making reference to the back of the ticket policy. He said that police intelligence had identified the would-be festivalgoer as a gang member or affiliate and was cause enough to ban him from the festival, despite that the 30-year-old man had done nothing illegal on Friday at the grounds. He was never cited for any wrong doing at the festival.

The 30-year-old man's mother asked Officer Ayala to identify the police intelligence source and Ayala denied the request.

Officer Ayala also threaten to kick out Hispanic News Network U.S.A. (HNNUSA) from the festival, banned for Sunday or even get arrested for disorderly conduct for covering the incident and trying to give advice to Ayala that, what he was doing could possibly be grounds for a lawsuit by the 30-year-old man and his family. Ayala would not take the advice and would not listen to reason, since they have been practicing their alleged right to kick out, refuse admittance, ban people from the Summerfest grounds during Mexican Fiesta for the last two years. Ayala didn't even care about a costly lawsuit resulting from Saturday's afternoon incident.

Ayala told HNNUSA that they have been kicking people out from the festival or barred people for the last several years due to their police intelligence of identifying suspected or would-be gang members, in order to keep it a family festival.
Officer Ayala said that the 30-year-old man "was identified by the Milwaukee Police Department last night as a (gang name excluded) member...we have a right to kick out anybody out (according to the back ticket info.) and we are exercising that right...he was told not to come back and he is trespassing."
"Gang members are not allowed in the festival...this is a family environment and we don't want any gang members past, present or future. No gang members allowed. We had this for the last three-years and this (policy) is nothing new. If you're identified as a past (name of gang excluded) or any gang member or a current gang member, you are not allowed on the grounds. This is a family environment and we don't want any violence, so we are not discriminating against anybody because of sex, gender, race or anything...we are not labeling, we are identifying...if you want to sue Fiesta, do it the right way, send them a lawsuit, don't threaten me or warn me," Ayala said.

The mother and father of the 30-year-old man say, that they will seek legal advice and possible legal action against LPOA, Mexican Fiesta and the Milwaukee Police Department for deliberately discriminating their son and violating his civil rights at the Summerfest grounds.

Apparently,  Officer Ayala, Mexican Fiesta, the Milwaukee Police Department and members of the LPOA haven't been well-trained to avoid profiling people or ban people from the Summerfest grounds because its considered public in nature, even though World Festival rents the grounds to the Wisconsin Hispanic Scholarship Foundation, Inc. who run the three-day Mexican Fiesta annually. Mexican Fiesta is the only ethnic cultural festival who rents the Summerfest grounds and actively discriminates against people who are identified or suspected of being gang affiliated by police intelligence sources at the grounds, HNNUSA found. Even Summerfest and other ethnic festivals that take place during the summer at the grounds don't aggressively discriminate as Mexican Fiesta does.

Summerfest was previously sued by the Milwaukee Outlaws because security and police kicked out members of the Outlaws for having their Colors (vests with club logo) on. Summerfest lost the lawsuit and it was ruled that they could not simply kick out anyone because they were wearing their club logo.


The current Wisconsin Hispanic Scholarship Foundation, Inc. (WHSF) Board of Directors who operate the annual Mexican Fiesta are;

● Antonio Guajardo Jr. (President)
● Gregorio Montoto (1st Vice President)
● Ricardo Ruiz (2nd Vice President)
● Arturo Martinez (Secretary)
● Ernesto Baca (Treasurer)
● Teresa Mercado (Executive Director)
● Ray Bacalzo
● Frank Gonzales
● Woody Welch
● Marjorie Cervera
● Oscar Cervera
● Julio Maldonado
● Luis Gonzalez
● Julio Guix
● Lupe Martinez
● Ruben Burgos
● Jason Hyland
● Diana Moreno
● Asael Ruiz
● Darryl Morin

These Board members can be contacted for information regarding Mexican Fiesta 2013 or WHSF.

Alexander Ayala

Photo: Facebook

Also on Saturday, Rafael Hernández posted on Facebook (FB)  that on Friday, he was escorted out of Mexican Fiesta by Milwaukee police for having tattoos in his face. On Saturday, he covered his face with "tattoo cover-up" and went back to Fiesta, but unfortunately he was again escorted out by police. No refunds were given.
Is the Milwaukee Police Department, LPOA and Mexican Fiesta ripping off people by keeping their money after being kick-out of Fiesta?
Even Mexican Fiesta volunteers of the event were stopped inside the grounds and got their tattoos checked out first before they were allowed to continue after they showed their official Fiesta badges.
FB  friends send messages to South Side Milwaukee County Supervisor Peggy Romo-West and to 12th District Alderman José Pérez about the current discrimination people are facing at Fiesta by police, LPOA and Mexican Fiesta. This type of discrimination has been taking place for the last three years and how many victims were kick-out without getting a refund.
According to comments made in Hernández's FB account by friends, Fiesta and Milwaukee police are turning out to be known in a four letter word "F..k Fiesta Mexicana and police" identities, which is going viral on FB. It sure has become one bad public relation static (nightmare) used by police and Fiesta in dealing with good community relations, marketing and making money or trying to reach out to the younger generation.
Mario Reyes posted on FB, "I am the coordinator for the Mexican Fiesta car show and personally know Rafael Hernández for 20 years. I can guarantee you he has never been in a gang and a matter a fact doesn't even consume alcohol or any drugs at that! I stated this to security and they didn't want to hear it. I also was to told by Officer Ayala that I should be prepared to receive a lot of complaints from my fellow car enthusiast, I said why he stated because he cut some of them slack just for the car show but since it was about to end and some of them were starting to go enjoy the the festival he was going to escort them out! Also my co- coordinator was pulled to the side and asked to see his tattoo on his arm when he stated he was a volunteer for Mexican Fiesta he was told we have to check yours too!"
By HNG/HNNUSA


Milwaukee Police profiling at Mexican Fiesta 2013? (Telemundo 63 news video at) http://bit.ly/17mNzCt