The Deep Comic Roots of ‘Self-Deportation’ - NYTimes.com
The two men started a satirical media campaign to support the initiative, faxing radio and television stations a fake news release that touted the benefits of “self-deportation centers” and invited reporters seeking more information to call a Latino Republican and “militant self-deportationist” named Daniel D. Portado. Eventually the men founded “Hispanics Against Liberal Takeover,” or Halto, and produced a mock radio ad, in which Portado claimed to support “California Gov. Pete Wilson’s self-deportation message.”
Apparently unaware that Portado was a fictional character, in Nov. 1994 the Spanish-language channel Telemundo invited him to appear on television defending the proposed ballot initiative just days before voters went to the polls. The comedians accepted the invitation, and Mr. Alcaraz showed up, pretending to be Portado, with Mr. Zul at his side, playing the part of the conservative activist’s bodyguard. In an e-mail to The Lede on Tuesday, Mr. Alcaraz recalled, “I was in character at the Telemundo show, and neither the participants nor the producers were aware of our true identity.” Two years after the event, Mr. Zul told The Chicago Reader, “It was the longest half-hour of my life.”
