Civil rights advocates, Democrats, and Latino students are alarmed, but not surprised, at the newest installment of Gov. PatMcCrory’s plan to rapidly dismantle progress in North Carolina: eliminate the Office of Hispanic/Latino Affairs.

The Latino community has every right to be alarmed, asMcCrory’s actions mirror a national trend by extreme, paranoid Republicans to disenfranchise and reject the legitimacy of Latinos and other immigrants.

It seems that McCrory is competing with Gov. Jan Brewer (R-AZ) to see which state can have the most intrusive, unnecessary immigration laws – even McCrory’s best friend, Gov. Scott Walker (R-WN), has openly rejected a campaign pledge to bring legislation before the Wisconsin legislature.

Meanwhile in Raleigh, the Republican’s “Scarlet Letter” initiative, to include a pink strip on NC driver’s licenses, was recently defeated by Democrats, civil rights groups, and Latino advocacy groups, to the disappointment of the purportedly inclusiveMcCrory Administration.

Despite this minor “victory” to remove the colored strip, the state Division of Motor Vehicles will still include the offensive phrase “NO LEGAL STATUS” on the license of every young immigrant LEGALLY residing in the U.S. under federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

With data (interestingly enough) gathered from the Office of Hispanic/Latino Affairs, it is clear that the Latino population in NC is booming – so, can Republicans afford to support such attacks?

Currently at 8.6 percent, the Hispanic/Latino population swelled 943 percent between 1990 and 2010, accounting for 25 percent of NC’s total population change.

By including a blatant lie on driver’s licenses, coupled with the Latino outreach office’s closure, the GOP’s message to Latinos is clear: you are not welcome.