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25,000 March Downtown

Posted on: Tuesday, 11 April 2006, 09:00 CDT

By Jessie Mangaliman, Joe Rodriguez and Sandra Gonzales, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.

Apr. 11--In the South Bay's biggest immigrant protest in 20 years -- and the largest in California on Monday -- thousands of immigrants and their supporters marched shoulder to shoulder down San Jose streets from the East Side to City Hall.

The historic gathering was repeated by hundreds of thousands in dozens of U.S. cities in a National Day of Action for Immigrant Justice.

San Jose's march grew into a mile-long procession that moved steadily down South King Road and swelled to as many as 25,000 protesters, according to police estimates, by the time the throng reached City Hall.

Many of the marchers were illegal immigrants, energized by support from advocates and newly emboldened to reveal their status in the wake of a national debate over proposed legislation that could decide the future of the nation's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants.

"We're here to support all immigrants," said Edgar Ventura, a 19-year-old construction worker who came illegally to the United States two years ago. He and five others from El Salvador drove from the Peninsula to the rally in a small pickup truck. "We want to show the immigration authorities that we're not criminals."

The procession stretched along Santa Clara Street, led by a group of Aztec dancers in full feather costume.

When the march left the corner of King and Story roads, police estimated the crowd at 2,000 people. By the time it reached the intersection of Alum Rock and King, the crowd had grown to more than 4,000. Dozens of uniformed police on motorcycles, bicycles and horses were nearby, observing. Nearly 2 million protesters marched Monday in 10 states and 70 cities. In California, officials said 5,000 marched in Fresno and 10,000 in Los Angeles. San Jose's marchers came from all over Northern California.

"We're here to say it's a united country of immigrants," said Carmen Puga, 36, a teacher's aide who drove from Watsonville. . She and her son, Hector, 13, held up a hand-painted map of the United States, each state emblazoned with a flag of another nation.

Many marchers waved American flags alongside the Mexican flag. Others draped them like ponchos on shoulders, or wrapped them, bandanna-style, around the heads of children. Clusters of white balloons floated above the crowd of people straining to listen to speeches by labor and religious leaders and immigrants. Many wore white T-shirts, the signature color of recent immigrant rallies.

Each of the speakers denounced legislation approved by the House of Representatives late last year that would make felons of illegal immigrants and impose criminal penalties on those who help them.

A more moderate Senate bill collapsed last week amid angry debate. It proposed to offer a path to citizenship to millions of illegal immigrants and to enhance border protection and a guest worker program.

With the Senate on a two-week break, the future of the bill, favored by labor and immigrants, may be in doubt, but it hasn't slowed the growing immigrant protests.

"All across the country we're finding immigrant and native born are all coming out together," said Anna Burger, chairwoman of Change to Win, a national federation of seven unions that represents 6 million workers around the country. "People are standing up for the rights of immigrant workers."

"Is it energizing? Definitely," said Rosa Campos, a retired public school teacher who joined the rally at City Hall where Burger spoke.

Though orderly, the march caused traffic headaches as the California Highway Patrol closed off-ramps to Alum Rock Avenue on Highway 101 and King Road on Interstate 680 to help the marchers along. Traffic was also jammed along Santa Clara Street and King Road, San Jose Police Lt. Kevin Smith said.

"I've never seen a demonstration this size in San Jose," said Smith, who supervised traffic control. "It was extremely well organized. The demonstrators were very respectful."

On Alum Rock, Vietnamese, Latino and Portuguese business owners stood on sidewalks, pumping fists, flashing peace signs and waving to the marchers in solidarity. Some joined in the march to the cheers of the walkers while others played Latino music. Motorists driving by honked and waved.

"We just want to show the American people that we are peaceful," Puga said, "and that we're here for the same reasons they are: equal opportunities."

Puga was 6 years old when she and her mother crossed illegally into the United States from Mexico. She is now a U.S. citizen and married to Marco Lanton, whose great-grandfather was an Italian immigrant from Mexico.

Although the call for immigration reform has been characterized as an issue that affects just Latinos, its impact is broader, said Larisa Casillas, policy director for Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network.

Many non-profit groups that serve the Bay Area's diverse immigrant community joined Monday's rally. "I know many in the African community in San Jose who would be hurt" by strict, punitive immigration laws, said Musa Kamara, a political refugee from Sierra Leone who was at the rally.

The Vietnamese are political refugees, too, and "share the experience of all immigrants, no matter where they come from," said Khanh Tran, a union representative for the United Food Commercial Workers Local 428.

"We have to be here with other immigrants to join voices."

And their call to action is far from over: Organizers are planning a national protest on May 1, and will ask immigrants, laborers and supporters to skip work to illustrate their impact on the economy.

Contact Jessie Mangaliman at jmangaliman@mercurynews. com or (408) 920-5794.

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Copyright (c) 2006, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.

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Source: San Jose Mercury News

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