SALINAS CALIFORNIAN May 2, 2007
March draws fewer people A year after more than 13,000 people marched in Monterey County in support of comprehensive immigration reform, several thousand returned to city streets Tuesday, vowing to keep the debate going. Participants gathered in front of St. Mary of the Nativity Catholic Church before taking to the streets of Salinas. Immigration rallies held across the country produced only a fraction of the million-plus protesters who turned out last year, as fear about raids - and frustration that earlier marches didn't push Congress to pass reform - kept many at home. Still, thousands of marchers gathered in cities including Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago and Miami. In Salinas, the first group of marchers arrived about 1 p.m. from Castroville. More people - farm workers, students, families and commu- nity leaders - gathered two hours later across from Closter Park. "We are together here because we all want to earn that (U.S. citizenship) ID card that we need to have rights," said Jose Antonio Medellin Hernandez, who stood in the shade holding a sign calling for fair immigration reform. Hernandez works in a packing plant and said he and other workers are an important part of the local economy. "We come here to work and are just asking for respect," he said in Spanish. The marchers set off about 3:30 p.m. carrying a sea of American and red and black United Farm Workers flags. The group marched up Towt Street before returning down North Sanborn Road and East Alisal Street. Police escorted the marchers, blocking off streets as the crowd moved by. 'We just had to come'"I think many people became disillusioned after last year's marches didn't bring much change in the law," said Salinas resident Cecelia Garcia, who marched with her family, each member decked out with American flags and Uncle Sam-style top hats. "We were among those who at first didn't think marching today would help, but we just had to come out in support of everyone." During the 2006 "National Day of Action" march, a number of businesses in east Salinas closed for the day and area students walked out of classes or did not attend school at all. This year, the march began later in the day, and several people said they came after they finished their work or school day. Jim Bogart, president of the Salinas-based Grower-Shipper Association of the Central Coast, said he received no calls from local companies or members and didn't hear of any harvest crews being short workers or interrupting harvesting because of people leaving early. "A lot is based on last year," Bogart said, "when our companies made clear to employees, 'Look, the agriculture industry has been in favor of comprehensive immigration reform for more than 10 years, and agriculture leaders have been lobbying in Washington, D.C., for an effective guest worker program and a path to legal status.'" No students in the Alisal Union School District, which serves a high percentage of farmworker families, were reported walking out of class Tuesday to participate in the march, said district superintendent Ruben Pulido. In 2006, the district reported that a large number of students had left early or not attended school in order to take part in protests. The local march was sponsored by the Alianza Primero de Mayo (First of May Alliance), formed in advance of last year's immigration reform push. County residents have held smaller marches, rallies and voter registration drives in the past year, following the motto "today we march, tomorrow we vote." Immigration rights advocates said they are concerned with a lack of progress on immigration reform in Congress, as well as ongoing nationwide raids to capture undocumented immigrants. This past March in Congress, Reps. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., and Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., introduced new immigration reform legislation that includes both an earned path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and increased border and interior security. A similar bill is expected in the Senate later this year. "It's important to be able to continue to have an open dialogue about immigration," said Jose Ibarra, an organizer with the Alianza group. "We need to come up with some legislation that is comprehensive and fair to all parties."
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