Posted on 03/25/2006 12:20:20 PM PST by Borax Queen
Senator's bill gives illegal entrants five years to leave the country -
Oscar Soto took the day off from his warehouse job Friday to come with his wife, two children, nephew, niece and mother-in-law to an immigrant-rights rally on Tucson's Northwest Side to stand up for himself and his family.
Oscar Cruz managed to get time off from his apartment maintenance job to stand on the front line of the protest at Sen. Jon Kyl's Tucson office, 7315 N. Oracle Road, and hold a cardboard sign with white spray paint that read: "Senator Kyl: No more walls." It rested on top of a sign that read: "Humanitarian Aid Is Never A Crime."
On Friday both were part of an estimated 500 boisterous protesters who hoisted signs, held U.S. and Mexican flags and chanted, sang and shouted when drivers honked in support.
Participants wore white stickers that had the rally's theme in black letters: "We are not the enemy, we are part of the solution" or "No Somos el enemigo, somos parte de la solución."
In Phoenix, an estimated 20,000 people marched to Kyl's office to protest, according to Phoenix police.
Thousands more took part in protests in cities across the country, staging school walkouts, marches and work stoppages.
In Los Angeles where 2,700 students from at least eight high schools and junior high schools walked out, fights broke out between black students and Hispanic students attempting to join the protest.
In Tucson, neither Cruz nor Soto — who have both lived and worked in the United States for more than a decade without permanent residency or citizenship — had ever been to a rally before. But they said they staunchly oppose recent immigration proposals like House Bill 4437 and a proposal from Sens. Kyl, R-Ariz., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, that they believe would make them criminals.
"We want residency," said Cruz, 48, who was born in Nicaragua and lived in El Salvador before arriving in the United States in 1985.
Cruz has been able to work on renewable visas under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act but says he wants a chance to become a legal permanent resident.
Mexican native Soto, 32, wants the same thing. He came here 10 years ago to work and said he pays taxes, obeys laws and respects the culture and government of the United States.
"We came here so they don't treat us like criminals," Soto said about participating in the rally.
Soto's two children, an 8-year-old girl and a 6-year-old boy, are U.S. citizens who were born in this country. He and his wife, Jocabed Soto, are preparing to buy a house. They feel they are law-abiding and productive and deserve the chance to become citizens.
"It is not a crime to work," Oscar Soto said. U.S. citizens Marge and Bill Kinkead of Green Valley joined the largely Spanish-speaking crowd to let lawmakers like Kyl hear their displeasure.
"They deserve some way to come into this country and work without the fear of being sent back in four of five years," said Bill Kinkead, 73, who is a member of Humane Borders.
The Kyl-Cornyn proposal would give illegal entrants up to five years to leave the country. These illegal entrants could apply from their home country to return as temporary workers, or they could apply for permanent residency. House Bill 4437, passed by the House on Dec. 16, would create 700 miles of fence along the border, make living in the country illegally a felony and increase penalties for employers who hire illegal workers.
"We're getting fed up, particularly with the gentleman whose office is behind us," Bill Kinkead said. "I hate the fact that he represents Arizona in Congress." In a written response to Friday's rallies, Kyl didn't address the protesters as much as reiterate his stance on the issues.
"I have advocated for the adoption of a comprehensive plan that increases border security, provides a temporary-worker program, ensures enforcement of our laws at the border and at the workplace, and deals with those illegal immigrants already in the country," the statement said.
Democrat Jim Pederson, who is challenging Kyl for his Senate seat, issued a statement criticizing Kyl's proposal as a last-ditch election-year effort that "borders on fantasy."
He said marchers targeted Kyl's office because "they know that Jon Kyl's immigration plan is no plan at all. It's unworkable, partisan and needlessly divisive." He said he would offer a plan that addresses border enforcement as well as a way to deal with the people already here.
Jennifer Allen, director of the Border Action Network, called Friday's rally one of the biggest immigrant-rights rallies in recent Tucson history. Allen said 200 people showed up in December for a similar rally.
"People know that this is a historic moment and that the immigrant community is part of making history," Allen said. "That's why they are here."
Glenn Spencer, president of the American Border Patrol, which advocates for stricter border enforcement, watched and filmed the protest. He said the relatively small number of cars that honked represented the true sentiment.
Those who didn't honk "are the silent majority," Spencer said. "They do nothing and I think that's a reflection of the polls that show people want our borders controlled."
Cruz and the Sotos said Friday's rally, which concluded about 12:30 p.m., will make an impact.
"It will make them see how many we are and what we want," Jocabed Soto said.
According to FOX, thousands of them came from south and central America for the protests. I would love to know who paid to bring them here.
So, where was McCain?
Really? Including hard working, tax paying, family rearing, English speaking, overwhelmingly YOUNGER people? You're just itching to drive millions of such out of the country, just a few years before nearly two thirds of the adult population in this country will begin retiring and becoming net consumers of taxes (and entering their lowest consumption phase of consumer goods)?
You really think this is wise policy? I'd be asking, "how do we get more, and make them legal?"
Percentage of protesters who would ever vote for Senator Kyl no matter what he did: 0.001%
The illegals and their pals must love McCain and his amnesty.
Really? Including hard working, tax paying, family rearing, English speaking, overwhelmingly YOUNGER people?
I don't think that the segment of the illegal immigration community that would fit into the category described above would approach millions, as you say.
And in no way would I ever "want more" immigrants who care so little for American law, not to mention our culture.
This is a joke. In five years, they will have "legit" ID.
"We want residency," said Cruz, 48, who was born in Nicaragua and lived in El Salvador before arriving in the United States in 1985.
Cruz has been able to work on renewable visas under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act but says he wants a chance to become a legal permanent resident.
He's been here 21 years and hasn't become a citizen? Amazing arrogance!
BTW, just in case there is any confusion, the photos posted on the thread so far are from the protests in LA (I think all are from yesterday?). Same reason, different city. There was a photo for this particular article, but it had disappeared the last time I checked.
That's a good question. I can't get over the level of organization it must have taken.
I'm thinking that a lot of corporate money went into this "investment". This is also the sort of thing George Soros does.
You start by being fair to the people who apply to come here legally. The bar for legal immigration isn't all that high, though it is time consuming. The basics:
A sane policy decides how many immigrants we need and which are likely to make the best citizens and then selects from the applicant pool accordingly. An insane policy favors those of a certain ethnicity who are politically the best-connected.
The Kyl-Coryn bill is not perfect, but is probably the best thing which is politically possible to pass. I'm willing to give it five years and tie the number of legal visas granted inversely proportional to the number of illegals who leave the country, voluntarily or otherwise.
And, by the way, I have no problem at all with a Mexican construction worker applying for legal residency and citizenship so long as it is done on a fair and equal basis as, say, a construction worker from Poland.
Oh My Gosh, BG! I think I'm gonna throw up. LOL I saw this on Fox News and I could hardly believe my eyes. Can you believe the nerve of those CRIMINALS? THIS is exactly how they are going to do every time they want their own way. This is how they will change the political face of America. It's no wonder that Mexico is so corrupt. They have TOTAL disregard for the law! America is in for some horrific race riots in the not to distant future.
I hope these pictures scare the he!! out of everyone enough for them to quit supporting politicians who pander to these people. Just the mass numbers of them alone and their arrogance to think they can sway our laws should make every legal citizen furious.
Soros would make sense. Anything to cause descent.
SOMEONE is organizing all those folks. Certainly a portion of them--perhaps a sizeable portion--are illegals in those marches. If they organize them, they know where to find them. Time for the DHS to infiltrate some of these orgs.
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