Posted on 05/01/2006 6:40:53 PM PDT by LouAvul
LOS ANGELES - More than 1 million mostly Hispanic immigrants and their supporters skipped work and took to the streets Monday, flexing their economic muscle in a nationwide boycott that succeeded in slowing or shutting many farms, factories, markets and restaurants.
From Los Angeles to Chicago, Houston to Miami, the "Day Without Immigrants" attracted widespread participation despite divisions among activists over whether a boycott would send the right message to Washington lawmakers considering sweeping immigration reform.
"We are the backbone of what America is, legal or illegal, it doesn't matter," said Melanie Lugo, who with her husband and their third-grade daughter joined a rally of some 75,000 in Denver. "We butter each other's bread. They need us as much as we need them."
Two major rallies in Los Angeles attracted an estimated 400,000, according to the mayor's office. Police in Chicago estimated 400,000 people marched through the downtown business district.
Tens of thousands more marched in New York, along with about 15,000 in Houston, 50,000 in San Jose and 30,000 more across Florida. Smaller rallies in cities from Pennsylvania and Connecticut to Arizona and South Dakota attracted hundreds not thousands.
In all, police departments in more than two dozen U.S. cities contacted by The Associated Press gave crowd estimates that totaled about 1.1 million marchers.
The mood was jubilant. Marchers standing shoulder-to-shoulder filmed themselves on home video and families sang and chanted and danced in the streets wearing American flags as capes and bandanas. In most cities, those who rallied wore white to signify peace and solidarity.
In Los Angeles, the city streets were a carpet of undulating white that stretched for several miles, with palm trees and grass-covered medians poking through a sea of humanity. Marchers holding U.S. flags aloft sang the national anthem in English as traditional Mexican dancers wove through the crowd.
In Chicago, illegal immigrants from Ireland and Poland marched alongside Hispanics as office workers on lunch breaks clapped. In Phoenix, protesters formed a human chain in front of Wal-Mart and Home Depot stores. Protesters in Tijuana, Mexico, blocked vehicle traffic heading to San Diego at the world's busiest border crossing.
Many carried signs in Spanish that translated to "We are America" and "Today we march, tomorrow we vote." Others waved Mexican flags or wore hats and scarves from their native countries. Some chanted "USA" while others shouted slogans, such as "Si se puede!" Spanish for "Yes, it can be done!" Others were more irreverent, wearing T-shirts that read "I'm illegal. So what?"
The White House reacted coolly.
"The president is not a fan of boycotts," said press secretary Scott McClellan. "People have the right to peacefully express their views, but the president wants to see comprehensive reform pass the Congress so that he can sign it into law."
The boycott was organized by immigrant activists angered by federal legislation that would criminalize illegal immigrants and fortify the U.S-Mexico border. Its goal was to raise awareness about immigrants' economic power.
Industries that rely on immigrant workers were clearly affected, though the impact was not uniform.
Tyson Foods Inc., the world's largest meat producer, shuttered about a dozen of its more than 100 plants and saw "higher-than-usual absenteeism" at others. Most of the closures were in states such as Iowa and Nebraska. Eight of 14 Perdue Farms chicken plants also closed for the day.
Goya Foods, which bills itself as the nation's largest Hispanic-owned food chain, suspended delivery everywhere except Florida, saying it wanted to express solidarity with immigrants who are its primary customers.
None of the 175 seasonal laborers who normally work Mike Collins' 500 acres of Vidalia onion fields in southeastern Georgia showed up.
"We need to be going wide open this time of year to get these onions out of the field," he said. "We've got orders to fill. Losing a day in this part of the season causes a tremendous amount of problems."
It was the same story in Indiana, where the owner of a landscaping business said he was at a loss. About 25 Hispanic workers — 90 percent of the field work force — never reported Monday to Salsbery Brothers Landscaping.
"We're basically shut down in our busiest month of the year," said owner Jeff Salsbery. "It's going to cost me thousands of dollars."
In the Los Angeles area, restaurants and markets were dark and truckers avoided the nation's largest shipping port. About one in three small businesses was closed downtown, including the cluttered produce market and fashion district.
The construction and nursery industries were among the hardest hit by the work stoppage in Florida.
Bill Spann, executive vice president of the Associated General Contractors of Greater Florida said more than half the workers at construction sites in Miami-Dade County did not show up Monday.
"If I lose my job, it's worth it," said Jose Cruz, an immigrant from El Salvador who protested with several thousand others in the rural Florida city of Homestead rather than work his construction job. "It's worth losing several jobs to get my papers."
But the effect was minimal in some places. On Manhattan's busy 14th Street, only a few shops were closed, including a Spanish-language bookstore and a tiny Latin American restaurant.
The impact on some school systems was significant. In the sprawling Los Angeles Unified School District, which is 73 percent Hispanic, about 72,000 middle and high school students were absent — roughly one in every four.
In San Francisco, Benita Olmedo pulled her 11-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son from school.
"I want my children to know their mother is not a criminal," said Olmedo, a nanny who came here illegally in 1986 from Mexico. "I want them to be as strong I am. This shows our strength."
Truck traffic at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach — the nation's largest port complex — was off 90 percent, said spokeswoman Theresa Adams Lopez.
Some of the rallies drew small numbers of counter-protesters, including one in Pensacola, Fla.
"You should send all of the 13 million aliens home, then you take all of the welfare recipients who are taking a free check and make them do those jobs," said Jack Culberson, a retired Army colonel who attended the Pensacola rally. "It's as simple as that."
Jesse Hernandez, who owns a Birmingham, Ala., company that supplies Hispanic laborers to companies around the Southeast, shut down his four-person office in solidarity with the demonstrations.
"Unfortunately," he said, "human nature is that you don't really know what you have until you don't have it."
hmmmm the President and Congress? The California Senate? The liberal news media?
Does that cover em all?
Give them the benefit of the doubt and say 1 million.
In a nation of near 300,000 million we had one million gone. Oh, yeah, they are the real backbone of America with those numbers. [sarcasm]
We have people on welfare rolls ostensibly in need of jobs. We have prisoners sitting around getting fat while watching Oprah. We have potential workers among these two groups. Both outnumber the illegal population. We need illegals, why?
You know what I enjoyed? Being able to stop at the convenience store this morning and buy gas and my morning Frappucino, without having to wade through a throng of mexican construction workers whose clothing hasn't been washed in a week. No rude, blatant stares...no snide comments in spanish when I walk by. No hold ups in line because the cashier doesn't speak spanish and the mexican doesn't speak English.
I want more.
They are already criminals.
I'm Hispanic and...
1) Reported to work, and worked my normal 8-hour schedule.
2) I forgot to pack lunch, so I went to my favorite Mongolian BBQ place, and my Mexican buddies who man the barbecue stone also showed up to work and had the chance to talk a little bit with them. They didn't much care for the "boycott". I spent $8.60.
3) I bought gas. $29.
4) The satisfaction that I did the right thing, and came to this country legally, even though my family had to put 11 long years with the monumental red tape was quite priceless!!!
"We're basically shut down in our busiest month of the year," said owner Jeff Salsbery. "It's going to cost me thousands of dollars."
Oh it's going to cost you alright.
Just wait until these guys join labor unions and start voting %100 Democrat.
I hope the newly enfranchised Mexicans tax and strike your criminal enterprise into bankruptcy.
This is in suburban Philadelphia. I made the rounds of our local Wal-Mart, Target, Home Depot, Lowes (2), Michaels, Sports Authority, Modell's, PetSmart, and Giant Foods. Shopped till I dropped!
One of the key organizers of the immigration protests and rallies nationwide, including yesterday's in Washington, is a group whose leaders are tied to the Workers World Party, a Marxist organization that has expressed support for dictators Kim Jong-il of North Korea and Saddam Hussein of Iraq.
Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER) Coalition, which also has proposed a nationwide boycott on May 1 to protest congressional efforts at immigration reform and border security, is an offshoot of the International Action Coalition, an anti-capitalism group founded by former Attorney General Ramsey Clark.
In a press release celebrating a March 25 rally in Los Angeles against immigration-law enforcement that drew an estimated 500,000 people, ANSWER said it helped organize "a major contingent in the march" and provided logistical support. The march was co-chaired by Juan Jose Gutierrez, director of Latino Movement USA, who also is a member of ANSWER's Los Angeles steering committee.
"We are people of dignity, and we demand respect," Mr. Gutierrez said at the rally. "This is the beginning of a movement that is going to call for a national work stoppage."
from: http://www.washingtontimes.com/functions/print.php?StoryID=20060410-094710-4817r
Many bad dudes are behind these protests.
I've got a another idea.
Find out who is EMPLOYING the illegals, and boycott
those businesses who are KNOWINGLY employing the illegals.
These prices these people charge for their products which
is basically made by low price illegal workers are exorbitant.
The businessperson is making big money, and we pay for
their services, and then we pay for their cheap labors
hospitalizaton, and schooling, and protection, and jailing,
etc....
If I knew how to set up a website, I would make one and
list all known employers of illegals.
Examples are:
Caterers
Restaurants
Food factories
Garment industry (especially the big names, whoo-hoo)
Food processors (Tyson's, Hormel, etc.)
Janitorial services
Hotel Workers
If we could cut their business by 10-15 percent, we would
destroy their profit margin, and they would be out of business.
They could stay in business if they don't hire illegals,
and can prove it, cause then we WOULD use their services.
The market for jobs to illegals would dry up, and *poof* most of the illegals
would go home, and hopefully get THEIR government to do
something to address THEIR societal ills. The American
Taxpayer shouldn't foot the bill for their own societies
PATHOLOGY.
In San Francisco, Benita Olmedo pulled her 11-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son from school.
"I want my children to know their mother is not a criminal," said Olmedo, a nanny who came here illegally in 1986 from Mexico. "I want them to be as strong I am. This shows our strength
Is she now legal? If not then shes teaching them crime pays. Some mother who would pull her children from school where they belong. Child services should be on to these parents. Why on earth would you take your children to a boycott where there could have been trouble? What a caring mother. Sure be strong and tell your children to stay in school and get an education so you too dont have to be a domestic. I am so sick of theses people I could scream. Strength would be standing up in Mexico and demanding the Mexican govt stop being corrupt and do the right thing for their people instead of pushing them into our country. I wonder if she paid her hospital bills when she had her 2 children?
And what would "the look" constitute? First person who comes up to my 7th generation, descendant-of-war-veterans, pre-Texas Republic, a$$ and asks "Papers please" is getting clocked.
Izquierdistas? I like it.
Here's my reply: So what? We didn't miss them.
Great idea!!! I am going to ask around and see who knows how to set one up. If I can find anyone I will get in touch with you. I am going to boycott tyson, goya and perdue. Enough is enough!!
Michael Savage interviewed one today Congressman King and for the Love of God these people are illegal immigrants there is a different legal vs illegal my mom is legal there is no problem with people coming here
kudos to you
one thing I noticed they really didnt' hurt anyone but themselves in an area where i pass on my way to work all the mexican stores were closed all of them, only mexicans work there, only mexicans shop there and only spanish is spoken they didn't hurt me i dont shop there i could care less personally so who did they really hurt THEMSELVES the mexicans i work with all showed up the immigrants (legal)all showed up so who did they really hurt
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