Immigration protests draw 500 to Morristown

Star Ledger ^ | 07.28.07 | Allison Steele and Leslie Kwoh

[Coleus]

Police officers remove a protester from the grounds of town hall . The protester opposes deputizing local police officers as immigration agents.  An estimated 500 people descended on Morristown this afternoon for dueling protests on illegal immigration and immigrants' rights. The crowd waved signs and at times chanted heatedly, but stopped short of causing any major disturbances.

Protesters grew more vocal as the afternoon wore on, with both sides waiting for Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello to take the stage. Police outfitted in riot gear with helmets, batons and pepper spray surrounded the stage, while a line of reinforcements arrived to barricade South Street.

Despite some heated exchanges between the groups and two arrests, the rallies were peaceful.  Sweating in the midday sun, anti-illegal immigration protesters swarmed the lawn in front of town hall, armed with signs like "We fought our revolution, go back and fight yours," and "Stop the Invasion-Go Home!"

A supporter for deputizing local police officers displays his sign during the rally.  The protesters cheered and clapped as speakers took the stage, one by one, to launch fiery tirades. Some blamed illegal immigrants for car accidents, drug smuggling, murders and loss of jobs. Others said illegal immigrants were diluting the American culture.  "I will never accept English as a second language," said Daniel Smeriglio, from Voice of the People USA, an activist group based in Pennsylvania. "You disgrace us."  Across the street, more than 150 people gathered in support of immigrants' rights. Shouting and chanting so loudly that at times they drowned out the voices of the speakers at town hall, protestors waved signs with

[cripplecreek]

"We fought our revolution, go back and fight yours,"

I like it and it's good advice.

[Nathan Zachary]

What ever will media do when protests of this nature drown out the anti American moonbat traitors?

They can’t be biased forever, because when Americans step away from the TV set and take action, they loose all power.

[operation clinton cleanup]

Refreshing to see a report that separates anti-immigrant from anti-illegal immigrant protesters. To bad the pro-illegal immigrant protesters could not tell the difference.

[dragnet2]

Peaceful?

Don't these reporters edit, or read what they write?

Why are they trying to hide the violence?

Despite some heated exchanges between the groups and two arrests, the rallies were peaceful.

Morristown Police Chief Pete Demnitz said a man and a woman were arrested at about 12:30 p.m. when they attempted to jump onto the stage and damage the amplifiers. Police also broke up several fistfights between pro and anti-illegal immigration protesters, he said.

[JoinJuniorAchievement]

Time to lock and load em.

[sig226]

I suppose they didn’t hold a rally in Dover or Newton because the illegal alien population might mug them and rape them in those two little burghs.

[KTM rider]

"We fought our revolution, go back and fight yours,"

I like that one, been using it myself .......

things must be really tough down there on the other side of the Tortilla Curtain !

[amihow]

What was the ethnicity of the arrested?

[dragnet2]

Don't know.

My only point was the article said this was a peaceful event, and then it went on to report about fights and assaults.

The article seems to be FOS.

[Coleus]

Worker's Day Rally in Morristown, May Day, 2007

[TheBlueAngel]

When are Allison Steele and Leslie Kwoh going to report on the people that had metal cannisters thrown at them and were beat up by those 10 counter protesters?

The heated exchange they refer to in the article caused one of those victims to get 15 stitches. Peaceful? I don’t think so.

Let’s hear about how the counter protesters raced the steps of the building to destroy the sound system.

Let’s hear about how the counter protesters chanted and yelled while the national anthem was playing.

Let’s hear about the penetration in to the rally to cause chaos.

I doubt you’ll read about any of that on here, that would be true and unbiased reporting.

[Coleus]

United Patriots of America
Founded December 2001

UNITED WE STAND 

ProAmerica Companies

Use this free site to find companies that are ProAmerica Companies: those that do their best to comply with our laws.... especially those laws prohibiting the hiring of illegal aliens.  http://www.proamericacompanies.com/ 

UPA mailbox, News and Videos
Morristown, NJ Rally - news links

Morristown, NJ Rally - news links More elected officials should have turned out for protests
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070729/COLUMNISTS01/707290365 

Poll: N.J. residents split on immigration's impact
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070729/COMMUNITIES/707290373

White supremacists in New Jersey
http://www.eldiariony.com/noticias/detail.aspx?section=25&desc=Editorial&id=1686167

Another way of looking at the illegal alien invasion. Let's say I break into your house.
www.unitedpatriotsofamerica.com/yourhouse

[Coleus]

Anger of immigrant debate bursts forth at rallies

On one side of South Street in Morristown, 250 protesters swarmed the lawn in front of town hall, armed with signs bearing anti-illegal immigration slogans like "We fought our revolution, go back and fight yours," and "Stop the Invasion -- Go Home!"   Directly across the street, separated by a wall of police officers, another 250 protesters filled the sidewalk in front of Kings Supermarket, shouting into megaphones and chanting angrily in counter-protest. The two groups faced off for two hours yesterday, blocking streets, drawing crowds of curious passers-by and keeping police officers on high alert. Sweating in the midday sun, anti-illegal-immigration protesters cheered and clapped as speakers took the stage to launch fiery tirades. Organized by the ProAmerica Society of Mount Olive, some blamed illegal immigrants for car accidents, drug smuggling, murders and job loss. Others said illegal immigrants are diluting the American culture.

"I will never accept English as a second language," said Daniel Smeriglio, from Voice of the People USA, an activist group based in Pennsylvania. "You disgrace us." Carmen Morales, a speaker from the Hispanic anti-amnesty group "You Don't Speak for Me," told the crowd she opposed immigrants who do not enter the county the legal way, as she had. "You don't belong in Morristown," she said.

Across the street, counter-protesters shouted and chanted so loudly that at times they drowned out the voices of the speakers at town hall. They waved signs with slogans like "Immigrants are not criminals," "Working people have no borders," and "Mayor KKK," referring to Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello's stance against illegal immigrants. Michele Miculiani, who works at Kings, joined the counter-protesters on her lunch break. "That side is hatred, and hatred is what causes the problems here," Miculiani yelled, pointing at the crowd outside town hall. "It's these kind of people, they're no better than the terrorists on 9/11!"

The rally comes on the heels of a ruling in Hazleton, Pa., on Thursday in which a judge ruled unconstitutional a law that would have penalized landlords who rent to illegal immigrants, and employers who hire them. Protesters grew more vocal as the afternoon wore on, with both sides waiting for Cresitello to take the stage. Police outfitted in riot gear with helmets, batons and pepper spray surrounded the stage, while a line of reinforcements arrived to barricade South Street.  A man and a woman were arrested at about 12:30 p.m., according to Morristown Police Chief Peter Demnitz, when they attempted to jump onto the stage and damage the amplifiers. Police also broke up several fistfights between protesters, Demnitz said.

When he took the stage, the mayor, who is seeking to deputize local police officers as federal immigration agents, condemned his opponents for stalling his efforts. "How dare they, how dare they question my right as mayor of this community to move this program forward?" he asked. Then, as counter-protesters began chanting loudly, "Shame, shame, shame on you!" in an effort to drown the mayor out, Cresitello retaliated with a warning. "To the Communists across the street, and the Marxists, we know your motives, and we will not continue to let you go forward with your intent to take over our country," he said.

Protesters attended yesterday's rally for various reasons. Morris Township resident Barbara Bock, 60, said she wanted to stop the drug gangs "coming across with border with drugs for our children."  Michael Manning, 45, a furniture worker in Dover, said he attended after almost losing his job last month to the "many illegals out there ready to just take my job." In the two weeks before today's rally, the police had been tipped off to a plan to disrupt the event, said Morris County Prosecutor Robert Bianchi. Bianchi activated the county's rapid deployment team for the first time since it was established several years ago, and about 140 state, county and municipal officers were deployed, along with an army of helicopters, horses and SUVs.

But the rally was mostly peaceful, with the exception of the arrests and a few heated exchanges. Diana Mejia, co-founder of Wind of the Spirit, the local immigrants resource center that organized a prayer vigil at a nearby church, was dragged from the lawn in front of town hall after she was spotted in the crowd with a pro-immigrant sign. Police officers carried her away as protesters across the street chanted, "Let her stay!" "I just stood there," a visibly rattled Mejia said when she got back to the other side of the street. "I didn't say anything. They just grabbed me and pulled me." Meanwhile, a mile away at St. Margaret's Church on Sussex Avenue, about 50 people read poems and sang songs during a peace vigil. Father Hernan Arias, pastor of the church, asked God to help the country's immigrant workers. "In your eyes and ears we are all legal, because we are your sons and daughters," Arias said.

[sig226]

I’ll bet that if you asked a few of these prayerful and peace loving advocates to name three objects found inside a church, none of them could do it.

[Travis McGee]

CW2 Ping

[Travis McGee]

If you really want to tick off the criminal invaders, here is the sign. It also works great as a rally chant, because it rhymes and has a nice cadence in Spanish.

"INVASORES ILEGALES, SON LADRONES CRIMINALES."

"Illegal invaders are criminal thieves."

This really gets them where they live.

[Grampa Dave]

Hi. This might be a great tagline for you:

"We fought our revolution, go back and fight yours!"

[Travis McGee]

It’s a lot easier to run away, and invade a country led by patsies, whores, sellouts and traitors.