Thread: 200 Rally In Salem For Tougher Immigration Laws

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200 Rally In Salem For Tougher Immigration Laws


Speakers Protest Use Of Public Funds



SALEM, Ore. -- About 200 people turned out for an anti-illegal immigration rally at Oregon's Capitol building.
Some waved signs saying "Illegals go home" and "Stop the illegal invasion".

Rally speakers in Salem criticized what the called the unwillingness of state and national leaders to enforce existing immigration laws, and to secure the nation's borders. Others complained about drivers' licenses being issued to illegals, while others spoke of scarce public tax dollars being spent to pay for immigrants' health care, schooling and welfare.

The rally was small compared last month's pro-immigrant rallies. At one point, more than eight thousand activists, mainly Hispanics, rallied at the Capitol for a more lenient immigration policy.

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pb ... /606100317

Illegal immigration is focus of Capitol rally

Speaker traveling to 48 state capitals makes stop in Salem

THELMA GUERRERO
Statesman Journal

June 10, 2006

Opponents of illegal immigration are on a mission.

Video: Rally begins


Video: More rally


About 200 of them gathered on the steps of the Capitol on Friday to alert the public and elected officials of what they say is an unarmed Mexican invasion.

"The next governor of Oregon is not going to be allowed to sit there and do nothing," columnist and author Frosty Wooldridge told the crowd, which responded with thunderous applause.

"In a post 9/11 world, the United States cannot allow, cannot tolerate, cannot condone 3 million people crossing (the border) undocumented, unregistered, unknown for intent, unknown for disease and unknown for what is essentially degrading the citizenship of our own citizens, breaking the rule of law, taking jobs from American citizens, depressing wages for all citizens and essentially creating anarchy in our country," Wooldridge continued, as he again drew a chorus of applauds.

Adults, families with babies and some students began arriving at the rally well in advance of its 11 a.m. start time.

Those in attendance carried a sea of signs that read, "Kulongoski is Failing the U.S. & Oregon," "Illegal is Not a Race, It's a Crime," "Illegals' Demands Are Unlimited," "Save Our Schools, Deport Illegals," "Deport Wyden," "Be Legal or Be Gone," "Remember 9/11" and "Deport Senator Smith."

Salem resident and Leslie Middle School student Dale Busby, 13, skipped school to attend the rally. He stood on the side of Court Street NE waving a large American flag.

As cars, trucks, buses and delivery vehicles drove by, Busby joined a group of adults on the side of the street and repeatedly chanted, "Immigrants welcome, illegals go home." Drivers honked and gave the group a thumbs up.

"I'm here because I want the illegals to go back to wherever they came from because they don't pay taxes and they take jobs from Americans," Busby said.

Melba Rust, a native of the Philippines who became a U.S. citizen in 1978, said she understands why people from other nations want to immigrate to the United States.

"This is a free country; it has more opportunity," said Rust, a Salem nurse who works at a state correctional facility.

"I came here legally," she said. "I think if people want to come here, they should do so legally."

Marlene Lachau, a native of Ontario, Canada, who now is a U.S. resident living in Salem, agreed.

"My parents brought my sister and me here, and they did everything by the book," Lachau said, adding that her parents and sister since have become U.S. citizens.

"But I haven't yet because of ..." she paused and then added, "because of things."

Daryl Hallgrimson of Dayton said he took the day off to attend the demonstration because he has concerns that if the federal government does not soon enforce immigration laws and secure the nation's borders, "We're no longer going to be a country."

Jim Ludwick, the president of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, a nonprofit group opposed to illegal immigration, said Americans are fed up with what the government is not doing.

"The primary duty of the federal government is to protect our borders and our sovereignty," Ludwick said, "and they are failing miserably."

OFIR and Citizen Caucus, a conservative group based in Coos County, organized the event.

Addressing the crowd, Wooldridge said illegal migration did not have an adverse effect 10 or 20 years ago.

"But now it is quickening to the degree that it is hurting our schools, our culture, our language, our medical systems, diseases being brought in are horrific and the growing consequences are linguistic, cultural and ethnic apartheid," he said. "We have become victims of another country's failure to deal with its own citizens."

Wooldridge, a retired teacher from Denver, was in town to attend the Salem rally as part of his 21st Century Paul Revere Ride. The ride -- made up of a caravan of motorcycle riders on a tour to the capitals in the 48 contiguous states -- began May 29 in Denver and will culminate in Washington, D.C., in August.

"We will not go away. We will not back down. We will not give in. We'll show the politicians that this is our country," Wooldridge said.

Victoria Taft, the host of an evening talk show on KPAM-AM, also spoke at the gathering.

"I'm here because it's my belief that we need to change the sanctuary laws status in the state of Oregon," Taft said. "We need to require proof of residency in order to get a driver's license, and we need to require citizenship to be able to receive long-term (social) benefits from the state of Oregon as well as voting privileges.

"And we need to get the secretary of state to check to make sure that people are citizens when they vote because, currently, they don't check."

State Reps. Jeff Kropf, R-Sublimity, and Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, also addressed the crowd.

"I'm here to encourage enforcement of Oregon law to keep us from becoming a magnet for illegal activity," Thatcher said.

Friday's rally comes amid fierce congressional debate about immigration reform.

In December, the House approved a measure that would increase enforcement and security at the southern border, result in a more than 700 mile-long, double-layered fence along a section of the U.S.-Mexico border, increase fines against employers who hire undocumented workers, penalize people who help illegal immigrants entry the country and make illegal entry a felony.

The measure would not give illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.

A vastly different bill that passed the Senate in May also would tighten the border but would include a guest-worker program that would give certain illegal immigrants a chance to become U.S. citizens.

Under that program, an employer could only hire a guest worker if that worker has an electronic, tamper-proof identification card. The employer also would have to demonstrate that no American could be hired to do the job.

The two pieces of legislation are expected to undergo arduous negotiations in the coming months as a joint House-Senate conference committee begins work to reconcile the two bills.

McKay High School sophomore Chris Hernandez contributed to this story.

tguerrer@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6815