Report from press conference and protest at El Sol Day Labor Center
NumbersUSA : March 3 , 2008 -- by NumbersUSA

This is a follow up to the alert we sent you about the March 1 press conference and preceeding protest at the El Sol Day Labor Center in Jupiter, Florida.

Several Florida immigration reduction groups encouraged citizens to attend a press conference held by State Representative Gayle Harrell on Saturday, March 1st. Representative Harrell has sponsored new legislation (HB 821) that would prohibit sanctuary policies as well as illegal alien day labor centers in the State of Florida.

Background on Sanctuary Policies

Although sanctuary policies are illegal under Federal law, a number of cities and counties maintain policies that forbid officials from asking about a person's immigration status or informing Federal immigration authorities about the presence of illegal aliens. These sanctuary policies may prevent police from inquiring about a person's immigration status during the course of routine duties, or from stopping or detaining a person solely due to immigration status. They may also prevent state public assistance agencies and institutions of higher education from inquiring about an applicant's immigration status in order to determine eligibility for public benefits. The resulting safe havens make it easier for illegal aliens, including criminal aliens, to live undetected in the United States. Sanctuary policies hinder the ability of police to combat increasingly violent criminal alien gangs like MS-13. Such gangs engage in murder as well as the trafficking of drugs and illegal aliens.

From an organizer of the event:

We had a very solid turnout on Saturday and Representative Gayle Harrell was extremely pleased. There was coverage on all 3 stations and several biased articles (no surprise), which I have attached.

It was hard to keep track of the new folks that arrived, but I personally asked several people how they had heard about the Press Conference and they mentioned that they received an Alert through NumbersUSA...and for that we are very greatful. The support of every person that attended the Press Conference was significant to the effort. It was rather chaotic with the usual 9:00 - 12:00 Protest in progress and then the Press Conference immediately following, but we had one person on our team that made a point to go around and hand out the NumbersUSA cards, so we were happy to get that done in the frenzy.

It was interesting that we had one couple show up with a young child and went on camera (we also videotaped her) telling her story that she had 5 children and desperately needed to find work, so she went to the the El Sol Day Labor Center to inquire about a Housekeeper job. She was REFUSED because she was a "legal" citizen. After using nearly Two Million Dollars of Taxpayers money to establish this Center, I found that OUTRAGEOUS. Is there a lawsuit in there somewhere?

That's it for now. Thank you again for all your support. We really appreciate it!

http://www.numbersusa.com/news?ID=9654