Thread: Assault underscores tension as Congress weighs.....

Assault underscores tension as Congress weighs immigration reform
April 10, 2006

PORTLAND, Maine --Dozens of people pressing for rights for illegal immigrants gathered for a peaceful demonstration on Monday just minutes after a counter-protestor was bloodied by a teenager who hid his face with a bandanna.

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Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail | Breaking News Alerts The attacker, described as a Hispanic teenager, went after one of three white people carrying signs arguing that illegals have no rights, police said.

As the teen fled, the victim dropped to the pavement after being hit with something heavy that the teen had carried, possibly in a sock or a bandanna, said Portland Police Sgt. Robin Gauvin. There were no arrests as of late afternoon.

The victim, identified as Robert Gorman, 23, of Portland, was hauled away in an ambulance minutes before 200 people gathered. He was treated and released from Maine Medical Center.

"When you promote violence, you get violence," said the Rev. Virginia Maria Rincon, one of the organizers. "Our rally is about promoting a peaceful dialogue."

About 200 people gathered at Monument Square to voice support for reforms that would legalize undocumented immigrants. The rally was one of many across the country on Sunday and Monday calling for Congress to promote immigrants' rights.

One of the organizers, Portland attorney Rafael Galvez, said people won't forget how members of Congress vote. "They will be remembered for how they vote on this sensitive issue. They can be compassionate, or cruel," Galvez said.

The demonstrators of all colors carried signs and chanted. "This is our America. "This is what America looks like," Shenna Bellows, executive director of the Maine Civil Liberties Union, said through a bullhorn to the cheering crowd.

Not everyone agreed with the majority view. Jonathan Talbot of Portland said he supported the views of the man who was assaulted.

"I think we should enforce the laws we have. Then we go from there to decide what we want to do to assimilate these people into society," Talbot said. He described the Border Patrol's efforts as a "catch-and-release" program.


http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/ ... on_reform/

I just saw this article myself, and am wondering if this is just the start of what we as a nation are about to see.

It is obvious that the actions of the Senate have nothing to do with taking care of America's lower and middle class, nothing to do with true border security and the enforcement of our laws (even the ones on the books), and everything to do with depressing wages, and providing a globalized corporate giant with CHEAP LABOR.

It was interesting...I was listening to one of the news shows this morning, and someone came out and said Mexico's economy and nation is a failure because they HAVE NO MIDDLE CLASS, yet here in America, the Senate and the Republican Party seem bent on distroying ours. As witness to this, I saw a union report....they are right now negotiating a new contract, and what the business is offering up would see these union employees after adjusting for inflation making what they earned in 1999!

So now we see in print a published report of one of these protestors attacking our side...our government needs to step forward and pass serious border controls, and enforce the laws on the books now before it is to late, and we as a nation spiral down into a black abyss we do not want to know.

Pinto Bean

Who is Robert Gorman? It says counter protest... who counter protests. What messages did Gorman carry? is it me or is this article impossible to understand.

W