Chicago: Chaos ends immigration debate before it starts
http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sectio ... id=4144639
Click Here to Watch Video
Chaos ends immigration debate before it startsPolice clear church to maintain order
By Karen Jordan
May 4, 2006 - Chaos at a Chicago church Thursday night cancelled a planned debate on immigration before it started. It got so out of control that dozens of police officers stepped in. One person was arrested for disorderly conduct.
The Logan Square church had planned to facilitate a debate on both sides of the immigration reform issue, with the Minutemen and the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant Rights. But the coalition backed out Wednesday night out of concern that the meeting would turn violent. There was no violence. But there was a lot of shouting and yelling before the meeting even got started.
"This is America. We're supposed to have two sides whether we like the other side or not," said Rev. Dan Wood, 4th Congregational Church.
Wood said his original plan was to bring together both sides of the immigration reform debate. But when the minutemen was the only group represented, the forum was over before it began. Supporters of immigration rights began shouting at organizers of the event and at the spokesperson for the Minutemen, Rosanna Pulido.
Before the event started, immigration rights supporters rallied outside of the church saying the Minutemen stance on illegal immigration is racist.
"Inviting the Minutemen into this community is like inviting the KKK into a largely black community," said Rehada Khan, anti-Minuteman defendants.
Tempers flared in the church.
"This is domestic terrorism," said one anti-Minutemen individual.
"Neither side was really heard. The police had to clear out the church but not before one more confrontation.
"Anarchists and communists. There is an alliance between communists and anarchists and the pro-immigration lobbyists," said Pulido.
Many were escorted out of the church by the police. There was reportedly only we one arrest.