Thread: Fort Myers rally against illegal immigration set for Sat

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Rally against illegal immigration set for Saturday
By Deirdre Conner

Friday, June 30, 2006

Activists are planning a Saturday rally to protest illegal immigration and push for tougher border enforcement.

Americans Standing Tall, a Fort Myers group that wants tougher enforcement of immigration laws, will gather on the steps of Fort Myers City Hall for a program that includes two controversial speakers.

President Harold Poole said the group opposes proposed changes to immigration law, including one that would potentially put some undocumented immigrants on the road to citizenship.

“We should secure our borders and enforce our existing laws, all of them. We don’t want to choose what laws we enforce. We want the laws enforced as they are,” Poole said.

One speaker, Jason Mrochek, is the co-founder of the FIRE Coalition in California and creator of WeHireAliens.com, a Web site that allows people to post companies they believe hire illegal immigrants.

Also speaking at the rally is Mike Jarbeck, the Florida director for the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, a group that advocates for better border security and has organized armed patrols of the border with Mexico.

Poole said he doesn’t know how many people will show up to the Citizen’s Day Rally, which will start at noon Saturday and last about two hours. The group has obtained a permit from the Fort Myers Police Department.

Americans Standing Tall formed shortly after the May 1 demonstration that drew nearly 80,000 people to march in Fort Myers. Workers from around the state attended, protesting a House bill that sought to fence the U.S.-Mexican border and make illegal immigration a federal offense.

Juan Romero, a Bonita Springs advocate who is in favor of President Bush’s guest worker proposal as well as his measure to supplement the Border Patrol with National Guard troops, said he’s not surprised that the group is reacting to last month’s event.

“I think this group is more concerned about Hispanics in the area,” Romero said. “When they say ‘illegal’ a lot of people think Mexicans. But they come from many different countries.”

Anti-immigration groups struggle to keep the rhetoric free of racism, to a varying degree of success. The Minuteman organizations and their spinoffs are monitored for hate speech by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which says border patrol activities have been promoted by neo-Nazi white supremacy groups.

Still, organizers of this rally and its speakers say they are not prejudiced.

Mrochek says that’s why his organization goes after employers.

“It’s OK to advocate enforcing the law. It’s not racism,” he said.

Mrochek, who said the site has 1,900 employers listed in 46 states, said it’s the best way for ordinary citizens to get involved.

“We thought, what is the draw? The answer ... is jobs,” he said. “We wanted to put these guys (businesses) on notice.”

People can post anonymously, though Mrochek said the site screens for “reasonable suspicion.” A handful of Lee and Collier county employers are listed, including Florida Gulf Coast University. One posting claimed the cleaning staff at FGCU are illegal immigrants.

Susan Evans, a spokeswoman for FGCU, said the university has never been contacted with that kind of complaint. The school contracts its grounds and custodial services to United States Service Industries Inc., Evans said, but requires all of its contractors to abide by FGCU hiring rules, which include submission of I-9 forms.

“It’s discouraging that people are posting things on Web site without checking first,” she said.

Mrochek said he will issue a call to action at the rally.

“What it’s about is Americans coming together and saying enough is enough, we’re not going to take it any more. We’re not going to let our politicians make decisions that are not in line with what 80 percent of Americans are,” he said.

Romero said he doesn’t know of any counter-protest. For his part, he and his family will attend the Independence Day parade and related Fourth of July events in Bonita Springs on Saturday to “celebrate this beautiful country,” he said.

“We are part of this community and we want to show it. We want to be model citizens here,” he said.

Taking a stand

Americans Standing Tall, a local group against illegal immigration, hosts weekly Wednesday meetings at 6:30 p.m. at the Shell Factory, 2878 N. U.S. 41, North Fort Myers. The public is welcome.

The Citizen’s Day Rally, hosted by Americans Standing Tall, will start at noon Saturday at Fort Myers City Hall, 2200 Second St. The event should end by 2 p.m. The public is welcome.

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