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Pro, Anti Immigration Groups Look to New Year
December 27th, 2007 @ 6:58am
by Bob McClay/KTAR

Groups favoring a crackdown on illegal immigration plan to hold a demonstration Saturday, while immigrants rights activists take a day off from their weekly protests outside Pruitts Furniture in Phoenix.

The American Freedom Riders and other groups said they will present their demands for harsher treatment of illegals at a highly visible, upscale location, which will be a secret until the last minute. They say the focus of their gathering will be on Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and the city's policy for dealing with illegals, particularly those accused of serious crimes.

Meanwhile, Salvatore Reza -- who has led immigrants' rights marches outside Pruitts on Saturdays for the past two months -- said he's taking a break ``because everybody's in the holiday mood, and people should have a time for reflection and prayer."

Reza said the protesters will be back on Jan. 5 unless Pruitts owner Roger Sensing backs down on hiring off-duty sheriff's deputies to patrol his property in an effort to discourage day laborers from gathering in the area.

Reza said his day labor center in north Phoenix will be open for business as usual on Jan. 1, the day that Arizona's new employers sanctions law takes effect.

``Relatively few people will probably come in the beginning -- until they realize they need work and there's not enough people to do it," Reza said.

The new law sets strict penalties, including possible loss of their business licenses, for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

Reza said day laborers probably will hold out for a whie in Arizona, but eventually ``go up to Nevada or Utah or Chicago or somewhere else."

The new law also will drive business away from Arizona, Reza predicted.

``And I don't know how Russell Pearce (state lawmaker who sponsored the law) and all those people -- those great engineers of local immigration forces -- are going to deal with it, because you're going into a tailspin already," Reza said, predicting an adverse effect on the state's economy.

http://news.ktar.com/?nid=6&sid=685431