Hundreds back Barletta at Hazleton rally
BY AMANDA CHRISTMAN
STAFF WRITER
06/04/2007



Tom Smith of Bergen County, N.J. holds a flag while listening to speakers.

It was a rally cry to elected officials to listen to their constituents.

The pro-Illegal Immigration Relief Act (IIRA) rally held in front of Hazleton City Hall on Sunday afternoon, which shut down a portion of the city’s major thoroughfare, state Route 309, also brought criticism of the federal Comprehensive Immigration Act of 2007.

One by one, speakers vented their frustrations with illegal immigration and the tolls they say it takes on society and average citizens.

Included in the lineup was Joey Vento from Gino’s Cheesesteaks in Philadelphia. Vento has been a supporter of Hazleton Mayor Lou Barletta and IIRA since its inception.

Barletta was one of the last speakers and was greeted with cheers and clapping from the crowd of people.

He opened up his speech saying, in a few weeks, the U.S. Senate “will consider what it callsâ€