IL: 'Immigrant' Activists plan 50-day push -more Chicago Mar
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Immigrant activists plan 50-day push
By Antonio Olivo
Tribune staff reporter
February 21, 2007, 7:39 PM CST
Hoping to reignite a movement that drew several hundred thousand marchers through downtown last spring, activists in Chicago are planning a 50-day period of rallies and other action geared toward federal immigration reform.
The activities will start with a rally inside Chicago's Federal Plaza on March 10, the anniversary of the first of several Chicago marches held last year, organizers said Wednesday.
After neighborhood rallies, prayer vigils and meetings, the calendar of events ends with a march through downtown on May 1—the anniversary of last year's largest march—when activists around the country also plan to demonstrate on behalf of immigrant workers' rights.
The catalyst last year was proposed federal legislation that would have made a felony out of hiring or renting to illegal immigrants. This year's demonstrations are meant to spur Congress into passing reforms that would open the door to citizenship for the undocumented, said Jorge Mujica, a key organizer.
"If no legislation has been approved by May Day, we will march again in June, July, August and so on until we have a comprehensive package that legalizes undocumented immigrants," Mujica said at a news conference held downtown by the March 10 Committee, the coalition that spearheaded last year's marches.
The group, which includes immigrant leaders who came from Mexico, Ireland and other countries, plans to incorporate opposition to the Iraq war as a theme, partly as a way to broaden its base and boost turnout for the planned events.
Some organizers have expressed concern that anything less than the hundreds of thousands of marchers who filled downtown last year will be viewed as a sign of dwindling interest. Others worry about a backlash amid a steady beat of news over immigration raids and violence at the Mexican border. Hope this wakes up sleepy Illinois.
"Something has to come to a head," said Rick Biesada, co-founder of the Chicago Minuteman Project, which is planning to join a march in Washington during the summer opposing illegal immigration. "We can't keep going on like this, letting thousands of people come into the country and the politicians burying their heads in the sand."
Shaun Harkin, an Irish immigrant activist who is a March 10 Committee member, said organizers hope to diminish the chance of any problems surrounding the events by pulling in as many ethnic groups as possible.
"That's the kind of unity we need to combat these attacks," he said.
aolivo@tribune.com
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