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Organizations alert against ant-immigrant proposal.

Jorge Moral Almada jorge.morales@laopinion.com March 17, 2008

A new law proposal that is taking force in the House of Representatives in Washington D.C. would worsen the situation of the undocumented community, alerted activists that already plan a massive mobilization for the next May 1st..

It is a matter of the initiative HR4088, called the "Secure America through Verification and Enforcement (SAVE Act)", promoted by the republican congressman of California, Brian Bilbray, and supported by the democrat of North Carolina, Heath Shuler.

"The SAVE Act is a proposal that moves quickly inside the House, it needs 218 signatures so that they can take it to a vote and already it has 140, including those of various democrats", said Angelica Salas, director of the Coalition for the Human Rights of the Immigrants in Los Angeles (CHIRLA).

Salas explained that the legislative proposal hardens the laws against the undocumented and increases the detaining operations or raids.

"It is more of the same", commented the director of CHIRLA. "If the law passes, we are going to have a bigger problem than now, because it would extend the program for verification of employment, it would give more money for raids, they would arrest more people whose data does not coincide with their social security and it would offer funds so that police officers do the work of Immigration".

Recently the organization Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), launched alerts due to the strenght of the SAVE Act.

The alerts indicates that the motion would make it easier for the government to imprison humane and religious activists by helping the undocumented, somewhat similar to the proposed bill HR4437 of James Sensenbrenner, that never prospered.

"It is a horrible proposal", insisted Salas, "it is equal to that of Sensenbrenner bill and it is advancing and prompted by the anti-immigrant wing ".

She indicated that already they have mobilized to assure that no elected representative in Los Angeles, whether a republican or a democrat, will be signing in favor of that proposal.

Juan José Gutiérrez, of the latin American Movement USA, said that in the beginning of March activist of 23 states had a meeting in Washington D.C., in which they agreed to have massive mobilizations in all the country.

On the new proposal he commented: "In a moment in which Congress and the Bush Administration want to do something dramatic to sort out the immigration law system, the only ideas that they have come up with are the worst, the ones that signify more obstacles to the workers who want to achieve legalization".

Gloria Saucedo, leader of Hermandad Mexicana, said that the mobilization in Los Angeles has been called the "March of Unity", and will have two starting point, both at 2:00 in the afternoon, one at MacArthur park and another of the corner of Olympic and Broadway, to be joined at Temper and Broadway.

"When they attack us our community stands up and fights", said Saucedo, "because of that we are preparing for the May 1 March of Unity, in which the main organizations that participated in the massive marches two years ago, will participate".

ALIPAC needs to coordinate a fax and telephone rally to the House of Representatives on May 1st in support of the SAVE act.
Forward this message to every Immigration Enforcement-only groups.