Thread: Immigrant rally covers issues

Immigrant rally covers issues, falls short in numbers

By Aatif Ali Bokhari

The Arab American News

DETROIT – A mostly Latino crowd filled Saint Anne's Church in Southwest Detroit on Sunday, June 4, 2006 to meet in a forum and rally against national immigration legislation as well as call for new initiatives advancing immigrants' rights.

Seventy-five different organizations were listed in the event's press release as taking part. They called for an end to racial profiling regardless of background, a right to pursue education free of harassment and for better workers' rights. "Michigan is the only state that denies compensation to workers" for injuries, noted Dia Pearce, Political Director for UNITE HERE!

Organizers asked each organization's supporters to stand when their name was called. There were a few organizations representing Arabs and Muslims, namely the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS) and the Council on American Islamic Relations Michigan Chapter (CAIR-MI). But this reporter didn't see more than five people stand from the hundreds present when those two groups were called.

Right from the get-go, Father Tom Sepulveda, pastor of the church, set the tone for the day in welcoming everyone present, a gathering in which cries of "Fix it now!" thundered through the over three-hundred-years old church. "The men and women who first formed this church were French immigrants," noted Sepulveda.

Sepulveda said that it was a combination of hard work and faith in God that led "to the building of a dynamic industrial giant, the Motor City. … When we look at the past and see the present, truly we have to see … we are the future of this country. Simply put, 'we are America!'," said Sepulveda. His last words were chanted by the crowd brandishing signs that said the same.

The crowd fell far short of the "thousands expected," as an email publicizing the event had promised, and several attendees complained that the acoustics in the church made for less than ideal listening.

But those present made up for those short-comings with their enthusiasm. When a speaker came to the podium and said "I haven't seen my wife and kids for seven years. Is this just?" the crowd responded emphatically, "No!"

In addition to lengthy and cumbersome immigration proceedings, some speakers present noted that racial profiling and pursuing education were also serious problems.

"The cost of tuition for undocumented students is exorbitant. It costs a resident student an average of $8,000 to attend a four-year public university in Michigan. For a student who is undocumented, he or she must pay approximately $16,000," said Edith J. Castillo in a press release. Castillo is Executive Director of Latin Americans for Social and Economic Services (LA SED, Inc). "The growing anti-immigrant sentiment in the country has caused fear among immigrant communities that racial profiling of anyone who looks like an immigrant will increase," she added.

Ishmael Ahmed of ACCESS also came to the podium and said "Racial profiling is wrong," whether the victim is African American, Latino, or Arab American. "We say 'no to English only legislation'," he said, adding another dimension to the program and bringing cheers from the crowd.

Politicians were present, pledging to do their part to end discrimination. Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick was at the rally. She publicly committed "to working in opening dialogue between various immigrant groups and the African American community in order to educate each other and work on common … civil rights issues [such as] defeating the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative opposing affirmative action.

The Detroit Free Press (DFP) also reported Monday, "At the rally, an aide to Detroit City Council President Kenneth Cockrel Jr. said the councilman might introduce a measure that would prohibit police and other city employees from questioning residents about their immigration status or ethnicity."

The DFP added, "Latinos are sometimes pulled over by police and questioned about their immigration papers, instead of being asked about their driver's license or registration, said Metro-Detroit residents at the meeting."

Sepulveda again came to the podium at the front of the church, and said, "I think we've come to a point in the program where we realize that people are being denied their dignity. … And that is what we have to fight."

After the event the hall emptied out quickly but a few people stuck around, speaking with TAAN. "I found the rally was interesting, but I expected a lot more people. It was [still] good though – everything that needed to be said was said," noted Margaret Ortega of Detroit.

"We're seeing the entire situation as becoming a bigger issue than just immigration. … We could very easily talk just about immigration but there are all these other related issues. … [They] all diminish human dignity," explained Sepulveda later.

The list of organizations at the forum and rally included the Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength (MOSES), ACCESS, Latin Americans for Social and Economic Services (LA SED), CAIR-MI, UNITE HERE!, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Latinos United/ Unidos of Michigan, a long list of different Protestant and Catholic communities and other interested organizations.

http://www.arabamericannews.com/news...articleid=5515

But those present made up for those short-comings with their enthusiasm. When a speaker came to the podium and said "I haven't seen my wife and kids for seven years. Is this just?" the crowd responded emphatically, "No!"

Nobody is stopping you from seeing you wife and kids - don't let the door hit you on the way out!

This is just so wrong. All of it, from start to finish. Where has my country gone? I am very comforted that they have Arab/Islamic organizations on their side.