Thread: Hundreds ditch school, protest Arizona immigration bill

Hundreds ditch school, protest Arizona immigration bill

PHOENIX – Hundreds of Arizona students walked out of school on Thursday morning to protest a controversial immigration bill now awaiting the governor's signature.

As many of 300 students left Cesar Chavez High School at Baseline Road and 40th Avenue at 11 a.m.

The move came despite loud speaker warnings from their principal to stay in class.

Carrying protest signs, the students then started a 4-mile-long march to the state Capitol.

Up to 700 students also left Trevor Brown and Maryvale high schools to protest the bill.

Those students marched along Indian School Road, toward a Food City at 67th Avenue where their protest was expected to end.

Students from several other Valley high schools are reportedly doing the same today.

Video from Air15 at the state Capitol shows the students on the lawn of the Capitol.

The controversy surrounding Arizona's latest immigration legislation is growing among others too, as religious leaders, lawmakers, activists, residents and law enforcement continue to come out on opposite sides of the issue.

A California religious leader has found himself in a war of words with the state lawmaker who wrote SB1070, which passed this week in Arizona.

Earlier in the week, Los Angeles archbishop Roger Mahony criticized the proposed law in his blog, likening the move to "German Nazi and Russian Communist techniques whereby people are required to turn one another in to the authorities."

Arizona senators passed the sweeping bill Monday, sending it to the Governor's office for potential signing. The bill would make it a state crime for undocumented immigrants to not have an alien registration document.

Arizona Sen. Russell Pearce lashed out Wednesday against the Cardinal on a nationally syndicated radio show. Pearce said Mahony had no right to speak because the Catholic leader had been -- in his words -- "protecting child molesters and predators all of his life."

Mahony's spokesman Tod Tamberg shot back against what he called Pearce's "mudslinging." Tamberg said the senator has "no good answer to the cardinal's challenge that this is a draconian and unjust law."

Meanwhile, there's a growing divide right here in Arizona between those who support the bill and those who oppose it.

See the results of a recently released poll from Rasmussen Reports, showing 70 percent of likely voters approve the legislation and 23 percent oppose it.

Law enforcement officials in Arizona appear divided.

Every major police department across the Valley has declined to comment on the bill.

However, in a statement from the Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police, the group says, "The provisions of the bill remain problematic and will negatively affect the ability of law enforcement agencies across the state to fulfill their many responsibilities in a timely manor."

Still, some are for the law.

"We can no longer afford to say this is somebody else's problem," said Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu.

Babeu said the law will not lead to widespread racial profiling.

"Our job is to protect and serve," he said. "We're not looking to kick in doors and round people up. Officers and deputies will be out acting like they always do. We're not out to target people."

In addition to requiring immigrants to have their documents, the bill would require police to question people about their immigration status if there's reason to suspect they're in the country illegally. It would also allow citizen lawsuits against government agencies that hinder enforcement of immigration laws.

Evelyn Cruz, director for the immigration law and police clinic at ASU's College of Law, said the extent of police powers and the mandate that citizens keep their immigration documents with them, could be problematic.

"It's a very complex statute, so whenever someone challenges it they will be challenging subsections of it," Cruz explained. "It's not that easy to tell if someone is committing a crime that makes them deportable."

Cruz is not the only one with concerns over the proposed law.

An editorial in The New York Times calls the bill "harsh and mean-spirited."

The paper says the bill "is a grab bag of measures to enlist law enforcement and government at every level to expose and expel the undocumented."

Another Arizona lawmaker, Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva, agrees with the Times' assessment and believes passage of the bill would likely mean serious economic penalties for the state.

Grijalva calls the proposed law "racist" and even goes so far as to call on national businesses to boycott Arizona if the controversial bill is not vetoed.

"I cannot stress enough the scale of the damage Arizona's prestige and credibility will suffer if this bill is finalized," Grijalva said.

He has called on Governor Jan Brewer to veto the bill, saying it is unconstitutional.

"This bill will be rejected by the courts and in the meantime Arizonans will be subjected to unnecessary indignity at the hands of racist law," said Grijalva.

U.S. Sen. John McCain has endorsed the measure.

"I think the people of Arizona understandably are frustrated and angry," the Arizona Republican said. "It's also a commentary on the frustration that our state Legislature has that the federal government has not fulfilled its constitutional responsibilities to secure our borders. "The law would require police to question people about their immigration status if there is any reason to believe they are in the country illegally.

Curious about Senate Bill 1070? Read a fact sheet for the bill

The bill is now in the hands of Gov. Jan Brewer, who has not taken a position on the measure championed by fellow Republicans and already signed by the House.

According to Brewer's spokesperson, she now has until 5 p.m. Saturday to act on the bill.

Brewer can sign the bill, veto it or do nothing, which would still allow the bill to become law.

If it moves through, it will go into effect in 90 days.
http://www.abc15.com/content/news/phoen ... RAh3Q.cspx

The odds are---most of them were going to drop out anyway. It is not unusual for the black and Hispanic dropout rate to be very high.

Maybe for one day American citizen children can get a good education, without all the illegals disrupting class.

When and if they come back to school the principle should put thier a$$es in detention!!!!

Arizona immigration bill: H.S. students leave school to join Capitol protest

by Allison Hurtado -
Apr. 22, 2010 03:18 PM
The Arizona Republic .

Upwards of 2,500 students from high schools across Phoenix walked out of school and marched to the Capitol on Thursday, joining other activists urging Gov. Jan Brewer to veto the immigration bill.

Protesters swelled in front of the Capitol as people converged to rally against Senate Bill 1070. Some came from as far away as California.

By 3:10 p.m., about 2,500 students had gathered. Some of the protesters got up and began to march around the building, chanting, "Si se puede," or "We can do it." They were joined by 67 members of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, who arrived by bus early afternoon.

The gathering was at times boisterous and for the most part civil. One of about half-a-dozen counterprotesters got into a minor scuffle with the crowd.

"We're U.S. citizens; we were born here," said Jessica Perez, a Tolleson High School student. "It's not right that they separate us from our parents."

Many students heard about the protest by word of mouth.

"I was about to go to my next class, and everyone started going out," said Junior Reyes, a Metro Tech High School student. "So we got together and came."

The students said their voices need to be heard, even if they aren't old enough to vote. They said their goal was to protect their family and friends from possible racial profiling.

The Reform Immigration for America campaign leaders have been outside the Capitol since Monday morning. They've slept outdoors and spent hours praying.

"We feel that we're definitely here for the community," said Alicia Contreras, a volunteer leader for the group. "We're meeting here in prayer and peaceful action."

Though the group was organized, Contreras says people have been coming just by word of mouth. "We've been talking to individuals, and if you tell one person, they tell 10. This is their way of showing what they feel. The reason the students are here is they will inherit the future that comes with this bill."

One teen arrived wearing a sombrero and carrying a Mexican flag. A crowd of 15 to 20 people, led by Alfredo Aparicio, approached him and persuaded the youth to put away the items.

Said Aparicio, "We're all here for the American dream. That's what we're following. They should be wearing the American flag."

Students came from Tolleson High School, Phoenix Trevor Browne High School, Cesar Chavez High School, Carl Hayden High School, Metro Tech High School, North High School and possibly more.

Most of the students were in the Phoenix Union High School District. District officials said they did not encourage the walkout.

"Walking away from the very institute that accepts all students regardless of race or national origin is not wise," said Craig Pletenik, the community relations manager. "It is this type of behavior that sends a negative message."

Apparently, the faculty had received word about the march through text messages and Facebook.

"We have informed the students and their parents that there will be consequences," Pletenik said. "Phoenix Union High School District does not condone this.

"It's personal and emotional for a lot of our kids. But sometimes it also becomes an excuse to ditch school," Pletenik said.

Groups from Los Angeles were expected to join the group later in the afternoon.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoe ... -abrk.html

Charge them all $50 admission to pay for the extra law enforcement security.

LOL! Video at link says they have a 10-15 mile hike! LOL! Hope they wore thier hush puppies....

Originally Posted by ReggieMay

Maybe for one day American citizen children can get a good education, without all the illegals disrupting class.

Ditto that RM! Cesar Chavez HS. What's the likelihood that all 300 are either anchor babies or illegal invaders themselves?

Not much of a loss as most of them will never graduate anyway. Perhaps if we're lucky, they will keep marching south, back to mexico...

One teen arrived wearing a sombrero and carrying a Mexican flag. A crowd of 15 to 20 people, led by Alfredo Aparicio, approached him and persuaded the youth to put away the items.

Said Aparicio, "We're all here for the American dream. That's what we're following. They should be wearing the American flag."

In other words, keep the reconquista quiet for the moment!

Law breakers supporting law breakers, what else do you expect.

See the results of a recently released poll from Rasmussen Reports, showing 70 percent of likely voters approve the legislation and 23 percent oppose it.

This is what the majority of the people want, period.