Thread: Minuteman Project plans protest at day-laborer gathering spo

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nort ... inute.html

By Adam Klawonn
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

January 31, 2006

VISTA – The Minuteman Project is kicking off a countywide effort to discourage employers from hiring migrant workers by picketing a site in central Vista on Saturday morning.

An organizer said the intersection of Escondido and South Santa Fe avenues was chosen for its high visibility and allure for dozens of laborers each day.

“We are not there to protest illegal aliens and day laborers,â€

Enrique Morones is not a civil rights leder he is the advocate for Mexican owned businesses whose profits come from the exploitation of illegal aliens. If you need a mouthpece because you are cheating the government then ou pay dues to Morones.

How many of these "advocates" are advocating for illegals simply because they directly benefit from the invasion? How many of them are willing to sell the USA if they're not profiting from it?

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/02 ... _31_06.txt

Opposing immigration protests planned for central Vista

By: CRAIG TENBROECK - Staff Writer

VISTA ---- Opponents of illegal immigration are planning to protest on Saturday at a popular gathering spot for day laborers in Vista, prompting a local Latino advocacy group to organize a counterdemonstration, both groups said Tuesday.

The original protest is not sponsored by the civilian border watch group known as The Minuteman Project, but is being organized by the group's volunteers in San Diego County and will be attended by 20 to 60 "Minuteman-minded" people, said participant Jim Gilchrist.

Gilchrist is a co-founder of The Minuteman Project.


The protesters will gather at roughly 8 a.m. Saturday morning near Escondido and South Santa Fe avenues to hold placards and distribute fliers lambasting the hiring of illegal workers, said Gilchrist, adding that he is traveling from Orange County to attend.

"The primary goal is to continue to bring national awareness to the blatant disregard for the rule of law" by those who hire illegal immigrants, Gilchrist said of the protest.

Local Latino advocates said that the event smacked of racial profiling and that they would show up Saturday with a demonstration of their own.

"I think they should realize that not everyone who is brown is an illegal immigrant," said Tina Jillings, 49, co-founder of the Coalition of Justice, Peace and Dignity, a Vista group that took shape soon after the fatal shootings of three Latino men by sheriff's deputies last summer.

Jillings ---- who said she sometimes distributes coffee, donuts and clothing to laborers on Escondido Avenue ---- said many of the workers she encounters are in the U.S. legally and need extra work to make ends meet.

That assessment was echoed by Vista Assistant City Manager Rick Dudley, who said that, based on information from immigration officials, the city believes that "the lion's share" of day laborers who gather near Escondido Avenue and South Santa Fe are in the country legally.

Latino laborers have been gathering near that high-profile intersection for more than a decade, city officials said.

"We don't believe that that's the best place for them to gather to seek work," Dudley said, "but we havenÃ*t been able to find a workable solution that would change that."

Day laborers waiting along Escondido Avenue on Tuesday said they would avoid the demonstrations on Saturday. Spanish-speaking worker Jose Guadalupe said of the Minutemen: "What they're doing is bad. We have to work to fight for our lives."

Gilchrist said the protest would be peaceful. "We do not condone hostility toward these people," he said. "We know they're economic refugees."

Sheriff's Capt. Rob Ahern said the department would have a lieutenant on scene Saturday morning and "as long as (the protest) stays lawful and stays peaceful, then our participation will be minimal."

Gilchrist said the protesters will move to Rep. Darrell Issa's Vista office for a second protest later Saturday afternoon.

"We're going to condemn Darrell Issa for his lack of attention to border issues," he said.

Issa spokesman Frederick Hill said Tuesday that it was "unlikely" the congressman would be in his Vista office Saturday.

"Rep. Issa agrees with the protesters that the federal government needs to do more to stop illegal immigration," Hill said. "He has been part of efforts that the House has made to address the question and he has gone beyond that."

Staff writer Stacy Brandt contributed to this story. Contact staff writer Craig TenBroeck at (760) 631-6621 or ctenbroeck@nctimes.com. To comment, go to nctimes.com.

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