Thread: San Bernardino, CA: Seven arrested in protest of immigration

Seven arrested in protest of immigration law

RYAN HAGEN, Staff Writer
Posted: 07/12/2011 10:12:13 PM PDT


SAN BERNARDINO - Chanting "undocumented and unafraid," seven illegal immigrants were arrested Tuesday afternoon for blocking traffic and disobeying police orders during a protest against immigration policies.

About 125 people yelled and held signs for three hours on the sidewalks by San Bernardino Valley College. And for just over an hour, eight of them sat at the intersection of South Mount Vernon Avenue and Esperanza Street, forcing several city buses and many cars to turn around.

"You have a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws," chanted the crowd, after police officers warned in English and Spanish that anyone blocking the street as part of the protest would be arrested and could be deported if they were in the country illegally.

Protesting from the sidewalk was legal, officers said.

Just before 4 p.m, police arrested seven protesters, who cooperated as they were put into squad cars on the scene.

An eighth protester, Alma de Jesus, 28, moved to the sidewalk at the last minute because she said her family would have no one to care for them if she was deported.

"Students of this campus should not have to live in fear," said Jesus Barrios, a Cal State San Bernardino student and one of the arrested protesters. "We have to take a stand and fight back against these policies."

Among several policies the group protested against was the federal 287(g) program that requires participating counties - including San Bernardino - to check the immigration status of anyone in police custody and sometimes to deport them.

"It's not always for civil disobedience, but if you roll a stop sign (you can be deported)," said Mohammad Abdollahi, a national organizer who attended the event. "That's what these students were fighting against, these policies that are criminalizing our communities, all just to make a buck."

That makes immigrants afraid to contact police for help and vulnerable to abuse, he said.

The protesters came from throughout California, with at least one of those arrested from Oakland.

They were booked at West Valley Detention Center for unlawful assembly and failure to disperse, said Lt. Gwendolyn Waters, a police spokeswoman.

Waters said those charged with such misdemeanors are usually released within a day, unless a status check turns up something like a warrant or immigration violation.

Some protesters said it was "shameful" that police arrested anyone, while others said the officers' actions were fair - it's just the next step, where deportation is possible, that they consider inhumane.

"They've been nice," said Hector Guzman, a Valley College student. "It's just a way to draw attention to how horrible the system is."

http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/news/ci_18466435

UC Berkeley student senator arrested in immigration rally
By Matt O'Brien
Contra Costa Times

Posted: 07/12/2011 06:49:01 PM PDT
Updated: 07/12/2011 06:49:02 PM PDT


A UC Berkeley student senator and six other illegal immigrant students were arrested in San Bernardino on Tuesday after they blocked a city street during an immigration rally, according to police and fellow protesters.

Political science student Ju Hong, 21, a graduate of Alameda High School, had traveled to San Bernardino Valley College for a "coming out" rally for undocumented students from across the state to share their stories.

College officials said the rally went smoothly until the protesters left the campus grounds and interrupted traffic on Mt. Vernon Avenue, a multilane thoroughfare adjacent to the campus.

"Once they started to jockey with the traffic and the buses, life got a little more complicated," said college spokeswoman Alisa Moore. "If I were testing that law, I don't think I'd test it with the San Bernardino police."

Friends say Hong intended to make a statement, but they are worried that the arrest could trigger his deportation. Through the federal Secure Communities program, which has been implemented in all of California's counties, anyone arrested and booked in a county jail gets fingerprints sent to a federal database monitored by agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"Ju's been very vocal about his immigration status. He just really wanted to share his story," said friend Yong Eo. Hong has lived in the East Bay since his family brought him here on a tourist visa from South Korea when he was 11.

The seven are charged with unlawful assembly and failure to disperse for blocking an "extremely busy street" and refusing to leave, said San Bernardino police Lt. Gwendolyn Brooks. She did not know their immigration status and said it is up to the sheriff's department and immigration agents to decide if they pursue the students for being in the country illegally.

"I don't know if they take them on misdemeanors," Brooks said. "It's between the jail and ICE to make that decision."

The other arrested students attended Pasadena City College, Los Angeles Harbor College, Cal State San Bernardino and East Los Angeles College, said protester Javier Hernandez.

"They stood tall when they were arrested," he said. "They knew the risks."

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18464904

SO,,,,,,,, Which of these criminals were deported??? OR ARE the cops here just straw cops, and are they now outlawing matches,,,

"You have a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws," chanted the crowd, after police officers warned in English and Spanish that anyone blocking the street as part of the protest would be arrested and could be deported if they were in the country illegally.

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I'm sure the illegal aliens laughed out loud on that one.

So .... were any deported?

Originally Posted by ANGELLOVER7777

SO,,,,,,,, Which of these criminals were deported??? OR ARE the cops here just straw cops, and are they now outlawing matches,,,

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To give you an idea of why these 'students' are so bold, look just west of San Berdoo to Los Angeles ...


Antonio Villaraigosa,
Chair of MEChA (student wing of Aztlan movement) at UCLA, former CA

MEChA Mass Murderer Has Ties To Marcos Aguilar
http://towncriernews.blogspot.com/2006/ ... arcos.html

"It's just a way to draw attention to how horrible the system is."

Oh, how horrible and inhumane!! Illegals have to obey the same laws that American citizens need to follow. Oh, how awful!!!

The chances of any one of these so called illegal invading "students" being deported (and they know it) are slim to none. Since the justice department now has “prosecutorial discretionâ€

Related:
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-243481.html