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Posted: Monday, 26 February 2007 2:16PM

SF Protest Against Immigration Policy


SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KCBS) -- The driving rain wasn't enough to stop a demonstration against U-S immigration policy in San Francisco today.
Immigrant rights activists and members of the faith community stood outside the immigration office, demanding an end to raids that have resulted in some 800 arrests in Northern California alone.

"(The immigrant) community is afraid," said protestor Beth Contenself. "We want to call on our tradition of hospitality, our tradition of immigration, and our tradition of open heart to everyone."

The Immigrant and Custom Enforcement Agency, however, does not consider the recent arrests as indiscriminate sweeps for illegals.

"We're focusing on those individuals that have been through immigration proceedings, who have been ordered deported by an independent immigration judge, and who have failed to comply with those orders," said ICE spokeswomen Virginia Kice.

Today's demonstration is the first of a week long series of planned protests.