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Maywood in the Crosshairs: Immigration Wars Continue


Okay, summer's officially over, all the demagogues are waking up from a well-earned nap and preparing to yell at each other (and us) again about immigration reform and how wrong the other guys are.

In addition to the Labor Day weekend immigration marches, I just got a press release emailed from ANSWER L.A. fairly shrieking that we should all "Protest Racist Minutemen in Maywood" when they arrive there for their own protest at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Well, in point of fact, it's a Save Our State protest against "the lawless city of Maywood" and while Minutemen may attend, there's no mention of it on the Minuteman Project home page. But who's counting when you're that riled up ...

In any case, I'm going to bet little old Maywood can protest on its own behalf. The city's population tops 96% Latino, nearly half of whom are illegal immigrants, and Mayor Thomas Martin is on record as declaring that the city will refuse to cooperate with U.S. immigration laws.

I'm guessing the SOS protesters will be about as welcome there as chinless geeks at a frat party - something to be made sport of, and ultimately tossed head-first into a dumpster full of beer empties.

But hey, here's the rhetoric being flung about by both sides in preparation for yet another edition of protest/counter-protest follies:


This Saturday, Aug. 26, all progressive people are encouraged to join pro-immigrant groups, including the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition, at a counter demonstration against the racist, anti-immigrant "Minuteman Project," "Save Our State" and other neo-fascists. Minutemen members and supporters are coming to Maywood with a message of racism and hate as part of the right-wing's anti-immigrant strategy. Maywood's population is 97 percent Latino, including many undocumented workers. The Maywood city council has gone on record opposing the racist Sensenbrenner bill that sparked the massive immigrant rights movement last spring. The Minutemen in Maywood is an affront to all immigrants and their supporters.

Join us this Saturday to expose them as the racists they really are. Bring banners and signs to show your support for immigrant rights. Now is the time to stand up for full equality, legalization and amnesty for undocumented workers. No to racism and the Minutemen! No to attacks on immigrants! The struggle for justice has no borders!
and from SOS:
It is far past high time that Maywood be put on notice that inviting illegal aliens into your City and promising them safe harbor is a crime in this country. Their lawless and 'above the law' mentality and attitude is a composite of all that we know is wrong concerning some Americans attitude toward this subject. The way they not only get behind lawlessness, but are actually PROUD of it, and flaunt this in the media and on their website is beyond the pale.

Therefore, in collaboration with the Holiness Pentecostal Movement, SaveOurState will be having its first protest against the city of Maywood. Plz try to bring signage having to do with the recent goings on with Maywood.

We will also be having a few REAL immigrants that have come to this Country in a legal fashion speak on just how they feel about what the City of Maywood has done, and continues to do.
My point in pointing this out? Same thing I said yesterday: Shouting is not policy.

Illegal immigration is a huge Gordian knot that will require the concerted efforts of legislators, law enforcement, foreign governments and cooler heads among the nation's wildly diverse populace to undo.

Let's not waste much more time or energy beating each other up.



Posted by: Mack_Reed on Thursday, August 24, 2006 - 11:54 AM