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Published: April 26, 2006

Local News: Rockford
Workers return, but schools feel effect of rumors
Police prepare for May 6 anti-illegal immigration meeting.

By Mike Wiser
ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR


ROCKFORD — Swan Hillman Principal Ivelisse Rosas had to cheer up a classroom full of crying first-graders Tuesday morning.

They were afraid the immigration police were going to get them and their parents.

At Barbour Language Academy more students stayed home Tuesday than they did on Monday. Principal Martha Medina didn’t have a number but said it was simply “too many.”

But things were back to normal at Rockford Molded Products in Loves Park, which had about 85 percent of its employees missing Monday.

Nor were there any abnormal spikes in absenteeism Tuesday in the Belvidere School District, said Superintendent Don Schlomann. On Monday, 240 bilingual students didn’t show up for class. A normal day would have about 35 to 40 absent, Schlomann said.

The day after rumors of a massive immigration crackdown swept through the Rock River Valley, leading hundreds to skip school and work, things were getting back to normal in some places, but in others, the specter of illegal immigrant roundups loomed large.

“I just wish we could have a public service announcement to the parents that their children are safe in schools,” Medina said. “But the parents we need to tell that to are the ones that aren’t showing up.”

While it’s not clear what sparked the rumors, such as 2,000 people being detained at the MetroCentre or cops and immigration agents setting up roadblocks, people were convinced they were true.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Chicago denied that it had any large-scale operations under way, as did local police. Nonetheless, the rumors spread quickly, not only in the Rock River Valley, but in other areas of the country as well.

“It’s not as bad today,” said ICE spokeswoman Gail Montenegro Tuesday. “But we still are getting calls about supposed roundups. We’ve gotten a couple from Rockford, Green Bay and from Indiana.”

Monday was “tough, considering we work 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Wayne Rasner, general manager of Rockford Molded Products.

“We had maintenance people running the machines due to the fact that we lost everybody.”

Meanwhile, police were making security preparations for a planned May 6 meeting of the Illinois Minuteman Project.

The group, a state chapter of the anti-illegal immigration group best known for setting up citizen border patrols last year, has rented the auditorium at the main branch of the Rockford Public Library for a town hall meeting.

Twice before the Minuteman Project has attempted to hold a meeting in Rockford, first at Memorial Hall, then at Stash O’Neil’s bar on East State Street. The county denied the group access the first time, and the bar rescinded its offer before the event the second.

“The library doesn’t discriminate against groups based on political views,” Rockford Public Library community relations director Emily Kicklighter said.

Police anticipate a protest of the group by many of the same people who marched in Rockford Monday and April 9.

“We’d like them to keep it small,” Glover said of the anticipated protest. “But you can’t tell people not to protest, especially when it’s an issue they feel passionate about.”

Illinois Minuteman Project Director Rosanna Pulido suggested that ICE agents should be at the protest checking protesters for documents.

“We didn’t go down and protest when they got their matriculas, or during their rallies,” Pulido said.

Pulido said the library meeting shouldn’t be seen as a victory for her group, just a recognition of “American citizens exercising their right to gather.”

She added she has been “very disappointed” with the immigration coverage by the Rockford Register Star and other media that have written stories she believes are sympathetic to illegal immigrants.

“I would like to see a sympathetic story about an American veteran who lost their job because an illegal immigrant took it,” she said. “Those are the people I care about.”

Calls to Ynez Lopez of Belvidere-based ALERTA and Julio Salgado, who helped organize both previous marches, were not returned Tuesday.

“I just feel bad for the kids,” Rosas said. She said that a lot of the students weren’t as worried about themselves being taken, but going home and their parents are gone. “Can you imagine what emotions they must be going through?”

Register Star Staff writer Sarah Roberts contributed to this report.

Staff writer Mike Wiser can be reached at 815-987-1377 or mwiser@rrstar.com.

What the law says

A person (including a group of people, business, organization or government) commits a federal felony when he:

Assists an alien who he should reasonably know is illegally in the U.S. or who lacks employment authorization, by transporting, sheltering or assisting him to obtain employment.

Encourages that alien to remain in the U.S., by referring him to an employer, by acting as employer or agent for an employer in any way.

Or knowingly assists illegal aliens due to personal convictions.
Penalties upon conviction include criminal fines, imprisonment, and forfeiture of vehicles and real property used to commit the crime.

Anyone employing or contracting with an illegal alien without verifying his work authorization status is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Aliens and employers violating immigration laws are subject to arrest, detention, and seizure of property. In addition, individuals or entities who engage in racketeering enterprises that commit (or conspire to commit) immigration-related felonies are subject to private civil suits for treble damages and injunctive relief.

Source: Federation for American Immigration Reform