New Mexico Protest Organizers Say Susana MartĂ*nez's Policies Will Reverse Immigrant Gains

By Elizabeth Llorente & Wil Cruz
Published February 07, 2011

Gov. Susana Martinez's hardline immigration policies were the target of a protest by Somos Un Pueblo Unido at the state Capitol.

Hundreds of immigrants rights activists rallied at the Capitol Monday to protest Gov. Susana MartĂ*nez’s immigration policies.

Carrying signs that said "New Mexico is Not Arizona," "Susana, Don't Play Politics With Public Safety" and "Licensed Drivers are Safer Drivers," protesters said her moves threaten to reverse gains in the relationship between immigrants and law enforcement officials in the last several years.

The group that organized the protest, Somos Un Pueblo Unido, and other critics of the governor’s policies, have assailed MartĂ*nez’s recent executive order requiring state law enforcement to check the immigration status of criminal suspects. They also have denounced her support for proposed measures that would revoke the driver’s licenses of undocumented immigrants.

“We’re having the march to protest anti-immigrant proposals in the legislature, namely revoking driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants,â€