(AP Photo/Ric Francis)Just weeks after the massive Chicago, Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Denver mobilizations, the Associated Press is reporting now that Sunday's Dallas Immigrant Rights Protest drew historic record numbers of new activists half a million strong fighting for justice and dignity for immigrant communities. 50,000 more marched in San Diego and another 30,000 in St. Paul Minnesota.
San Francisco Chronicle reporter Delfin Vigil also confirms those numbers in this morning's story, but he also gives voice to teachers, young people, and community organizers.
In the Bay Area, Jay Pugao, a Filipino American and a teacher at East OaklandJoin us Monday - April 10 - National Day of Action for Immigrant Justice
Community High School, said, "Our (House of Representatives) basically wants me to see my students as criminals. Some of my students might be illegal immigrants. But they are students. They are not criminals."
Pugao said he has noticed his students are increasingly aware of how they would be affected by the changes in the law.
"The revolution might not be televised, but it is definitely being digitized," said Pugao. "The students are getting organized through text messaging, blogs, and Web sites like MySpace.com. They know exactly what's going on."
He and others said the current debate has brought the Latino and other immigrant communities closer.
"The mass media forgets that immigrants come in all colors," Pugao said. "The Irish, Chinese, Japanese all helped build this country. Even our governor is an immigrant."
...Arnoldo Garcia, with the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, also said local radio stations like KRZZ 93.3 FM La Raza in San Francisco deserve credit for explaining complex immigration issues. The Spanish-speaking stations' DJs first opened their airways for political conversation in the week leading up to a rally March 25 in Los Angeles that drew 500,000.
"The Latino radio stations understand that they have got to get the word out because it's their audience who is under attack," said Garcia. "We're still preparing for something bigger because it's not going to take just one march to get what we deserve." full Chronicle story.
OAKLAND MARCH Organized by Saint Louis Bertrand Church
Contact: Jesus Rodriguez, 510-469-7785
9:00AM - March from Saint Louis Bertrand Church (100th Ave. & International Blvd.) to the Oakland Federal Building
SAN FRANCISCO PRESS CONFERENCE Organized by the Deporten a la Migra Coalition
Contact: Luis Herrera, St. Peter's Housing Committee, 415-724-2426
11:00AM - Press Conference at 24th St. and Mission St.
SAN JOSE MARCH Organized by SIREN and SEIU Local 1877
Contact: Martha Campos, SIREN, 408-453-3003, ext. 111
3:00PM - Gather at Story Rd. & King Rd.3:45PM - Program begins
4:00PM - March 3 mi. to San Jose City Hall
7-7:45PM - Rally at City Hall Flyer in Spanish and English
SAN FRANCISCO FAMILY MARCH Organized by Compañeros del Barrio
Contact: Compañeros del Barrio, 415-431-9925
5:00PM - March from 16th St. and Mission St. to 24th St. and Mission St.
more info http://www.immigrantrights.org
2 comments:
I have just been watching CBS, NBC, ABC national news reporting on these events. I was struck how they all basically read from the same script: "these immigrants are doing jobs that americans won't do and the immigrants are doing them better and for less than americans. "
I felt very queasy not only because they all said exactly the same thing (adding that immigrants were more of burden than a help--not true, by the way), but I began to feel that they were race baiting. Who are these unemployed "americans" who "won't take these jobs" that the anchors want us to be thinking about? Do they want us to think about those americans who are unemployed in vastly disproportionate numbers to their population? Is this why Jessie Jackson got so upset when Vincente Fox said the same as the anchors? here we have the three national news network anchormen (Shaeffer hasn't been replaced yet) allowing white americans to continue to think in very racist terms like: since blacks are lazy and undisciplined that's why employers are forced to hire undocumented workers, that's why black unemployment, especially among youth is so high.
The story could have been framed very differently. For example, employers are sending a message to immigrants from central America, if you don't do backbreaking work for poverty wages, we will treat you even worse, we will treat you like we have been treating African Americans throughout US history (the same message that every successive waves of immigrants have been getting since thte 1840s).
Kathy Emery said...
I have just been watching CBS, NBC, ABC national news reporting on these events. I was struck how they all basically read from the same script: "these immigrants are doing jobs that americans won't do and the immigrants are doing them better and for less than americans. "
I felt very queasy not only because they all said exactly the same thing (adding that immigrants were more of burden than a help--not true, by the way), but I began to feel that they were race baiting. Who are these unemployed "americans" who "won't take these jobs" that the anchors want us to be thinking about? Do they want us to think about those americans who are unemployed in vastly disproportionate numbers to their population? Is this why Jessie Jackson got so upset when Vincente Fox said the same as the anchors? here we have the three national news network anchormen (Shaeffer hasn't been replaced yet) allowing white americans to continue to think in very racist terms like: since blacks are lazy and undisciplined that's why employers are forced to hire undocumented workers, that's why black unemployment, especially among youth is so high.
The story could have been framed very differently. For example, employers are sending a message to immigrants from central America, if you don't do backbreaking work for poverty wages, we will treat you even worse, we will treat you like we have been treating African Americans throughout US history (the same message that every successive waves of immigrants have been getting since thte 1840s).
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