Immigrant rights groups rally across the U.S.

Howard Dean weighs in
Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean called the bill “insane” because it would require many illegal immigrants to return home before applying for citizenship.

If all those individuals decided to go home on their own, “imagine what will happen to our economy?” he told a group of more than 100 party supporters at Miami’s Parrot Jungle Island.

He originally planned to address demonstrators in Miami but said he canceled because of scheduling conflicts. He planned to meet privately with rally leaders.

About 400 people gathered in downtown Los Angeles a few hours before a march was set to begin. Many were dressed in red, white and blue and waved American and Mexican flags. Los Angeles County is home to about 1 million illegal immigrants, by far the largest concentration in America.

In L.A., ‘they feel terrorized’
Los Angeles public school teacher David Cid said he came to support his students, many of whom are suffering because of recent raids that have impacted their families.

“They feel terrorized,” said Cid, who declined to give more details about where he works to protect his students.

Despite divisions over tactics and other issues, immigration groups and supporters said the diverse events will show the movement is stronger than ever.

“Just because the 12 million people who don’t have legal residency don’t attend a march doesn’t mean they don’t want it,” said Eduardo “Piolin” Sotelo, a popular Spanish-language disc jockey. “I tell my listeners that no matter what they do, just don’t stop doing something.”

After last year’s protests, reform legislation stalled in Congress and bipartisan proposals for illegal immigrants to gain citizenship have gotten more conservative.

Organizers said Tuesday’s turnout will be lower because stepped-up raids in recent months have left many immigrants afraid to speak out in public — a major change over rallies in 2006 when some illegal immigrants wore T-shirts saying “I’m illegal. So what?”

“These raids have torn apart families,” said John Crockford, a member of the Central California Coalition for Immigrant Rights.

In Fresno, organizers planned a rally focusing on children whose parents had been deported. The San Joaquin Valley is home to thousands of seasonal workers who work illegally each year in the fields and construction industry.

In Los Angeles, marches were set to include demands for a legalization program, a stop to the raids and an anti-Iraq war message. City and transportation officials were planning for as many as 500,000 people in downtown, believing it could be the largest in the city so far this year.

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