05/02/08:Protesters rally for immigrants' rights - Union de Trabajadores Inmigrantes
The Capital Times
Pat Schneider — 5/02/2008 11:53 am
All photos by: Mike DeVries/The Capital Times
A women who did not want to be identified leads chants while marching up West Washington Avenue for a immigration rally at the City-County building.
The crowd begins its march up West Washington Avenue for an immigration rally at the City-County building Thursday afternoon.
People holds signs and wave flags at immigration rally at the City-County building Thursday afternoon.
Will Williams, of TAME/MAPC, speaks to crowd at immigration rally at the City-County Building Thursday afternoon.
A young woman holds a Mexican flag while marching to City County building Thursday afternoon.
The crowd carries signs up West Washington Avenue to a immigraton rally at the City-County building Thursday afternoon.
Several hundred people marked May Day in Madison Thursday by demonstrating for immigrant and workers rights, and underscored opposition to Dane County Jail practices with undocumented inmates.
Several hundred protesters, most of them young and Spanish-speaking, rallied first in Brittingham Park, where chants of Si se Puede! (Yes we can!) punctuated chants about unity.Demonstrators raised signs declaring the right of all people to work. Several signs stated, "Ninguna persona es iligal" (No person is illegal). Other signs carried cartoonish images of Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney's face in a badge followed by "= ICE." Those signs skewered Mahoney's practice of reporting to Immigrations and Custom Enforcement undocumented persons in custody in the Dane County Jail. The practice has led to the deportation of a number immigrants, some being held on minor charges, and has raised a flurry of opposition in the local immigrant and legal defense communities.
An increase in ICE agents in the state also has brought several raids to pick up people wanted on deportation warrants in recent months, some of which have netted other undocumented workers.
The rally, sponsored by Union de Trabajadores Inmigrantes (Immigrant Workers Union), UTI, soon was joined by protesters from UW Students for Immigrant Rights and the group began its march up West Washington Avenue.
Demonstrators said that their dedication to immigrant rights, or the cause of all workers, had brought them to the streets.
"I'm fighting for immigrant rights," said 14-year-old Blanca Cruz as she walked in protest. "I'm Mexican and this is a passion for me."
Musician Tony Casteneda marched with his 4-year-old daughter, Feliz, in tow. "We are marching with our people," he said. "This is my heritage, it's her heritage. It's good for her to be here and she wanted march."
"This is all of ours' struggle," said Sunshine Jones, as she marched with her daughter, Sol Kelly-Jones. "We need to stand together and stop the deportation of our brothers."
Kelly-Jones said that May 1 is traditionally a day for resistance or organizing by workers worldwide. "This is one of the crucial issues of our time," she said. "Human beings are being deemed 'illegal.'"
About 300 demonstrators gathered at the City-County Building, where they shouted slogans: "The people, united, will never be defeated."
Organizer Alex Gillis of UTI joined others in leading chants from the steps of the City-County Building. He said that the group had recruited heavily at local high schools for marchers. "They feel less harassed by the raids than their parents," he said.
Gillis said that his group was slated to meet next week with Mahoney to plead once again that he stop the practice of notifying ICE when undocumented people are being held in the jail.