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Immigrants
and
their
allies
are
preparing
for May
1
rallies
nationwide
and say
there's
renewed
momentum
to fight
back
against
President
Donald
Trump's
policies
and more
collaboration
among
different
advocacy
groups.
(AP file
photo/Olga
Rodriguez) |
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Immigrants
plan May
Day
rallies
buoyed
by Trump
opposition
By
SOPHIA
TAREEN
and AMY
TAXIN
ap.org
CHICAGO
-
Immigrant
groups
and
their
allies
have
joined
forces
to carry
out
marches,
rallies
and
protests
in
cities
nationwide
next
week to
mark May
Day,
saying
there's
renewed
momentum
to fight
back
against
Trump
administration
policies.
Activists
in major
cities
including
New
York,
Chicago
and Los
Angeles
expect
tens of
thousands
of
people
to
participate
in
Monday
demonstrations,
starting
with
morning
neighborhood
protests
and
culminating
in rush
hour
events
downtown.
Activists
also
plan an
overnight
vigil in
Phoenix,
a farm
workers
demonstration
outside
Miami
and a
White
House
rally.
In
Seattle,
pro-immigrant
events
are
expected
to give
way to
rowdier,
anti-capitalist
marches
led by
protesters
who said
they
plan to
shut
down a
major
freeway
through
the
city.
"We're
seeing
an
unprecedented
amount
of
enthusiasm
and
activity,"
said New
York
Immigration
Coalition
executive
director
Steven
Choi.
"It's
driven
by the
fact
that
Trump
administration
has made
immigration
the tip
of the
spear."
Around
the
world,
union
members
have
traditionally
marched
on May 1
for
workers'
rights.
In the
United
States,
the
event
became a
rallying
point
for
immigrants
in 2006
when
more
than 1
million
people
marched
against
a
proposed
immigration
enforcement
bill.
While
the
current
climate
surrounding
immigration
may be
similar
to 2006
amid
President
Donald
Trump's
hard-line
approach
to the
issue,
the
immigrant
rights
movement
has
changed
dramatically
since
then.
Advocacy
groups
that in
2006
were
united
in their
determination
to flood
the
streets
to make
a
statement
have
fractured
since
then and
pursued
other
efforts,
such as
voter
registration,
lobbying
and
fighting
deportations.
However,
activists
expect a
surge in
participation
this
year, in
part
because
immigrant
rights
groups
have
worked
with
Women's
March
participants,
Black
Lives
Matter
and
Muslim
civil
rights
groups
who are
united
by their
opposition
to
Donald
Trump.
Also,
businesses
with
immigrant
ties are
closing
or
allowing
employees
to take
the day
off
without
penalty.
Immigrant
groups
acknowledged
there is
some
fear
among
people
in the
country
illegally
who are
skittish
about
drawing
attention
to
themselves
in
visible
marches.
But
organizers
are
reminding
them
that
it's an
important
cause
and
there's
safety
in
numbers.
"If you
are an
immigrant
in Los
Angeles,
the
safest
place
you can
be on
Monday
is in
the
action
in
downtown
Los
Angeles,"
said
David
Huerta,
president
of SEIU
United
Service
Workers
West.
As Trump
approaches
his
first
100
days, he
has
aggressively
pursued
immigration
enforcement,
including
executive
orders
for a
wall
along
the
U.S.-Mexico
border
and a
ban on
travelers
from six
predominantly-Muslim
countries.
The
government
has
arrested
thousands
of
immigrants
in the
country
illegally
and
threatened
to
withhold
funding
from
sanctuary
jurisdictions,
which
limit
cooperation
between
local
and
federal
immigration
authorities.
In
response,
leaders
in
sanctuary
cities
have
vowed to
fight
back and
civic
participation
has seen
a boost,
including
February's
"Day
Without
Immigrants."
The
travel
ban and
sanctuary
order
were
temporarily
halted
by legal
challenges.
"We will
not be
divided,"
Pastor
Don
Taylor
of an
interfaith
organizing
group
told
Chicago
supporters
preparing
this
week for
May 1.
"It is a
moral
issue."
Still,
while
there is
opposition
to
Trump,
activists
aren't
focused
on a
single
course
of
action.
In
Illinois,
they're
pushing
legislative
plans to
essentially
extend
sanctuary
protections
statewide.
Outside
Miami,
advocates
are
calling
for an
extension
of
temporary
protected
status
for
Haitians
displaced
by a
deadly
2010
earthquake.
In
Detroit,
the push
is for
immigrants'
constitutional
rights,
including
due
process.
In Los
Angeles,
organizers
expect
as many
as
100,000.
New York
could
see up
to
50,000
participants.
Chicago
organizers
estimate
at least
20,000.
In
Pennsylvania,
student
groups
are
calling
for
strikes
to
demand a
safe
place
for
immigrants
on
campus,
while in
Las
Vegas
culinary
workers
will
take to
the
casino-lined
strip to
show
support.
In the
Chicago
area,
dozens
of
restaurants
and
grocery
stores
planned
to
either
close or
allow
workers
to
attend
the
demonstrations.
In
Portland,
Oregon,
unions,
immigrants
and
others
are
urging
people
to skip
work,
school
and
shopping
to
highlight
the
importance
of
workers
and the
community's
strength.
Elsewhere,
union
leaders
have
asked
employers
to let
workers
participate.
Google,
for one,
asked
managers
to be
flexible
in
accommodating
requests
for
time-off
so
employees
can join
marches.
Adonis
Flores,
an
organizer
with
Michigan
United,
plans to
participate
for the
first
time on
what's
long
been
known as
International
Workers
Day.
The
28-year-old
was
brought
to the
country
as a
young
child
from
Mexico
and
doesn't
have
legal
permission
to stay.
For four
years,
he's
received
a work
permit
through
an Obama
administration
program
for
young
people,
and
doubts
Trump's
assurances
that his
administration
won't
target
people
like him
for
deportation.
"I don't
believe
anything
he says
and
don't
believe
anybody
should,"
he said.
"It's
getting
to a
point
where
the
community
is being
tired
and
ready to
take
action."
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