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Politics : ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION THE FIGHT TO KEEP OUR DEMOCRACY -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: PROLIFE who wrote (1569)	5/1/2007 2:51:13 PM
From: Ann Corrigan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3197

Turnout Down for Illegal Alien Rallies-Tim Gaynor PHOENIX (Reuters) - Demonstrators toting placards and bullhorns rallied across the United States on Tuesday to demand rights for illegal aliens, although the turnout was down from mass rallies a year ago, organizers said. Demonstrations, consumer boycotts and school walkouts got under way by groups calling for an end to a recent crackdown on illegal immigrants and better treatment for the estimated 11 million people living and working in the shadows of American society. A year ago, hundreds of thousands of mostly Hispanic immigrants walked off the job and packed streets of major cities from New England to California in a massive show of their economic clout. "This is our way to show our presence. We are here, we are part of America and we are not going away," said activist Lydia Hernandez as she stood among more than 1,300 demonstrators in central Phoenix. The latest rallies come as U.S. lawmakers are struggling to devise a workable compromise on immigration, seeking a formula to provide tougher border control and workplace enforcement while addressing the status of illegal immigrants. Federal legislation that would have created a guest-worker program and offered many illegal aliens a shot at citizenship failed last year in the face of stiff opposition from Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives. This year, protest organizers expect participation to be lower than last, citing waning support for the rallies in the Spanish-language media and stepped-up immigration raids that have raised fear in many communities nationwide. In Los Angeles, about 2,500 demonstrators carrying placards with slogans such as "Stop the Raids & Deportations" and "Legalization Now" gathered in the city's fashion district. "America gives us the opportunity to better ourselves, to have better jobs, better careers, better education," said student Marta Duenas, who was carrying an American flag. OVERHAUL ELUSIVE Los Angeles officials expect 20,000 people to rally in two marches downtown, well below the number who took part in a May 1 protest last year that brought traffic to a standstill. In Chicago, where protesters were still gathering at late morning, organizers had originally estimated there would be 5,000 marchers -- a far cry from the 400,000 to 500,000 who turned out a year ago. Rallies and boycotts are planned in Boston, New York and Washington D.C. where about 400 Asian immigrants sought to lobby lawmakers. In New York, illegal immigrants planned to decorate a "family tree," with paper leaves containing names of family members from whom they are separated While the rallies highlight immigrants' demands, U.S. officials and lawmakers remained divided on chances for immigration legislation in coming weeks. "I think there is a reasonably good chance (that a law will be passed) but I don't want to underestimate the challenges," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told CNN television news. "I think it's going to have to be tough on enforcement. It's going to have to continue to put pressure on the border but we're going to need to find a way that is reasonable and fair and not an amnesty to deal with the illegal workers who are here," he added. Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, an opponent of an "amnesty" granting any concessions or legal status to illegal immigrants, was dismissive, saying a 1986 effort failed. "We had 3 million illegal aliens in the country then when we did it, and it was supposed to be the end of our problem. We now have about, well, between 12 million and 20 million illegal aliens in the country and we will have exponentially more if we give them amnesty again."