Mobilization Swells Against Anti-Immigrant Legislation

Mike Liu
3/21/06

Organizers are mobilizing against a new right wing-sponsored immigration bill, HR 4437 – The Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. Immigrant spokespeople call the pending bill a blatant violation of rights. In Chicago, a recent demonstration turned out more than half a million protesters. The Chicago turnout was unexpected and indicates growing awareness about this punitive bill. Washington D.C. also saw a large demonstration outside the Capitol. In San Francisco, organizers are planning a week-long hunger strike in front of the Federal Building starting today.

A wing of the Republican Party is pushing the bill, which would designate all undocumented immigrants as felons. The bill is so regressive that immigrant organizers have been able to work with Democratic politicians, unions, and businesses in opposing the bill. Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley were among those who spoke at the Chicago rally. Opposition to the bill has also ruptured relations between the Catholic Church, whose bishops unanimously oppose it, and the Republicans.

The proposed bill threatens to:

• Turn any person or organization that helps, employs, or provides any service to an undocumented immigrant into a criminal, including family members.
• Promote collaboration between federal immigration agents and local police agents, promote the use of stereotypes and discrimination against anyone that "seems" or "sounds" foreign.
• Promote racial discrimination in employment, housing, and facilitate retaliation against any immigrant that defends her/his legal rights.
• Militarize the border even more, which doesn't address the root causes immigration, but has caused more than 4,000 deaths since 1994.
• Will make it illegal to enter this country with false documents, which puts refugees and asylum seekers at risk, among others.

Those interested in fighting this bill can contact Eunice Cho, National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, & Jamae Sori (echo@nnirr.org)