Chicago rallies against immigration bill

Over 100,000 people marched through Chicago on Mar. 10 to rally against HR 4437–The Border Protection, Antiterrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005. Supporters of the bill before Congress say it beefs up border protection. But thousands of people in Chicago's Latino community call the pending bill a blatant violation of rights. The protesters–Polish, Irish, Latino, Chinese and many other nationalities–gathered to protest the bill that would make it a crime to hire or even help undocumented immigrants. The march began at noon at a park several miles west of the downtown business district. Hours later, marchers still clogged streets and tied up traffic. By early evening, traffic had returned to near-normal levels, police said. "I'm definitely surprised to see this many people," said protester Cesar Garza. "I expected a small amount of crowd, but this is… wow! I'm really surprised." Many of the protesters were immigrants who took the day off work to attend the rally. "This is a ridiculous bill," said Polish immigrant Paulina Cdnok. "I don't understand how it got as far as it did, and they're trying to make this a law–and then at this point it's a police state." Other immigrants said their most important goal was to be part of the United States. "It's important that they know that we make great contributions to this country," Chicago resident Maricela Herrera said. "We're not here to take any jobs or anything, we're here to be able to give our contributions that make the United States what it is." "We got a family to support. We got a job. We pay taxes. We want to be part of this country," said Mexican immigrant Esperanza Martinez. The march ended at the Federal Plaza, where state and local leaders promised to fight for immigrant rights. "Whether their names are Gutierrez or Lozano, Lipinski or Blagojevich; it doesn't matter," said Gov. Rod Blagojevich. "This is a country built by immigrants." Mayor Richard M. Daley said: "This is a fight that includes every American. Those who are here undocumented, we're not going to make criminals out of them. That is not what America has ever stood for and will not stand for." US Rep. Luis Gutierrez told the crowd that immigrants are here to stay, and pledged to work o block the bill. At the end of the day, organizers say there were more than half a million protesters, while police estimates were much lower. The march marked one of the biggest pro-immigrant rallies in US history. The only opposition to the march came from a group called the Illinois Minutemen Project. Rosanna Pulido of that organization said she believed protecting illegal immigrants would violate the law. "They are asking that our laws be totally violated to protect illegal aliens, people who break the law and come into this country," Pulido said. Earlier in the march, Pulido said, "I don't care if there's three million people out there, if they are illegal they do not have a voice in America." Chicago police were out in full force, but there were no arrests or problems. "We had total cooperation from the organizers and volunteers," said Chicago Police Deputy Supt. Charles Williams. The legislation, already passed by the House of Representatives, is billed as a border protection, anti-terrorism and illegal immigration control act. It includes such measures as enlisting military and local law enforcement help in stopping illegal entrants and authorizes the building of a fence along parts of the US-Mexico border. The Senate appears likely to pass much more moderate legislation, without the criminal sanctions and with a path to citizenship for those here illegally. More demonstrations are expected to come across the country as the bill is debated in Congress. On Mar. 7, thousands of immigrants rallied against the bill outside the US Capitol.