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Over 1.5 Million March for Immigrant Rights in One of Largest
Days of Protest in U.S. History
Juan Gonzalez: On Streets of New York, Solidarity Reigns
The Meaning of the May Day Marches and the Future of the
Immigrant Rights Movement
Are U.S. Trade Policies & NAFTA Causing An Influx of
Undocumented Workers in U.S.?
Puerto Rico Imposes Partial Government Shutdown Amid Financial
Crisis
Over 1.5 Million March for Immigrant Rights in One
of Largest Days of Protest in U.S. History
Over 1.5 million people took part in May Day demonstrations
to support immigrant rights in one of the largest days of
protest in the country's history. Across the nation immigrants
refused to go to work or school in what was dubbed "A
Day Without Immigrants." Major demonstrations were held
in dozens of cities across the country. We hear some of the
voices that spoke at rallies on the historic day. [includes
rush
transcript]
In what is being called the largest day of protest in U.S.
history, over 1.5 million people stayed away from work and
school Monday to take part in nationwide marches in support
of immigrant rights. In Chicago, organizers claimed a turnout
of 700,000 people. In Los Angeles, at least 500,000. Here
in New York, over 100,000 marched down Broadway. At least
75,000 people turned out in Denver, with thousands more in
cities including San Jose, Phoenix, Milwaukee, New Orleans,
Las Vegas and nearly 50 others.
Businesses across the country were closed as workers walked
off the job for an economic boycott dubbed "A Day Without
Immigrants." Meat producing companies, including Tyson
foods, Cargill and Perdue Farms closed down more than two
dozen plants employing over 20,00 people. In Phoenix, protesters
formed a human chain to block off Wal-Mart and Home Depot
stores. Traffic was down 90 percent at the main ports in Los
Angeles and Long Beach, the country's largest. The boycott
also attracted large student involvement. In Los Angeles,
over 72,000 middle and high school students -- about one in
every four students - were absent from school.
We go now to some of the voices from this historic day:
- Rep. Luis Gutierrez, (D - Illinois)
- Gloria Romero, California Senate Majority Leader (D)
- Bill Rosendahl, Los Angeles City Council member
- Gerardo Lorenz, of radio station KTNQ.
Here in New York, we caught up with demonstrators just steps
from our firehouse studio in Chinatown.
- Demonstrators in Manhattan, NY.
Juan Gonzalez: On Streets of New York, Solidarity
Reigns
Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez reads from his column
in the New York Daily News. He writes, "This movement
is already a backlash - against decades of anti-immigrant
scapegoating and hysteria in Washington. Congress ignores
this cry for recognition at our country's peril." On
streets of New York, solidarity reigns
Juan Gonzalez in the New
York Daily News
All you had to do was take one look down normally bustling
St. Nicholas Ave. in Washington Heights yesterday afternoon
to sense an astonishing event was underway.
Around 12:30 p.m., Luis Carillo and Abimael Classen stood
in front of their shuttered Chavin Hardware store near the
corner of W. 178th St.
"We're closed to support the immigrant protest,"
Carillo said, his arms folded serenely under a brilliant sun.
Carillo came here from Peru more than 35 years ago, and has
long since become a citizen. He realized his American Dream.
Now, it was time to take a stand for those less fortunate,
he said.
Virtually every store owner along St. Nicholas made the same
decision, even if that meant turning away a few almighty dollars
for one day.
The Capri Restaurant on the corner. The Los Primos Fruit
Store. The big Bravo Supermarket down the street. The Happy
Land Chinese Restaurant.
All were closed yesterday, some for a few hours, most for
the entire day. Over on Broadway, it was the same story.
Yasmin's Fashion Store. Torres Bakery. Casa Linda Upholstery.
Columbia Pharmacy. Angel Shoes. Fort Washington Hardware.
Aztek Records. Santa Ana Botanica. Quisqueya Grocery. Fernandez
Check Cashing.
All closed.
By the end of the day, thousands of immigrant-owned businesses
all over America had pulled off perhaps the biggest one-day
boycott this country has ever seen.
Even huge corporations like Tyson Foods and Cargill's reluctantly
closed their factories so their largely immigrant workers
could join - of all things - a national May Day demonstration
for the legalization of millions of undocumented workers.
And once again those immigrant workers, both legal and illegal,
poured into the streets of downtown Manhattan and scores of
other cities and towns, their children and baby carriages
in tow - in numbers too breathtaking for anyone to ignore.
"No one knows the pain we feel," said Miguel Baez,
who came here illegally from Mexico five years ago and works
as a bartender in Manhattan.
"We need these jobs to survive," he said. "But
we can't visit our families back home for years for fear we'll
get caught coming back."
It is that endless agony of living in the shadows that has
driven so many to join these massive protests.
They march even though they risk being fired or being detained
and deported by immigration authorities.
They boycotted schools and jobs and shut down stores yesterday
even though Catholic Church officials and union leaders and
politicians who support their cause urged them to ignore the
call for May Day protests.
They took to the streets even though the pundits and the
so-called experts in Washington warned of a political backlash
from middle-class America.
Some have even tried to pit black Americans against the undocumented.
But key African-American leaders like the Revs. Jesse Jackson
and Al Sharpton and Transport Workers Union chief Roger Toussaint
all attacked those divisive tactics at yesterday's Union Square
rally.
"You can't talk about globalized capital and exporting
jobs and not talk about global human and labor rights for
immigrant workers," Jackson said. "Immigrants aren't
sending good jobs overseas, corporations are."
Time and again this new immigrant movement has taken the
politicians, the church and labor leaders by surprise with
its discipline and its fury.
The experts, you see, are missing the point.
This movement is already a backlash - against decades of
anti-immigrant scapegoating and hysteria in Washington. Congress
ignores this cry for recognition at our country's peril.
The Meaning of the May Day Marches and the Future
of the Immigrant Rights Movement
On the heels of what is being called the largest day of
protest in U.S. history, where does the immigrant rights movement
go from here? We discuss the significance of the May Day marches
and the future of the movement with two organizers. [includes
rush
transcript]
On the heels of the massive May Day immigrant rights marches,
where does the movement go from here? To help us recap this
historic day and look at what's next, we speak with two organizers
of Monday's actions.
- Javier Rodriguez, a longtime immigrant rights activist
and spokesperson for the March 25th Coalition Against HR
4437, the umbrella group that organized one of the two marches
in Los Angeles and spearheaded the nationwide economic boycott.
- Justino Rodriguez, student organizer with the newly formed
CUNY Coalition For Immigrant Rights. Their walkout drew
nearly 2,000 students from the City College of New York
alone.
Are U.S. Trade Policies & NAFTA Causing An Influx
of Undocumented Workers in U.S.?
Longtime labor journalist David Bacon examines the negative
impact Washington’s trade policies have had on Mexico
and the rest of Latin America. Bacon speaks to us from Los
Angeles where he attended Monday’s massive protests
for immigration rights. [includes rush
transcript]
- David Bacon, veteran labor journalist who writes for
a number of publications, including The Nation, The Progressive
and the Pacifica News Service. He is also a programmer on
Pacifica station KPFA in Berkeley. He is the author of the
books "The Children of NAFTA" and the forthcoming
"Communities Without Borders." He speaks to us
from Los Angeles.
Puerto Rico Imposes Partial Government Shutdown Amid
Financial Crisis
In Puerto Rico, the government ran out of money on Monday
and was forced to impose a partial public sector-shutdown.
The island's 1,600 state schools have been shut and nearly
100,000 government workers have been temporarily left without
jobs. We go to Puerto Rico to speak with political commentator
and analyst, Luis Davila Colon. [includes rush
transcript]
We turn to the latest news out of Puerto Rico where the
government ran out of money on Monday and was forced to impose
a partial public sector-shutdown - the first of its kind in
the history of the US commonwealth.
Puerto Rico's 1,600 state schools have been shut, leaving
half a million students and 40,000 teachers with no classes.
Nearly 100,000 government workers have been temporarily left
without jobs. The government is Puerto Rico's largest employer,
with some 200,000 workers.
Puerto Rico has a $740 million budget shortfall because the
Legislature and Governor Anibal Acevedo-Vila have been unable
to agree on a spending plan since 2004. Differing sales tax
proposals have been presented that would allow the government
to secure a line of credit to pay salaries through June 30,
the end of the fiscal year. The island currently has no sales
tax.
Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets in San Juan's
financial district to protest the partial shutdown and the
sales taxes proposed to close the budget gap. Protesters shattered
the windows of two local banks and a shipping company's office
and painted graffiti calling for a "revolution"
against taxes.
- Luis Davila Colon, a leading political commentator and
analyst in Puerto Rico. His radio show "En la Mirilla"
(In the cross hairs) is the island's number 1 radio show.
He has written more than a dozen books about the Puerto
Rico's political status and he writes a weekly column in
the island's second largest daily news paper "El Vocero."
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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