Like the May Day Immigration Protests that rocked the political establishment last year, yesterday’s march from Dolores Park to Civic Center was truly beautiful – as hundreds of Latino families marched to demand an end to the ICE Raids and amnesty for undocumented workers. There were more American flags than Mexican flags, as the unifying message was that while immigrants are proud of their heritage, they demand the right to be seen as Americans. But as progressives remain split on the question of immigration reform, the usual suspects who infiltrate every San Francisco demonstration distributed leaflets to the crowd denouncing the “sell-out” leadership (SEIU, UNITE-HERE, the UFW, National Council of La Raza) for attempting to pass a flawed – but workable – bill in Congress.

The STRIVE Act of 2007, which groups like SEIU have endorsed, would grant a six-year legal status to the eight million undocumented workers in this country – but would also require them to first return home in order to get U.S. citizenship. Such a position has angered some immigrant advocates, who instead have demanded full amnesty for all undocumented immigrants. Meanwhile, the escalation of ICE raids continues to put the daily lives of every undocumented worker in jeopardy, as they stand the risk of getting deported on a moment’s notice. Regardless of tactics, something has to be done now to stop the raids.

“San Francisco is a city of immigrants, and it is a city of workers,” said Supervisor Chris Daly at the Dolores Park rally through a Spanish interpreter. “The struggles are one and the same. As we rally for legal rights today, we need to rally for human rights like housing rights for all. The [ICE] raids must not just be denounced. We must organize our protest, and refuse to cooperate with the Federal authorities.”

The turnout at the march was significantly lower than last year’s for two reasons. One is that with the increased ICE raids, there is a renewed climate of fear among the Latino community. Second, because large groups that have a real base in the immigrant community are pushing for the STRIVE Act, there was little mobilization from those organizations to have their members attend. Which left groups like International ANSWER and Socialist Action who have no base in that community to dominate the march.

As someone who attends as many anti-war marches as I can over the past four years, it is frustrating to have a simple message (“get out of Iraq”) get hijacked by extreme radical groups who have their own agendas – whether that be Palestine, Somalia, Haiti, Afghanistan, etc. What was so great about last year’s May Day protests was that there were so many genuine non-professional activists who were there to advocate for immigrant rights that it was impossible for such groups to really take over. But with a smaller turnout this year, it was easier to fill the void.


Photo by BeyondChron

Those who oppose the STRIVE Act despite political realities have some legitimate points, and some groups like the AFL-CIO have come out against it. But those who were passing out leaflets against the STRIVE Act yesterday were not groups who have a legitimate base in the community and instead were there to do what they do best – denounce the capitalist system and demand a socialist revolution.

Meanwhile, there were many Latino families marching who are simply demanding a more sane immigration policy – an end to ICE raids, full amnesty and a path to United States citizenship – that would have a meaningful impact in their lives. One child carried a homemade sign that said, “I want my father back!” If the status quo remains, more will continue to be separated by these horrific ICE raids. But under current political realities, full amnesty without any conditions is simply not going to happen until at least 2009.

And my short Muni ride to the protest underscored the extent that police have stepped up their profiling of Latinos who demand immigrant rights. Inside the Muni underground station at Civic Center, security guards were on hand to demand proof of payment – an unprecedented move that almost never happens, and seemed directly targeted at Latino families headed towards the march. When activists Lisa Gray-Garcia and Angel Garcia asked the security guard for directions, they were asked for their ID – and then were accused of resisting arrest. Now the activist duo have been given a citation and must appear in court within 30 days, or else get a bench warrant.

It’s incidents like this that undocumented workers risk going through every day, and with the escalated ICE raids could mean their deportation. That’s why passing meaningful immigration reform now is so critical. But the vibe I got from yesterday’s march was that – at least in the eyes of extreme radical groups who don’t represent the community –anything less than full amnesty is “selling out.” Unfortunately, the alternative to passing the STRIVE Act is an untenable status quo.

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