People were there to be heard, not violent

On Dec. 16th, The United States House of Representatives passed a new set of restrictive immigration laws. Illegal immigration would become a felony and anyone who helped them would also commit a felony. Worried by these draconian laws, supporters of immigrants’ rights rose to action. April’s protests have been heralded as the first civil rights movement of the 21st century.

This new immigrant rights movement began at the high school level. On March 28 and 29 students walked out of class to protest in downtown Dallas. Organizers of the rally used an Internet weblog service called Myspace to summon students to action. Myspace, which is traditionally a tool for social networking, became a tool of political activism.

Students assembled downtown waving Mexican and American flags. The city’s government was caught off guard when 4,000 students showed up the second day, and the police had to force some of the rowdier students out of City Hall, as well as the reflecting pool in front of the building. School buses showed up the second day to transport the students back to school.

The next demonstration was organized by the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) on April 9. Almost 500,000 marched through the streets of downtown for the rights of illegal immigrants. Maegan Vogt, North Lake’s Phi Theta Kappa historian, said, “[The protesters] were upbeat. People were there to be heard, and weren’t there to be violent. The marchers were marching for legalization and to be taken seriously.”

The march united people of all ethnicities and ages under a peaceful banner of protest. Several families brought their children so they could see history being made. Marchers were asked to wear white for peace, carry only positive messages, and bring American flags. At City Hall, the marchers heard speeches that were primarily about voting and encouraged registering to vote and voting for representatives that support undocumented immigrants. It is a great tribute to LULAC that no police intervention was needed.

The march, however, was not a unilateral display of sentiment. A small group of counter-protesters gathered along the route to display their opinions on the matter. The group was primarily made up of people identified as bikers, high school students, and a few immigrants who felt cheated that they had spent years going through the immigration process legally. A contingent of police donning riot gear and shields separated the two groups. The counterprotest was short lived because water bottles and other items were thrown at the counterprotesters. Police escorted them away shortly thereafter.

The April 9 rally showed a change in the Latino community from passivity to political activism. The Latino community has never voted in large numbers or decidedly for one party. Sixteen million Latinos are eligible to vote but only 9 million are registered. Maegan said, “There were people around City Hall registering voters. Thousands of voters were registered for the next election.”

City council members and other elected officials were present on April 9th to gain valuable face time with marchers. Some politicians even handed out fliers in an attempt to solicit votes. The Latino vote could swing tight elections in the future both in Dallas and in the country.