Los Angeles, CA – In the late afternoon, Oct. 23, people of the Boyle Heights neighborhood of East Los Angeles joined together to denounce the right-wing attacks on immigrants.

At one of the weekly farmers markets in Mariachi Plaza, the group Centro CSO set up a table and banner that read “Legalizacion para todos” or “Legalization for all.” They handed out fliers and urged people to call Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Abbott was one of the governors who blocked Obama's executive action deferring deportations for the parents of U.S. legal residents, also known as DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans). Texas has also been denying birth certificates to children of Mexican parents born in Texas hospitals. The group demanded Abbott stop blocking DAPA.

After the phone calls, people joined in smashing a Donald Trump piñata. Trump, the Republican forerunner for the 2016 presidential election, has been the lead candidate in the attacks of Mexican immigrants.

While the Trump piñata was being set up, some people in the plaza started chanting, “Give Trump a lump!” They also chanted, “What do we want? Legalization! When do we want it? Now!” People lined up one after another. After a couple of swings from mostly children, Trump busted apart. Candy went everywhere, and Trump's remains littered the plaza. The event was largely symbolic, showing how Trumps lies and statements fall apart with even the smallest of blows.

Sol Marquez, one of the organizers said, “Denying birth certificates to Mexican immigrants and saying it as non-discriminatory is a lie. My parents are now documented, but they weren't always. Being undocumented from Mexico today in Texas means my parents would not be able to prove my own citizenship. This attack against Mexican undocumented immigrants is an attack that we as Chicanos, must oppose. This oppression is happening in Texas, but without fighting back it can easily spread to Boyle Heights!”

Centro CSO, which fights for legalization for all undocumented, is planning to rally outside a metropolitan detention center on Nov. 2 in solidarity with the children who are still locked up in Dilley, Texas. They are coordinating with other cities across the country who are planning actions in response to a call by the Legalization for All Network.

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