Minneapolis, MN – The Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) hosted a successful fundraising party on April 2 to build up for this year's International Workers Day march in Minneapolis. More than 60 people came together at 4200 Cedar for Mexican food, musical and dance performances, games and a raffle. It was announced that the party raised over $1000 toward the costs of the march.

For the last ten years a coalition of immigrant rights organizations, unions and social justice groups have organized a mass International Workers Day march in the Twin Cities for immigrant and workers’ rights. This year's march will take place on Friday, April 29, gathering at 4:30 p.m. at Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue in South Minneapolis, and marching to the Hennepin County Government Center.

More than 20 groups have already endorsed this year's march. This includes unions such as SEIU Local 26, SEIU Health Care Minnesota, AFSCME Local 3800, Local 34, and Council 5, the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers, and others. Immigrant rights and Latino community groups are also participating including MIRAC, CTUL, Tamales y Bicicletas, Chicano/a Studies Program at Saint Cloud State University, as well as student and youth groups like Presente at St. Olaf, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at the U of MN, and Young People's Action Coalition. The theme for this year's march is “No to Trump and those who share his racist agenda, yes to a united working people's agenda.” The demands of this year's march are:

• Legalization and equality for all
• DAPA for all
• Drivers licenses for all
• $15 & a union
• No anti-union ‘right to work’ laws
• End wage theft
• Paid sick leave for all workers
• No racist police & ICE repression of our communities
• No more militarization of our borders, streets & barrios
• Fair trade not ‘free trade’
• Restore the vote
• No destruction of our environment

 More information on the march is here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1729284217306700/

#MinneapolisMN #Labor #MIRAc #May1March

Cientos de miles de trabajadores inmigrantes y sus aliados marcharon en ciudades alrededor de los Estados Unidos el 1ro de mayo, el día internacional de los trabajadores. Las demandas principales de las protestas fueron legalización inmediata para todos los inmigrantes indocumentados y un fín inmediato a la ola de redadas y deportaciones que sufren los mexicanos, latinoamericanos y todos los trabajadores inmigrantes.

En Chicago, 250,000 personas marcharon en la protesta más grande del país. Doris Ramirez de la Coalición 10 de Marzo de Chicago dijo, “¡Si se pudo! El mensage de la marcha fue claro – el pueblo salió a la calle para exigir el fin a las redadas de ICE, el fin de la separación de familias, y legalización para todos AHORA.” En Chicago las protestas fueron más grandes debido a una redada el martes, 24 de abril en La Villitia. Como respuesta a esta redada, que involucró más de 30 agentes federales armados con rifles de asalto en un centro comercial del vecindario, y el surgimiento de enojo que el ataque causó, el movimiento puso al lado sus diferencias políticas y se unió para parar las redadas y las deportaciones. El ataque fue tan malo, la respuesta de la gente fue de tanto enojo y la unidad tan amplia que hasta el alcalde Daley de Chicago habló en la protesta, a pesar de que una semana antes no estaba programado que participara.

En Los Ángeles hubieron dos protestas. En una de las marchas organizada por la Coalición 25 de Marzo, hasta 100,000 personas protestaron en la manifestación más grande desde la protesta histórica del 1ro de mayo de 2006. Carlos Montes, un líder histórico en el movimiento de los chicanos para la liberación y también un líder en el Movimiento Nacional 1ro de Mayo para los Derechos de Trabajadores e Inmigrantes dice, “Cien mil inmigrantes tomaron las calles del centro de Los Ángeles para exigir la legalización y un fin a las redadas.”

La otra protesta en Los Ángeles, realizada en la tarde y organizada por Somos América, fue atacada por policías antimotines, quienes violentamente sacaron a miles de personas del Parque MacArthur, atacando a la multitud (incluyendo a periodistas) con batones, gas lacrimógeno y balas de goma. Fue un incidente de brutalidad policíaca sin provocación en contra de una manifestación pacífica. La Coalición 25 de Marzo hizo una conferencia de prensa el 2 de mayo para denunciar la brutalidad policíaca y anunciar el próximo paso que el movimiento va a tomar como respuesta a este incidente.

Frente a un paro anunciado para el 1ro de mayo por camioneros y el sindicato Internacional de Longshore y Warehouse en las puertas de California, los oficiales del Los Ángeles Port Authority anunciaron que iban a cerrar las puertas el 1ro de mayo para un día ‘feriado.’ Esa fue una victoria importante que reconoció el poder de los trabajadores inmigrantes e hizo real el impacto económico de las protestas del 1ro de mayo.

Miles también marcharon en el resto de California, incluyendo más de 10,000 en San Francisco. Hubieron también marchas en otras ciudades incluyendo San Jose, Oakland, Davis, Sacramento, Fresno, Santa Cruz y Watsonville. Más al norte de la costa oeste, más de 5,000 personas marcharon en Seattle. Se realizaron también docenas de marchas a través del sureste del país, incluyendo Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Tucson, Denver, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin y Las Vegas.

Alrededor de 800 personas marcharon en Raleigh, Carolina del Norte, y cientos de inmigrantes y sus aliados marcharon en varias ciudades en el oeste de Carolina del Norte bajo el slogan “comunidades seguras sin temor – que dejen de separar familias a través de las deportaciones.”

En Nueva York miles protestaron por los derechos de los trabajadores e inmigrantes en Union Square. También hubieron marchas en Boston y muchas otras ciudades del noreste del país.

En Milwaukee, organizadores y medios de comunicación reportaron que alrededor de 80,000 personas marcharon. Eso es un numero más alto que el 1ro de mayo del año pasado. En Minneapolis, organizadores reportaron que entre 2000 y 3000 marcharon a través del corazón de la comunidad latino inmigrante en Lake Street. La multitud creció cuando algunos negocios latinos en el camino de la marcha cerraron a las 4:00 p.m. y varias personas se unieron a la marcha. Como en Milwaukee, Minneapolis fue una de las ciudades donde la marcha del 1ro de mayo este año fue más grande que el año pasado. William Martinez de la Coalición de Acción por los Derechos de los Inmigrantes (MIRAC), dijo, “Otra vez la comunidad hizo sentir su presencia saliendo a la calle para exigir sus derechos.” También se realizaron marchas en otras ciudades del medio oriente del país como Detroit, Racine y Madison.

Muchos de los reportes en los medios sobre el 1ro de mayo reportaron que las marchas de este año fueron más pequeñas que el año pasado. Es verdad que una cantidad de personas sin precedentes – millones de personas – marcharon el año pasado para derrotar la ley Sensenbrenner. Muchos organizadores del movimiento para los derechos de los inmigrantes alrededor del país se dieron cuenta que este año mucha gente no percibió la misma amenaza legislativa inmediata como sintieron el año pasado con la ley Sensenbreener, y muchos trabajadores inmigrantes se sienten amenazados por la ola de redadas y deportaciones alrededor del país.

Pero algunas ciudades tuvieron marchas más grandes este 1ro de mayo que el año pasado. Y según dicen organizadores para los derechos de los inmigrantes, la historia clave es que cientos de miles de personas marcharon el 1ro de mayo en ciudades alrededor de los Estados Unidos por segundo año consecutivo – cosa que no se podría haber imaginado hace un par de años. Erika Zurawski, miembro de la Coalición de Acción por los Derechos de los Inmigrantes (MIRAC) dice, “Las marchas del 1ro de mayo son verdaderamente un movimiento de la base – trabajadores inmigrantes saliendo se las sombras y poniendo sus demandas en la agenda, exigiendo la legalización para todos, la igualdad completa, y un fin a las redadas y deportaciones. Las marchas del 1ro de mayo de este año fueron una muestra exitosa del poder de los inmigrantes y trabajadores.”

#EstadosUnidos #News #ChicanoLatino #SensenbrennerBill #May1March #March10thCoaltion

Hundreds of thousands of immigrant workers and their supporters marched in cities around the U.S. on May 1, International Workers Day. The marchers' main demands were for immediate legalization for all undocumented immigrants and an immediate end to the wave of raids and deportations targeting Mexican, Latin American, and other immigrant workers.

In Chicago 250,000 people marched in the largest protest in the country. Doris Ramirez of Chicago's March 10th Coalition said, “Si se pudo! The message from the march was loud and clear – the people came out to demand an end to the ICE raids, an end to the separation of families and legalization for all, NOW.” In Chicago people were galvanized by an immigration raid on Tuesday, April 24th in Little Village (La Villita). In response to that raid, which included over 30 federal agents armed with assault rifles in a neighborhood shopping mall and the outpouring of anger that this attack called forth, the movement set aside political differences and united to stop raids and deportations. The attack was so bad, the response was so angry, and the unity was so broad that even Chicago's Mayor Daley spoke at the rally – he was not scheduled to speak one week before.

In Los Angeles, there were two protests. In a march organized by the March 25 Coalition, as many as 100,000 people protested in the largest demonstration there since last year's historic May Day protest. According to Carlos Montes, a long-time leader in the Chicano liberation movement and a leader in the National May 1st Movement for Worker and Immigrant Rights, “a hundred thousand immigrants were energized when they took to the streets of downtown LA to demand legalization and an end to the raids.”

A second rally organized by Somos America in the afternoon was attacked by police in riot gear violently ejecting thousands of people from MacArthur Park, attacking the crowd and even journalists with batons, tear gas and rubber bullets. This was an unprovoked display of police brutality against peaceful marchers. The March 25 Coalition held a press conference on May 2 to denounce the police brutality and announce the next steps the movement will take in response.

In the face of an announced May 1 work stoppage by truck drivers and International Longshore & Warehouse Union members at California ports, the Los Angeles Port Authority preemptively said they would close the ports for a May 1 “holiday.” This was an important victory that recognized immigrant workers' power and ensured that the May 1 day of action would have a serious economic impact.

Thousands also marched in the rest of California, including over 10,000 in San Francisco. There were marches in other cities including San Jose, Oakland, Davis, Sacramento, Fresno, Santa Cruz and Watsonville. Further up the West Coast, more than 5,000 people marched in Seattle. There were dozens of marches throughout the Southwest, including Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Tucson, Denver, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, and Las Vegas.

About 800 people marched in Raleigh, North Carolina, and hundreds of immigrant rights supporters in a dozen towns across western North Carolina marched under the slogan of “safe communities without fear – stop separating families through deportation.”

In New York City thousands rallied for workers and immigrant rights in Union Square. There were also marches in Boston and many other northeastern cities.

In Milwaukee, organizers and the media reported a turnout of around 80,000 people there, surpassing the size of last year's May Day march. In Minneapolis, organizers reported that two to three thousand people marched through the heart of the Latino immigrant community on Lake Street. The crowd grew as some key local businesses on the march route closed at 4:00 and passers-by joined in, swelling the crowd. Like Milwaukee, Minneapolis was one of the cities where this year's march was at least as big if not bigger than last year's May Day rally. William Martinez of the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition (MIRAC) said, “once again the community made their presence known in coming out to struggle and demand their rights.” There were also marches in other Midwestern cities such as Detroit, Racine and Madison.

Most of the media reports about May 1 said the marches were smaller than last year. It's true that unprecedented numbers, millions of people, marched last year to defeat the Sensenbrenner Bill. Many immigrant rights organizers around the country noted that this year people didn't perceive the same immediate legislative threat as they did last year with the Sensenbrenner bill, and many immigrant workers feel threatened by the wave of raids and deportations going on around the country.

But at least a few cities had larger marches this May Day than last year. And according to immigrant rights organizers, the real story is that hundreds of thousands of people marched on May Day in cities across the United States for the second year in a row – something that would have seemed unimaginable just a few years ago. According to Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition (MIRAC) member Erika Zurawski, “The May Day marches are truly a grassroots movement – immigrant workers came out of the shadows and put their demands on the agenda, demanding legalization for all, full equality, and an end to the raids and deportations. This year's May Day marches were a successful display of immigrant and workers' power.”

#UnitedStates #News #ChicanoLatino #SensenbrennerBill #May1March #March10thCoaltion

Los Angeles, CA – 100,000 enthusiastic demonstrators took the streets here May 1. Marching up Broadway to a mass rally at City hall, they demanded legalization for undocumented immigrant workers and an end to raids and deportations. The event was well organized and included security for the protest. The event was led by the March 25 Coalition, which has brought together dozens of community and labor groups, including Latinos Against War.

The Los Angeles rally included speeches by prominent African American leaders like former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, who talked about the similar historical independence struggles of Blacks and Latinos in Latin America and the Caribbean, such as Haiti and Mexico. She drew tremendous applause from the crowd that included migrant families from Mexico and Central America. Minister Ishmael Mohammad from the Nation of Islam got a great response, speaking in Spanish and talking about our shared oppression and struggle for liberation.

Hunger strikers and March 25 Coalition leaders Gloria Saucedo, Hermandad Mexicana and Javier Rodriguez demanded full legalization and criticized the current proposed immigration legislation. Other speakers included labor activist Alejandro Stephens of SEIU 721 and Fernando Ledesma of United Teachers of LA. Undocumented migrant families spoke out, as did students from Boyle Heights including, the Duenas family and students from Roosevelt High School who work with Latinos against War.

Speakers and supporters included Bayan International, FMLN, FOMUSSA, singers, poets and a wrap-up speech by the veteran Chicano leader Carlos Montes calling for linking the immigrants struggle to the fight for freedom and self-determination.

Police attack peaceful rally

Later in the afternoon the Los Angeles Police Department attacked another peaceful rally at MacArthur Park. The rally was put on by Somos America, a coalition of non-profit groups and unions. The LAPD shot rubber bullets into the gathering without a warning to disperse. Latino families, TV news crews and other journalists were beaten. One of the March 25 hunger strikers was beaten in the neck and back and forced to seek medical attention. This attack by the LAPD is a move as a political organization to repress the growing militancy of the immigrant’s rights movement – a movement that has grown in strength in the last year. This is a racist police attack against the Mexican/Latino community.

History of repression

After the attack, Latinos Against War issued a statement slamming the long history of repression in Los Angeles. It read in part: “We know that the local police and FBI have historically attacked our community like the August 29, 1970 Chicano Moratorium where KMEX news director Ruben Salazar, Angel Diaz and Lynn Ward were killed the by LA County Sheriffs. Ruben Salazar was killed with a tear gas missile shot to his head. Another example of political repression is the federal Counter Intelligence Program that infiltrated and attacked the Black and Chicano movement organizations like the Black Panther Party, Brown Berets, Chicano Moratorium and the Crusade for Justice in the late 1960s.”

The March 25 Coalition held a press conference in front the of the LAPD headquarters May 2 to announce a class action lawsuit by the Mexican American Bar Association and the National Lawyers Guild against the LAPD. Speakers condemned and exposed this attack on our movement for equality and self-determination. Latinos Against War states, “We are committed to continue the struggle for migrant rights and not let this racist blatant attack derail our movement.”

#LosAngelesCA #News #ChicanoLatino #LatinosAgainstWar #May1March #March25Coalition #LAPD

Fight Back! interviews Carlos Montes on the next steps in the struggle for immigrant rights. Montes is a veteran leader in the Chicano liberation movement and is an important leader in the struggle for immigrant rights.

Fight Back!: What are the main fronts of struggle for the immigrant rights movement right now?

Montes: The main fronts for the movement today are fighting back against the repression directed at undocumented immigrant workers and their families. The main front is building the movement to stop the ICE raids, detentions and deportations. The deportations are against all undocumented immigrants but it is especially hard against Latinos and more so Mexicans. 90% of those deported are Latino of those, 80% are Mexicans.

Fight Back!: How can we overcome divisions and build, a strong, united immigrant rights movement?

Montes: Broad unity can be built around opposition against the ICE repression and the demand for full legalization. Most groups will support those demands. Recently groups who had been divided have come together to oppose ICE repression like in L.A. when Elvira Arellano was deported in Aug. 19, 2007. We should understand that no one group leads the movement by itself but that it will take a broad united front of all immigrants rights groups working together, and supported by labor and other community groups. Major cities have or should organize united coalitions to work together.

Fight Back!: What’s the significance of May 1 for the immigrant rights movement? What will be happening in L.A.?

Montes: May 1 has been established as a day of struggle and solidarity for immigrants in the U.S. after the historic mega marches of May 1, 2006. This International Workers Day is now the recognized day for immigrants in the U.S. In L.A. the various coalitions and groups such as MIWON [Multi Ethnic Workers Organizing Network], May Day Unity Coalition, Hermandad Mexicana Trans Nacional and March 25 Coalition are discussing having joint actions on May 1, 2008, and not separate activities like last year.

#UnitedStates #Interview #Interviews #ChicanoLatino #CarlosMontes #May1March

The Los Angles protest is one of many that will mark International Workers Day across the country. Over the past two years the mass mobilizations on May 1 have played a key role in reviving May Day as a day of struggle in the U.S.

#LosAngelesCA #May1March #MayDayUnityCoalition

Leaflets in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Korean, Polish and English are being distributed to build up for the march.

May Day, International Workers Day, has is origins in the 1886 struggle of Chicago workers, many of who were immigrants, for the eight-hour day. The huge May 1 demonstrations of immigrants in recent years have brought back May Day as a day of workers’ struggle in the United States.

#ChicagoIL #News #MayDay #internationalWorkersDay #May1March

Chicago, IL – 20,000 people joined a massive demonstration for immigrant rights here on May 1. The International Workers Day protest was backed by more than 100 Latino, labor, community and religious organizations, including the March 10 Movement and Centro Sin Fronteras.

One of the speakers was the son of Elvira Allerano, Saul, who flew in from Mexico to address the crowd. The heroic fight of Elvira Allerano and her family has made her an important symbol for the immigrant rights movement. Elvira Allerano resisted deportation for more than a year, taking sanctuary in a Chicago church. She was arrested last August in Los Angeles and deported to Mexico.

Other speakers included Hatem Abudayyeh of the Arab American Action Network and Richard Berg, president of Teamsters Local 743. 100 workers and family members from Local 743 marched together in the protest, the largest contingent of any union.

Musical guests included Boots Riley of The Coup, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine and Ben Harper.

May Day demonstrations demanding legalization and full equality for undocumented workers took place across the U.S. on May 1.

#ChicagoIL #News #internationalWorkersDay #May1March

St. Paul, MN – 1000 people marched to the Minnesota State Capitol on May 1, International Workers Day, in support of immigrant and workers’ rights. Marchers demanded a stop to the immigration raids and deportations that target immigrant workers and families. They also called for legalization for all undocumented workers. The rally started in a park overlooking the Mississippi River, marched through downtown Saint Paul and ended at the State Capitol.

One of the recently-fired workers from D’Amicos restaurant spoke at the rally about their struggle. In early April, D’Amicos fired 15 long-term Latino immigrant workers, accusing them of ‘social security no-match’ violations. The workers have waged a protest campaign and have galvanized broad local support. A student from Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis whose father was deported last year also spoke at the rally. Students walked out from some area high schools to attend the rally. A group of immigrant workers from greater Minnesota also came by bus.

Along the march route, stops were made in front of the Saint Paul Pioneer Press building and the Minnesota Public Radio building, while delegations of marchers went inside to demand that the media outlets stop using the term “illegal” to refer to undocumented immigrants. The march also stopped in front of the National Guard building to make the connection between wars that the U.S. government wages abroad and the immigrants that come here fleeing U.S. wars and economic policies.

The Saint Paul march was organized by the May 1st Coalition, which includes the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition (MIRAc), Asamblea para los Derechos Civiles, Minnesota Immigrant Freedom Network, and many other groups.

#StPaulMN #SaintPaulMN #News #MayDay #May1March #DAmicosRestaurant #SaintPaulPioneerPress #MinnesotaPublicRadio #May1stCoalition #innesotaImmigrantRightsActionCoalitionMIRAc

San José, CA – On May 1, 1500 youth, families, workers and other community members gathered in east San José to demand legalization, an end to the raids and deportations and respect for human, civil, and labor rights.

Speakers at the kick-off rally included members of the community group Voluntarios de la Communidad, who talked about city ID cards and Student Advocates for Higher Education, an organization of undocumented college students. Strengthening Our Lives addressed the need to register and vote and Mark Silverman, an immigration lawyer, also spoke.

After the rally there was a spirited march, chanting, “¡Sí se puede!” and waving Mexican and American flags, through the heart of the Chicano/Mexicano community and on to City Hall in downtown San José.

#SanJoséCA #News #MayDay #May1March

At the May 1 march in Chicago, three busloads of workers and their families came to represent Teamsters Local 743. The union represents workers at hospitals, nursing homes and small manufacturing plants in the Chicago area. The factory workers include a large number of immigrants, mostly from Mexico and Central America.

Fight Back! interviewed Tony Caldera and Emma Moreno, representatives of the union.

Fight Back!: Why did so many of your members march?

Tony Caldera: They came to celebrate May 1, which is the workers’ holiday everywhere. They marched also for amnesty for all.

Emma Moreno: The immigrant workers in the little workshops supported the march for equality for all in the U.S. And they marched for family reunification for those threatened by deportations of family members without papers. In addition, many know that Chicago was the place where the Haymarket Martyrs fell in the struggle for the eight-hour day.

Fight Back!: What are the concerns that the workers have?

Caldera: They are threatened by the ‘no match letters’ from the Social Security Administration. The employers are using these as an excuse to wipe out seniority. We have examples where a worker is legal, but had worked with another name for some years. Companies are taking away the seniority for those earlier years. We are on the side of those immigrant workers – they earned the right to their seniority.

Fight Back!: Why is it important for Local 743 to be at the march?

Caldera: The old officers in Local 743 did not fight for immigrant workers. They went so far as to threaten them with deportation for complaining about bad representation. At many of the small factories, the wages were low, the work was dangerous and the union was in bed with the companies. This is why the Latino workers supported the New Leadership Slate for office.

We took office on January 1. When May 1 came, we called on the workers to march to show we can demand more power for all. The immigrants don’t have to be scared.

Moreno: The union is the voice of the workers. The immigrant workers, mostly Mexicans, need their union to fight for full equality. This includes legalization. Equality also means they have the right to representation at their workplace. The immigrant workers, whether Mexican or Polish, pay dues. However they told us in the past they only saw their representatives at contract time. The union never called on them to march on May 1. Now the workers are looking for a change.

#ChicagoIL #Interview #Interviews #Teamsters #TeamstersLocal743 #May1March

Los Angles, CA – More than 10,000 immigrant workers and their supporters took to the streets here, May 1, to demand legalization, an end to raids and deportations, justice for the undocumented and an end to the war in Iraq. Three marches converged on downtown Los Angeles for the massive rally.

“We demand full legalization, full equality and say no to the raids and deportations,” said Carlos Montes, of Latinos Against the War. Montes, who helped organize the protest, added, “We want an end to discrimination of all kinds against the undocumented, real equality for Latinos and self-determination for the Chicano nation.”

#LosAngelesCA #News #LatinosAgainstWar #May1March

Minneapolis, MN – On May 1 – International Workers Day – a mass march and street festival is planned here to demand immigrant and workers’ rights. The march will begin at 4:00 pm on Lake Street and 13th Avenue, in the heart of Minneapolis's Latino community. The march is initiated by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Coalition (MIRAc), which has organized many of the immigrant rights protests in the Twin Cities since it formed in the wave of mass marches in spring 2006. (see below for posters promoting the march)

The theme of this year's Minneapolis march is “United on International Workers Day since 1886.” The demands of the march are “stop the raids and deportations,” “legalization for all,” “drivers licenses for all” and “pass the Employee Free Choice Act.”

According to MIRAc member Niger Arevalo, “We are doing outreach every day, at the Latino nightclubs, in our neighborhoods, at Latino businesses, in the Spanish language newspapers and radio, at community events, to build the biggest possible march on May 1 to demand our rights as immigrants and workers. Momentum is building.”

May 1 is celebrated as International Workers Day around the world. This year it also coincidentally marks 100 days since President Obama took office. Many immigrant rights activists have pushed for Obama to sign an executive order during his first 100 days to stop the wave of large-scale workplace immigration raids that grew exponentially under the Bush administration. These massive militarized raids terrorize whole communities while separating hundreds of families.

According to Francisco Segovia of MIRAc, “Stopping the raids and deportations is a central focus of our march this year. We call on President Obama to issue an executive order to halt the immigration raids until a just immigration reform is passed. It gave people hope when he signed an executive order to shut down the prison camp at Guantanamo. There's no good reason he can't also sign an order to stop the raids that also blatantly violate human rights and decency.”

The demand for “drivers licenses for all” corresponds to a deeply felt frustration among immigrant workers in Minnesota. Public transit is not adequate here, so most people are forced to drive to work. But since immigrants can't get a drivers license, any routine traffic stop means an impounded car or worse, and also means people driving without insurance. Some states allow immigrants to get drivers licenses. The organization Mujeres in Liderazgo (Women in Leadership) is fighting to pass a law in Minnesota to allow anyone to get a drivers license regardless of immigration status. The May Day march is taking this up as one of the central demands for immigrant workers in Minnesota this year.

The march will also demand that Congress pass the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which would make it easier for workers to form unions. The current laws make it nearly impossible for workers to unionize. A blistering anti-union propaganda campaign funded by large corporations has caused some politicians to back off from supporting EFCA, even though the Democrats control Congress and the White House.

AFSCME Local 3800 is one of the unions supporting the May 1 protest. Local 3800 Vice President Mary Lou Middleton said, “We support the right of all workers to form unions and the struggle for full equality. Big protests on May 1 around the country will help push the politicians to pass the Employee Free Choice Act.”

The immigrant rights movement in the Twin Cities won't be resting after May 1. On May 6 MIRAc is supporting a civil disobedience action at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington. The civil disobedience protest aims to “shut down ICE” using civil disobedience tactics. Like the May 1 march, the civil disobedience action on May 6 will demand that Obama sign an executive order to stop immigration raids and deportations.

#MinneapolisMN #News #MayDay #MinnesotaImmigrantRightsActionCoalitionMIRAc #ImmigrationAndCustomsEnforcementICE #May1March

Click the images below for PDF's of the flyers promoting the May 1 demonstration:

#ChicagoIL #News #MayDay #May1March

#MilwaukeeWI #News #MayDay #May1March