Los Angeles, CA – More than 500 marched here, Aug. 27, in a mass march and rally demanding an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Other demands included that the U.S. get out of Latin America and an end to U.S. military recruiting of Latino youth in high schools. Organized by Latinos Against War In Iraq, SEIU Local 660, National Chicano Moratorium Committee, Partido Nacional de La Raza Unida, MECHA and other community and labor groups, protesters marched from Belvedere Park in East Los Angeles to a rally at Salazar Park.

The event also commemorated the 35th anniversary of the historic Chicano Moratorium of Aug. 29, 1970, when over 30,000 Latinos protested the war in Vietnam and the high casualty rate of Chicanos. That massive rally was attacked by the Los Angeles sheriffs department and Los Angeles police, causing a rebellion in which three people died and hundreds were injured and arrested. Ruben Salazar, KMEX news director and Los Angeles Times writer, was killed by the Los Angeles County sheriffs and became a martyr of the Chicano community.

Latinos feel that our war is here at home – in the struggle for genuine equality and justice, free from racism and poverty. Our fight is for education, health care and good jobs.

Latino youth are targeted by the U.S. military for recruitment, especially at inner-city schools with a high number of immigrant youth. These students already face overcrowded schools and high dropout rates. The military offers money, immigration status and citizenship. These youth are sent to fight, die and kill in foreign lands in unjust wars and are not provided the opportunities for college admissions and skilled jobs. Many of these youth have fled harsh conditions in Mexico caused by NAFTA or have fled from war-torn Central America where the U.S. government supports repressive military regimes.

The recent count of Latino service members killed in Iraq is reminiscent of the high casualty rate of Latinos in the Vietnam War. “This targeting for military recruitment of our Latino youth is a racist practice. Our youth should be recruited to college and jobs, not war,” states David Cid, teacher at El Sereno Middle School and member of Latinos Against War In Iraq.

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Los Angeles, CA – “The struggle continues for legalization and to beat back the new attacks of the Bush administration, including the new policy of beefing up ICE enforcement at worksites and further militarization the border,” says Carlos Montes, one of the organizers of the planned Aug. 18 mass march for immigrant rights. The L.A. march will start at noon at Olympia and Broadway. Large-scale civil disobedience is set for the same week

The groups organizing the protest include the March 25 Coalition, the May 1 National Movement, Hermandad Mexicana Trans-Nacional, and Latinos Against the War.

A statement from the organizers says, “With immigration reform legislation apparently dead for this congressional year, immigrant rights leaders in Los Angeles and nearby counties are gearing up efforts to mount the struggle for immigration reform, that is the national efforts to empower the 13 to 15 million undocumented immigrants and their families throughout the presidential campaign.”

#LosAngelesCA #News #ChicanoLatino #ImmigrationAndCustomsEnforcementICE #LatinosAgainstTheWar

Los Angeles, CA – More than 4,000 people marched here, Aug. 18 in support of immigrant rights.

“The struggle continues for legalization and to beat back the new attacks of the Bush administration, including the new policy of beefing up ICE enforcement at worksites and further militarization the border,” says Carlos Montes, one of the organizers of the mass march for immigrant rights.

The groups organizing the protest included the March 25 Coalition, the May 1 National Movement, Hermandad Mexicana Trans-Nacional and Latinos Against the War.

A statement from the organizers says, “With immigration reform legislation apparently dead for this congressional year, immigrant rights leaders in Los Angeles and nearby counties are gearing up efforts to mount the struggle for immigration reform, that is the national efforts to empower the 13 to 15 million undocumented immigrants and their families throughout the presidential campaign.”

#LosAngelesCA #News #ChicanoLatino #March25Coalition #LatinosAgainstTheWar #May1NationalMovement #HermandadMexicanaTransNacional