Los Angeles, CA – On the afternoon of May 1, a powerful May Day march, organized by the Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC), took place in the heart of downtown as many garment workers were leaving work. The highly spirited 1000-plus crowd was made up mainly of working class Latinos, union members from Roofers Union Local 36 and United Teachers L.A., street vendors, daily laborers, families and high school students. Also joining the march and helping to carry the lead banner were the women and men of the homeless shelter Projecto Pastoral in Boyle Heights.

The SCIC is composed of dozens of groups including the International Action Center, Community Service Organization, Union del Barrio and Bayan USA. SCIC is an independent grassroots coalition that receives no government or foundation funding.

The many speakers called for Obama to stop the deportations and demanded legalization for all. Many denounced the police/ICE abuses such as detentions, deportations and deaths at the border.

Bayan USA denounced U.S. imperialism and its intervention in the Philippines and other countries. Ramon Mendez, a member of Roofers Union Local 36, spoke about being harassed and exploited at work, and when he filed a grievance the boss called the ICE on him. Mendez had to live away from his family until others came to his aid, pressuring ICE to respect a labor neutrality agreement with the Labor Department that protects workers who are in disputes with employers. He is now out on bail, fighting his deportation. The MECHA students talked about the need for legalization and better schools.

Carlos Montes, a veteran Chicano revolutionary, stated that the fight for legalization is part of the struggle of self-determination for the Chicano/Mexican people and equality for Latinos. He noted that May 1 had been revived in the U.S. by the massive 2006 immigrant rights marches led by Latinos.

The spirited march included flags from Latin American countries, including the Chicano nation of Aztlan.

Two other May Day marches took place in Los Angeles on May 1.

#LosAngelesCA #ImmigrantRights #MayDay #Chican #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #CarlosMontes #MovimientoEstudiantilChicanoDeAztlánMEChA #Latinos #immigrationRights #legalizationForAll #NoMasDeportaciones #RoofersUnionLocal36

Los Angeles, CA – An important mobilization for immigrant rights is happening here, as activists build for a rally and march on May 1. Organized by the South California Immigration Coalition, the protest will demand “Stop the Deportations Now” and “Legalization for All.” The demonstration will start at Olympic and Broadway, at 4 p.m.

Veteran Chicano activist Carlos Montes stated, “Stop the deportations is our main demand because it is causing mass suffering of immigrants – especially Mexican and Central Americans, who make up 90% of the deportations. This is repression on a mass scale and it must stop!”

The Los Angeles May Day demonstration is one many that will take place across the U.S. May 1.

#LosAngelesCA #MayDay #ChicanoLatino #internationalWorkersDay #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition

Last November, a large number of immigrant rights organizations and community groups called for a moratorium on impounds. These groups included the National Lawyers Guild, ACLU of southern California, Asian Americans Advancing Justice LA, the Boyle Heights Neighborhood Council, Community Service Organization (CSO), Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC), Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights Los Angeles (CHIRLA), Presente.org, Service, Immigrant Rights and Education Network (SIREN) and others.

Chicanos, Mexicanos and Central American communities in California have fought for drivers licenses for the undocumented for more than ten years (see the 2004 Fight Back! article for early news on this struggle). This movement has mobilized the masses of working people in these communities through protests, rallies and meetings. At the same time a broad united front including Chicano politicians, religious groups, lawyers and nonprofit organizations has been built to further the pressure on politicians in the state capitol at Sacramento.

Like many other struggles for equality, the victory in the campaign to allow undocumented immigrants to qualify for drivers licenses was a partial one, with an almost 15-month delay in implementation. In the same way, the growing struggle for tuition equity to allow undocumented college students to pay in-state fees at state colleges and universities is only a first step, which needs to be followed by the fight for state financial aid.

Ultimately, what is needed is a broad legalization of the undocumented, not the more restrictive plans loaded down with more militarization of the border and workplace repression being promoted by the Democrats in the Senate, or even worse, the Republicans in the House of Representatives. But with legislative action stalled, and even if some reform passes this year, millions of undocumented will be left behind; making local and state struggles against deportations, against the ‘Secure Communities’ and for driver’s licenses and tuition equity important.

It would be a mistake for activists to downplay or ignore these struggles for partial reforms that can better the lives of the undocumented. Through their own involvement in the struggle, people can come to see how the system of capitalism — where the economy is based on profit, which in the U.S. is based on a history of economic exploitation, political disenfranchisement and social discrimination that non-whites face — is at the root of the injustices that they face. This history is part and parcel of the historic national oppression that the Chicano Nation in the U.S. Southwest, including most of California.

It would also be a mistake to only focus on the united front and on the struggle in the legislature to pass these bills. Part of the purpose of the so-called democracy in this country, which is really only democracy for the rich, is to draw in activists fighting for change, imbed them in the system and cut them off from the working masses that are the true engine of change.

The editors of Fight Back! News want to congratulate the Chicano, Mexican and Central American communities who have been the backbone of the fight for drivers licenses for the undocumented. We also pledge our support for continuing the struggle for a moratorium on car impounds, for the movement for legalization of the undocumented and ultimately for self-determination of the Chicano Nation, up to and including secession, and for full equality for the Chicano, Mexicano and Central American peoples in the U.S.!

#LosAngelesCA #ChicanoLatino #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #undocumentedImmigrants #carImpounds

Los Angeles, CA – On May 29, members and supporters of the Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC) held a picket and protest in front of U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein’s Los Angeles office. SCIC opposes major elements of the current U.S. Senate immigration proposal. They presented the following demands to Sen. Feinstein:

—Oppose the inclusion of a ten-year waiting period to apply for legal residency, and the three additional years of application process for citizenship;

—Oppose increasing border militarization;

—Oppose creating a mandatory E-Verify for employment; and

—Oppose expanding temporary worker programs.

The SCIC views these provisions as punitive and as efforts to sneak in ‘guest worker’ programs, under a new name. In contrast to the senate proposal, California immigrant rights leaders demand, “Legalization for all; oppose expanding guest worker programs and bring an end to the ICE deportations, now.”

The rally included members of Bayan USA, Centro CSO, UdB and Arise Youth.

A delegation, including longtime Chicano activist Carlos Montes, entered the office to deliver a message to the senator, who was not to be found. The senator’s staff handed out an old press release in which Feinstein takes credit for the inclusion of an agricultural workers’ program with a five-year limit. This primarily benefits the large agribusiness corporations that make massive profits from mostly Mexican farmworkers in the hot California fields.

SCIC is calling on people to continue the struggle and have your voices heard by joining a protest during President Barack Obama’s Los Angeles visit on June 7.

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #ImmigrationAndCustomsEnforcementICE #legalizationForAll #SenatorFeinstein

Los Angeles, CA – The Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC) led a militant political march and rally in the heart of Los Angeles, May 1, with thousands of garment workers, students and a contingent from Occupy LA. The event was a political protest against the U.S. ICE/police deportations. The clear demand was for legalization for all. The majority of marchers were Latino wearing red shirts and carrying flags from Central America, Latin America, Mexico and the red flag of Aztlan. Many of the speakers expressed an anti-war and pro-worker view in support for people of the world who fight against the U.S. empire. Other May 1 events in L.A. were more like celebrations with music concerts – many wearing white with U.S. flags.

The SCIC kickoff rally started with FE Evaone. The Xicana/Indigene activist did her hip hop flowetry with her song “In-Dependence”. Next up was veteran Chicano activist Carlos Montes, who denounced U.S. interventions and war as the cause of poverty, misery and mass migration. He also linked the fight for legalization to the struggle for equality for Latinos and self-determination for Chicanos/Mexicans in the southwest of the U.S.

The rally emcee Ron Gochez then introduced Werner Marroquin of the FMLN who call for workers of the world to unite against injustice. Next up the teachers Juan Ramirez and Betty Forester with United Teachers LA expressed their unity and solidarity with the struggle for immigrant rights. The United Teachers LA has a long history of uniting with the struggle of immigrants. Felipe Garcia of Roofers Local 36 talked about the hardships the undocumented workers face, from bad working conditions to exploitation by the big corporations.

The march entered the heart of the garment district and received the enthusiastic support of thousands of undocumented workers from El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico as they left work. During the march, Mecha members, high school students from South L.A., spoke about undocumented students’ hardships in school trying to survive. Also CSULA Mecha representative Maria Xochicale spoke of the fight to expand Chicano Studies and the importance of students supporting the fight end deportations. More music and hip hop with el Comandante kept the energy high.

The closing rally included Daniel Montes of Union del Barrio who spoke of the need to keep fighting for immigration reform with justice. Father Solalinde from Oaxaca Mexico spoke of his work in fighting against the abuse and exploitation of migrants for Central America as they cross in to Mexico. These migrants face extortion, kidnapping and robbery by local police, the narco cartels and gangs. The Los Angeles Garment Workers Center member Jose Lopez exposed working conditions in L.A. and expressed solidarity to the garment workers of Bangladesh who died in a building collapse.

Lisa Median with the Alvarado Street Vendors denounced the police harassment of tickets and arrests for undocumented families who are just trying to survive. She called on the LAPD to stop harassing the street vendors. The International Action Center speaker called for international solidarity. The Occupy LA/Occupy Foreclosures Carlos Marroquin and Julie Levine talked about the victories in stopping evictions and home sit-ins in poor neighborhoods and denounced the big banks that make super profits from the misery of working people losing their homes. The Bayan International speaker talked about the struggle in the Philippines against the violations of human rights and the theft of land and mineral resources by the rich corporations with support from the U.S. The Filipino hip hop group Shining Sons did some great songs about the struggle in their homeland. Many other groups joined the march, including the Bus Riders Union, Workers World Party and Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Closing the main rally was a short teatro skit exposing the killing of Mexican news reporters. A speaker from Resistencia Mexicana de LA denounced the human rights violations in Mexico by the army and criminal groups.

The Southern California Immigration Coalition calls on all to continue the fight for legalization for all and for an immigration reform law that does not separate families and that stops the mass detentions and deportations.

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #internationalWorkersDay #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #workersRights #CarlosMontes #May1 #legalizationForAll

The Los Angeles protest is one of the many that will take place across the country. Congress is currently debating a major overhaul of immigration policy.

Carlos Montes, of the Centro CSO (Community Service Organization) and the Southern California Immigration Coalition, urges people to attend, stating, “We need to be in the streets on May 1 to demand legalization for all. We need to build the struggle for immigration reform that is just.”

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #CarlosMontes #legalizationForAll

Los Angeles, CA – The Centro CSO (Community Service Organization) and the Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC) held a town hall meeting on August 18 in East Los Angeles to mobilize the community to support the statewide campaign, Licenses for All – to push a law demanding driver’s licenses for undocumented migrants and immigrants.

California Assembly member Gil Cedillo planned on introducing this new bill in August. Gil Cedillo decided to not introduce a new bill since the federal program Deferred Action will allow those eligible to apply for a driver’s licenses and a broader bill would not be supported by Governor Jerry Brown this year. Gil Cedillo plans that another assembly member from Southern California will introduce a broader bill in 2013, since Cedillo is leaving the assembly because of California’s term limit law.

The Centro CSO and SCIC has for years monitored and denounced the Los Angeles Police Department’s DUI and driver’s license checkpoints, as well as the 30-day car impounds, as a money-making scheme at the expense of undocumented people, since they target the Mexican and Central American communities. The police department has introduced minor changes, but L.A. County Sheriff L. Baca’s department continues to do 30-day impounds. Baca also supports the ICE program ‘Secure Communities’ (SCOMM), which leads to many detentions and deportations.

The meeting agreed to unite and attend a protest on Sept. 12, at 10:00 am at the East L.A. Sheriff’s station to demand Sheriff Baca to stop the 30-day car impound and that he stop his cooperation with the ICE program SCOMM.

Many of the local residents of East L.A. voiced their concerns and protests about police using racial profiling for traffic stops, leading to 30-day car impounds. They also talked about the police predatory traffic patrols in the community that lead to mass car impounds.

The town hall meeting featured Gil Saucedo of the National Lawyers Guild, who gave a Know Your Rights review; Veronica Ramirez, a local organizer and mother, who urged the people to join the campaign; David Cid, a local resident and teacher, who talked about the fight for equality; and Carlos Montes, who spoke about the need for people to join an organization like CSO to continue the struggle for full legalization.

The organizations will once again demand an immediate moratorium on car impounds for drivers who are not allowed to legally obtain driver’s licenses due to their immigration status. The organizers called for the community to unite and mobilize a campaign to support the passage of this new law and to call on Governor Jerry Brown to sign it into law. The only real solution to this problem is for California to once again issue driver’s licenses to undocumented people and stop the predatory racist car impounds in Mexican and Central American communities.

For more information, call 626-532-7164, or go to facebook.com/centrocso or to www.csosite.org

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #CentroCSO #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #CarlosMontes #LicensesForAll

Los Angeles, CA – Thousands of protesters took to the streets here on May 1, International Workers Day, to demand legalization for all. The protest, organized by Southern California Immigration Coalition, was the largest Los Angeles May Day event. The mostly Chicano/Latino crowd was made up of students, teachers, vendors, garment workers, parents and activists from all the progressive movements, including the Occupy movement. Participants and supporters of the demonstration included the United Teachers Los Angeles, International Action Center, Union Del Barrio, Bayan USA, FMLN, FSLN, L.A. Committee to Stop FBI Repression, Mecha and others.

The march began on Olympic and Broadway. It demanded full legalization for all, stop the ICE/police deportations, no guest worker program and drivers licenses for all.

The Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC) is an independent grassroots coalition that receives no funding from government, political parties or foundations. The SCIC also raised the controversial slogan “Legalization or No Reelection.” SCIC organized this march to unite the community to denounce President Obama’s ongoing policy of deporting hundreds of thousands of people, most who are from Mexico.

Most local non-profit immigration groups, some unions and others held a separate march earlier in the day, complete with U.S. flags, because they were afraid of SCIC’s slogans. SCIC denounced U.S. imperialism as the cause of mass migration, war, racism and the misery of millions of Latinos, Blacks and Asian immigrants.

The rally included a variety of Latino American solidarity activists, rank-and-file union members, street vendors, youth and women’s groups. Carlos Montes denounced the current FBI and police attack on him and urged participants to attend his upcoming trial on May 15. A contingent of students and street vendors carried a banner reading, “Stop the repression against Carlso Montes.”

There was a heavy police presence along the the entire mile-long march and at the rally.

For the last two years SCIC has led a campaign to stop authorities from confiscating the cars from immigrant workers, mostly Mexican, who drive to work and cannot obtain drivers licenses. This has led to some minor improvements. The SCIC is fighting for a new law that would allow licenses for all.

For more information on SCIC see: www.immigrationcoalition.org

#LosAngelesCA #immigrantRights #internationalWorkersDay #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #CarlosMontes #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression

Los Angeles, CA – Demanding “Stop SCOMM” and “No deportations,” members of the Southern California Immigration Coalition denounced Sheriff L. Baca at his annual prayer breakfast here, Jan 14.

SCOMM, which goes by the name “Secure Communities,” is the Immigration Custom Enforcement/police program that attacks poor and working class immigrants, mostly Mexican and Central American, who are caught up in traffic or other minor infractions.

SCOMM advocate Sheriff Baca wrote an editorial saying undocumented people do not have civil rights. His jails are under investigation for brutality against people awaiting trial and for corruption by Sheriffs deputies.

The protesters told Baca that they will not accept the detainment and deportation of thousands of their people by his police/ICE collaboration by SCOMM and 287g.

Protesters, including veteran Chicano leader Carlos Montes, whose home was raided by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s SWAT team May 17, 2011, demanded that Baca resign now.

The Southern California Immigration Coalition (SCIC) has been working with many groups who support these demands.

To get involved in the fight for immigrants rights and unite for an upcoming May 1, 2012 march and rally, come to SCIC meetings, which are held the 2nd and 4th Sunday of every month. For more information: www.immigrationcoalition.org.

#LosAngelesCA #deportations #SouthernCaliforniaImmigrationCoalition #287g #SecureCommunities #SheriffBaca #SComm

Los Angeles, CA – On Sept. 26, President Obama visited Los Angeles to dip into the pockets of the Hollywood elite for his re-election campaign. His first stop was the famous House of Blues on Sunset Boulevard, where over 100 anti-war activists lined the sidewalks to demand Obama end the wars in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan, “Money for jobs and education! Not for war and occupation!” the crowd chanted. “We are sick of mounting tuition, rising unemployment and most of all the ever-increasing war deficit of this country,” said a student activist from Pasadena Community College.

From House of Blues the President made his way to a fancier affair at the restaurant Fig and Olive on Melrose, where a dinner place cost guests $17,900! This time he was greeted by over 200 demonstrators calling for an end to Obama's Secure Communities policy that has led to mass deportations. “Obama please don't take my Mama!” the demonstrators chanted. Over 1 million immigrants have been deported under Obama's administration. “1 million too many,” a high school student name Sabrine called out in a moving speech about how her mother was deported while working her taco truck. “Us children had to make it on our own for three months with no mother!” She told the crowd.

L.A.'s Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR) came out to both demonstrations, highlighting that one year ago the FBI raided the homes of anti-war and international solidarity activists in Chicago and Minneapolis. They called on Obama to put an end to the witch hunts.