Video: Si Se Puede
Workers rallied in support of immigration rights on May Day, more commonly known to the rest of the world as International Workers Day.By Jake Blumgart
May 7, 2009
An immigrant rights rally in Washington D.C. on May 1, 2009. (Flickr user takomabibelot)Last week few people in the United States celebrated May Day, but in other parts of the world they call it International Workers’ Day and commemorated it with marches, rallies, and, occasionally, confrontations with the police. In the United States, May Day is not a major holiday and is usually only celebrated by school children sending baskets of candy to one another. But in recent years the increasingly powerful immigrant rights movement has rescued the holiday from obscurity, bringing throngs of workers into the streets to march for their rights.
This year thousands of workers gathered in most major American cities to demand immigration and labor reform. Major rallies were held in Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago, and Washington D.C. Campus Progress attended the rally in D.C., spearheaded by the National Capital Immigrant Coalition (NCIC), to interview the protestors as they marched on the White House.
The protestors issued three demands. First, they wanted an end to the raids and deportations conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that have fractured and terrorized immigrant communities for the last ten years. Second, they called for the abolishment of the 287g Agreements, or laws that grant local agencies the power to act as ICE agents. Critics say that the laws put people of color at higher risk of being detained, questioned, or stopped. Lastly, at the core of the NCIC platform, they asked for a just and humane immigration reform that would give workers a path to citizenship.
The hardships faced by immigrants, legal or not, are a consistent component of the NCIC grievances. This man expressed immense frustration at the needlessly harsh laws that prevented him from visiting his family in Mexico even though he has a legal work permit.
The crowd loudly argued for immigration reform now, but they also seemed willing to cut Obama some slack, considering the messy situation he inherited. A recent University of Washington poll shows that the overwhelming majority of Latinos, the dominant ethnic group represented at the rally, still give Obama high approval ratings.
Craft and service sector unions showed their presence at the rally in red (UNITE HERE), purple (SEIU), and orange (LiUNA) t-shirts. In recent years labor has embraced a progressive policy towards immigrants with some unions lobbying for immigration reform on the Hill. Some of their members rallied to defend immigrant rights marchers, including formation of a human blockade against ICE agents at the RNC in St. Paul last year. In many ways SEIU, the nation’s largest and most powerful union, has lead the way, organizing and campaigning for immigration reform in alliance with UNITE HERE (although that alliance is currently frayed). An SEIU official captured some of the essential issues addressed at the rally, eliciting excitement from the crowd.
The crowd of roughly 600 that attended the rally in D.C. this May Day paled in comparison to the colossal protests nationwide in 2006, but the political context of the marches was much more optimistic. The difference, as this young woman explains, lies in demonstrating for an administration that is willing to talk.
The mood was hopeful and enthusiastic, buoyed by an accommodating political climate and Obama’s promise to address immigrant rights reform in May.
The crowds chanted Obama’s “Yes, we can” (Si, se puede), which he adopted from organizing legend César Chávez, throughout the evening.
The crowd began to taper off as the evening wore on, departing the park in smiling clusters, and spontaneously breaking into rousing choruses of “Si, se puede.” The organizers seemed pleased with the outcome. For the moment the movement is energized and hopeful. But the activists might be a lot less forgiving if Obama doesn’t follow through on his promises of immigration reform by next May Day.
Jake Blumgart is an editorial intern with Campus Progress.
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