March 27, and April 10, 2006, San Francisco:
Thousands March in Solidarity with Immigrants

See a QuickTime video of the whole speech you're hearing.

Some 5,000 marched from the SF Federal Building to Senator Dianne Feinstein's office, demanding no criminalization and full rights for all immigrants. No second-class status that would subject immigrants to greater exploitation. San Francisco Gray Panthers were part of the march.

 
   

As with demonstrations for immigrant rights all over the State now, this demonstration was about YOUTH!

All over California, students in high school walked out of schools, often resisting police harassment and arrests, particularly in rural areas of the Central and Salinas Valleys.

They are not afraid. They are multi-racial. They will not be stopped. As the speaker says, they are the freedom fighters of a whole new civil rights movement.
   

SF Gray Pathers was proud in solidarity with immigrants and youth, denouncing both HR 4437 and "guest worker" plans as not only racist attacks on immigrants but a stealth attack on all families that work.  No new Bracero Programs! They would leave immigrants as vulnerable to additional exploitation as they are now.

Standing in front of the office building of Dianne Feinstein, co-author of the "USA Dream Act," that uses the promise of a green card to induce undocumented high school students to join the military.

Feinstein's staff had earlier promised to accept our petitions against HR 4437, but when we called them by cell phone from the front door, they said "Hold the phone!" and we overheard frantic shouting, as though the building had struck an iceberg. Finally someone yelled, "Just leave them with the doorman!"

   
The beginning of the march was the SF Federal building, where there had been nearly a week of around-the-clock immigrant rights actions, including a tent encampment and a hunger strike. Two of the hunger strikers were brought to Feinstein's office by wheelchair.
 
 
 
 

SF Gray Panthers also marched with an immigrant rights march on April 10.

The theme of these demonstrations and marches were far-reaching:

Amnesty for All:  Those who have been here a long time.  Those who have been here a short time.  And those who are yet to come.

"Legalization" was a dirty word on this march, signifying "guest worker" programs, the years-long process of second-class bracero existance, deportable any time, and at the boss's mercy at all times.
   

 

Either we're all legal, or
we're all illegal.

 

This young woman's got it right!