Press Conference:
12:30pm-1:30pm
Thursday, March 18th
757 3rd Ave between 47th and 48th St.
In front of the offices of Senator Charles Schumer
In Response to Current Calls for Immigration Reform:
NEW YORK CITY’S MAY 1ST COALITION DEMANDS LEGALIZATION FOR ALL IMMIGRANTS NOW!
ANNOUNCES PARTICIPATION IN THE MARCH 21ST NATIONAL ACTION FOR
IMMIGRANTS’ RIGHTS IN WASHINGTON DC
On Sunday, March 21st hundreds of thousands of people from all across the United States will converge in Washington, DC in a march for the rights of immigrants. The May 1st Coalition, a broad coalition of workers and immigrants organizations in NYC, will be participating in this important day of action. They will join hands with thousands of others in demanding legalization for all immigrants now, an end to guest worker programs and an immediate end to all raids, deportations and family separations.
"We are organizing people to go and march in Washington DC because it is vital that people in the United States know that the Schumer bill is not enough to bring dignity to all workers and immigrants in the United States," said Teresa Gutierrez, a co-chair of the May 1st Coalition.
The proposed Schumer legislation has not been submitted to Congress. Press statements and discussions between Schumer and immigrant advocates indicate that the Schumer bill on immigration is Sensenbrenner with another name. The New York Times reported on March 11 that the bill Schumer is "shaping" would create a "national biometric identification card for all workers", including US born workers and documented immigrants.
"Schumer's comprehensive immigration reform means the continued criminalization of the undocumented," continued Gutierrez. She went on to say, "We must unite together to end the humiliation and heartache brought to immigrant families everyday through cruel and inhuman immigration laws. We demand legalization now!"
This day of action is taking place following US-wide antiwar demonstrations on March 20th.
Comrade Shahid, also a co-chair of the May 1st Coalition stated, "The war against immigrants continues the same as the war against people in Iraq and Afghanistan. More and more money is funneled to contractors that build US military bases and walls between the US and Mexico. We need jobs and education for all people in the US, not more wars."
According to prominent immigration advocates, in the year 2009, 387,000 people were deported from the United States. This represents a sharp escalation over the final year of the Bush Presidency.
The May 1st Coalition formed in 2006, organizing the largest demonstration in NYC history with 1 million people against the Sensonbrenner bill. This year, the Coalition is organizing for a united city-wide demonstration on Saturday, May 1st at Union Square.