Valley Star

Issue date: 3/29/06 Section: News

Media Credit: Alex Fayvil MARCHING ON - Grant High School student protestors wave the Mexican flag during Monday's walkout. Students showed their opposition to the proposed immigration bill that would make it a felony to be an undocumented immigrant living in the United States. More than 2,000 students marched from Grant to the Federal Building in Van Nuys.

Approximately 2,000 students marched past Grant High School Monday heading for Van Nuys City Hall as part of a nationwide protest against a bill that will turn 12 million illegal immigrants into instant felons.

That group was a small part of the more than 40,000 students who walked out of school and marched all over Southern California streets and freeways. Students continued to march on Tuesday, with all protestors monitored by police to keep things peaceful.

"We are marching for our rights," said protestor and Grant High School student Rubi Garcia. "I don't think we should get kicked out of the United States because it was built on us."

The protests have been going since Friday. Over the weekend more than 500,000 people peacefully marched downtown waving flags and chanting for their rights over the bill HR 4437. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives in December and would make all illegal immigrants felons. The Senate came up with their own version of the bill that would allow some of the 12 million undocumented immigrants to become U.S. citizens.

The biggest group of protestors gathered at around noon in front of Los Angeles City Hall where Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa spoke to student leaders and then to the crowd.

"Our paramount concern right now is for the safety of these students," said Villaraigosa during a news conference on Monday. "I'm asking parents to make sure that their kids are at school tomorrow, ready to learn and ready to discuss the important issues that they were here to demonstrate about."

Mondays protests were unorganized, with many of the protestors not really knowing where they were going or why, but they kept on. A lot of the planning for the protest was done on the Internet through websites like MySpace.com, through text messaging and on radio stations.

"I feel they have every right to do this," said bystander Jay Lee.

People lined the streets to watch the protestors go by, but not all agreed with what they were doing.

"We are just living our lives," said bystander and Grant student Gio Garcia. "Just because they pass a law doesn't mean you have to go and protest."

All Los Angeles Unified middle and high schools were put on lockdown Tuesday to try and keep their students out of the march. Busses were even provided to pick students who marched and bring them back to school.

"We are marching to protect the rights of our families and friends," said protestor Monique Barraza.

For the most part the protestors were peaceful, with only a few arrests.

"They're noisy but well-behaved, said LAPD Chief William J. Bratton in an article in the Times. "Let them have their say."

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