Politics & Government

Mountain View Immigration March Calls for Reform Now

Hundreds of people rallied to bring attention to stopping deportation and encourage family reunification through comprehensive immigration reform.

This May Day hundreds of people from the Peninsula and South Bay descended on Mountain View to advocate for fast, comprehensive immigration reform.

The march, which began at the Community Center in Rengstorff Park, and finished at City Hall, included members of the clergy, laborers from the Day Workers Center and students in favor of the DREAM Act—all who hoped to send a message to legislators that they are more organized and willing to work harder to reverse deportations of non-criminals, reunite families and get passage of immigration reform with a quick path to citizenship.

"We preach what we say is the word of God and values that are important to us like family reunification, just work conditions and fair wages," said Father Bob Moran of Saint Joseph's Parish in Mountain View. "We are putting our words into action and hope to send a statement to the legislature that it's not a Hispanic problem and it's important to everybody."

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"They can be a catalyst," he said. "The legislators are our people and they can make changes."

Those changes have become a little harder to see come to fruition since the arrest of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombers. The Chechen brothers suspected of the attacks immigrated to the United States, and this has complicated the immigration reform debate currently before Congress.

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"What happened in Boston can be negative, but we have to change the face of the coin," said Palo Alto resident Roberto Muñoz. "Hispanics come here to work."

"We are here supporting immigration reform this year with a route to citizenship," Muñoz said. "What happened in Boston hurt us, but with a lot of faith, we believe we can get something passed this year."

Muñoz has been involved with the immigration reform movement in the South Bay for four years as a member of Peninsula Interfaith Action (PIA), a non-profit based in San Carlos. While PIA works on many issues like affordable housing, for their immigration reform efforts they've met at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto.

PIA's Executive Director Jennifer Martinez echoed what Father Moran shared—that for the interfaith communities, immigration reform is imperative. They continue to reach out to various churches and most recently began to make inroad in with the Jewish reform community.

"We've been trying to cover the bases of our commonality," she said, like "valuing family and stayng together."

 

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