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Violence Against Immigrants Builds
Officials in Los Angeles are scurrying to make amends for the LAPD’s violence against immigrant marchers last week. The violence suggests a disturbing trend, writes New America Media contributing editor Roberto Lovato.
NEW YORK -- As cities and towns across the country watched the immigrant rights marches last week, some saw a spike in violent attacks targeting immigrants. Plots to attack immigrants with grenades and semi-automatic weapons were uncovered, according to local and federal authorities. Immigrant advocates say a series of incidents and reports appear to indicate what they are calling a very dangerous trend that they believe is fueled by the anti-immigrant climate.
In addition to the well-reported incidents involving police violence against immigrants in Los Angeles, last week’s less publicized incidents and reports involving actual and potential violence against immigrants and their supporters included:
·
The arrest and indictment of six members of the Alabama Free Militia who, according to federal authorities, were allegedly preparing to attack Mexican immigrants near Birmingham, Ala. with grenades, semi-automatic weapons and 2,500 rounds of ammunition confiscated during a recent raid by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
·
Washington, D.C., area police arrested Tyler J. Froatz Jr., a 24 year-old man wielding a gun as he allegedly attacked marchers at a local immigration rally last Tuesday. U.S. Park police say Froatz had two knives, a hammer, a flare gun, a taser stun gun and pepper spray when they captured him. A subsequent police search of Froatz’s apartment yielded 15 guns, a Molotov cocktail, a grenade and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, according to authorities.
·
An early morning fire last Thursday at Casa de Maryland, a day-labor center near Gaithersburg, Md. was declared an arson incident by Montgomery County fire investigators. Representatives of Casa de Maryland, which received regular hate phone calls and emails prior to the incident, were reported in The Washington Post as calling the incident a hate crime and a “natural consequence to the ongoing debate over immigration.” County executive Isaiah Leggett called it “shameful and despicable.”
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In addition to the well-reported incidents involving police violence against immigrants in Los Angeles, last week’s less publicized incidents and reports involving actual and potential violence against immigrants and their supporters included:
·
The arrest and indictment of six members of the Alabama Free Militia who, according to federal authorities, were allegedly preparing to attack Mexican immigrants near Birmingham, Ala. with grenades, semi-automatic weapons and 2,500 rounds of ammunition confiscated during a recent raid by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
·
Washington, D.C., area police arrested Tyler J. Froatz Jr., a 24 year-old man wielding a gun as he allegedly attacked marchers at a local immigration rally last Tuesday. U.S. Park police say Froatz had two knives, a hammer, a flare gun, a taser stun gun and pepper spray when they captured him. A subsequent police search of Froatz’s apartment yielded 15 guns, a Molotov cocktail, a grenade and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition, according to authorities.
·
An early morning fire last Thursday at Casa de Maryland, a day-labor center near Gaithersburg, Md. was declared an arson incident by Montgomery County fire investigators. Representatives of Casa de Maryland, which received regular hate phone calls and emails prior to the incident, were reported in The Washington Post as calling the incident a hate crime and a “natural consequence to the ongoing debate over immigration.” County executive Isaiah Leggett called it “shameful and despicable.”
More
For more information:
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_...
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Targeting Migrant Children in LA
By JUAN SANTOS
Even the mayor of Los Angeles admits "Nobody, nobody should be victimized in a way we saw women, children and families victimized just a few days ago."
He was referring to the openly brutal assault by the LAPD on a peaceful rally of migrant families and their supporters on May 1 in LA's MacArthur Park, where dozens of pigs in riot gear viciously and repeatedly fired volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets into a crowd of Brown families with children and babies, even before a helicopter hovered overhead announcing--in English only--that the Park must be vacated. The rally had a permit until 9 P.M. But, according to eyewitness accounts collected by the National Immigrant Solidarity Network, hundreds of cops arrived at 6, a mere hour after the event started, and, unprovoked, immediately began harassing a crowd watching Mexica/ Azteca danzantes, driving their motorcycles straight into the onlookers and sending a wedge of riot clad cops into their midst. More people gathered in the area to denounce this outrage, as waves of cops shot their way into the crowd of ten thousand nearby. The LAPD tried to blame "agitators" and "anarchists" for their attack, but this as a straight up lie.
Reporter Ernesto Arce of LA's KPFK told Democracy Now!, "they were trying to clear the Alvarado Street for ongoing traffic, and there was a gathering, a large gathering, a circle of people that were gathered around Aztec danzantes, or pre-Columbian Mexican dancers, and they were holding a ceremony. And police on motorcade decided to forcibly break that up, and they drove their motorcycles through this crowd."
A reporter for Telemundo said "One minute I was on live, the next minute I was running for my life. It was excessive force. They basically hit women, children, and journalists."
Another reporter wrote, "Television news crews captured images of the police swinging their batons at an arm's length of a frightened child who cried as he stood frozen in the chaos.
More
http://counterpunch.com/santos05082007.html
By JUAN SANTOS
Even the mayor of Los Angeles admits "Nobody, nobody should be victimized in a way we saw women, children and families victimized just a few days ago."
He was referring to the openly brutal assault by the LAPD on a peaceful rally of migrant families and their supporters on May 1 in LA's MacArthur Park, where dozens of pigs in riot gear viciously and repeatedly fired volleys of tear gas and rubber bullets into a crowd of Brown families with children and babies, even before a helicopter hovered overhead announcing--in English only--that the Park must be vacated. The rally had a permit until 9 P.M. But, according to eyewitness accounts collected by the National Immigrant Solidarity Network, hundreds of cops arrived at 6, a mere hour after the event started, and, unprovoked, immediately began harassing a crowd watching Mexica/ Azteca danzantes, driving their motorcycles straight into the onlookers and sending a wedge of riot clad cops into their midst. More people gathered in the area to denounce this outrage, as waves of cops shot their way into the crowd of ten thousand nearby. The LAPD tried to blame "agitators" and "anarchists" for their attack, but this as a straight up lie.
Reporter Ernesto Arce of LA's KPFK told Democracy Now!, "they were trying to clear the Alvarado Street for ongoing traffic, and there was a gathering, a large gathering, a circle of people that were gathered around Aztec danzantes, or pre-Columbian Mexican dancers, and they were holding a ceremony. And police on motorcade decided to forcibly break that up, and they drove their motorcycles through this crowd."
A reporter for Telemundo said "One minute I was on live, the next minute I was running for my life. It was excessive force. They basically hit women, children, and journalists."
Another reporter wrote, "Television news crews captured images of the police swinging their batons at an arm's length of a frightened child who cried as he stood frozen in the chaos.
More
http://counterpunch.com/santos05082007.html
This should be titled "Violence Against Undocumented Workers". Get it straight!
Immigrants (i.e., documented) have always been subjected to hassles in the communities they move into in the USA. I know, I come from NYC. It happened to the Irish, Italians, Polish, Jews, Chinese, Arabs, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and so on. Bloody violence, racism, police brutality, gangs, etc. were commonplace for the late 19th and early 20th Century People either forget or just don't read the history books. Eventually they are left alone and become part of the mainstream. It seems to be some kind of weird sick American initiation.
Things will get better. It takes time.
Immigrants (i.e., documented) have always been subjected to hassles in the communities they move into in the USA. I know, I come from NYC. It happened to the Irish, Italians, Polish, Jews, Chinese, Arabs, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and so on. Bloody violence, racism, police brutality, gangs, etc. were commonplace for the late 19th and early 20th Century People either forget or just don't read the history books. Eventually they are left alone and become part of the mainstream. It seems to be some kind of weird sick American initiation.
Things will get better. It takes time.
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