LOS ANGELES, February 3, 2006--The Los Angeles City Council this morning\r\nissued an official and harsh rebuke to inland and border anti-migrant vigilantes.<\/p>\r\n
The Council moved Item No. 7 to second position on the agenda, effectively\r\ndeclaring it a consent item. The Council resolved to \"include\r\nin the City’s 2005-06 State and Federal Legislative Program, SUPPORT\r\nof State or Federal Legislation denouncing and prohibiting the vigilante actions\r\nof individuals against immigrants along the border and within urban communities\r\nand enact immigration reform\r\nleading towards a path of permanent status for immigrants here now\r\nand wider legal channels for those coming in the future.\"<\/p>\r\n
Apparently anticipating unanimous\r\nconsent, Council President Eric Garcetti asked scheduled public speakers, all in\r\nsupport, to forego their comments. Without opposition from the council or the\r\npublic, the vote was 10-0, with Ed Reyes (1st District), Dennis Zine (3rd\r\nDistrict), Tom LaBonge (4th District), Jack Weiss, (5th District), Alex Padilla\r\n(7th District), Herb Wesson (10th District), Bill Rosendahl (11th District) Greig\r\nSmith (12th District), and Janice Hahn (15th District) present and voting in\r\nfavor.<\/p>\r\n
The resolution, put forward by Garcetti and Reyes, originated with in the Intergovernmental Relations\r\nCommittee.<\/p>\r\n
Welcome to L.A. for the March and Caravan for Migrants<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n
Although city officials may have\r\nbeen unaware of it, the resolution's passage is a city welcome to the March for\r\nMigrants, a cross-country caravan scheduled to arrive this evening at 6:00 p.m.\r\nat Placita Olvera, after a 5:30 p.m. march from the downtown Federal\r\nBuilding. The evening will mark the deaths of Guillermo Martinez Rodriguez,\r\nwho was shot in the back last month with a hollow point bullet fired at less\r\nthan twenty feet by a border patrol agent, and the thousands of others who have\r\ndied crossing the border since the 1994 inception of Operation Gatekeeper. United Farm Workers co-founder and First Vice\r\nPresident Emeritus Dolores Huerta will lead a\r\nvigil at La Placita Church.<\/p>\r\n
The caravan will stop in Fresno, San Francisco, and Sacramento to meet with\r\nstate legislators. In Arizona, caravanners will memorialize border deaths\r\nin Tucson, El Paso, and San Antonio, with a special ceremony at the Alamo. \r\nThen they're on to Victoria where 19 migrants died in a semi, Houston, and the\r\nJFK Memorial in Dallas. Other scheduled stops include Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama,\r\nand Atlanta with a special message for CNN'S Lou Dobbs. After passing through North Carolina, the March for Migrants will\r\nend its journey in Washington, DC with a strong message of \"no\"\r\nto HR4437 and to the recent wave of right wing anti-migrant legislation,\r\nincluding meetings with Senators McCain and Kennedy, as well as other key legislators, including members of the Hispanic caucus.<\/p>\r\n
Public Comments: HR 4437, the South Central Farm, and Lincoln\r\nHeights<\/b><\/i><\/p>\r\n
In other business this morning, the City Council heard from several citizens\r\nand citizen groups. La Placita Immigrants Working Group, CARECEN, and the\r\nImmigration Solidarity Network asked the Council to oppose HR 4437 and support a\r\nplan that leads to permanent residency and citizenship, and to reaffirm its\r\nsupport for Special Order 40, which prevents the police from questioning,\r\ndetaining or interrogating persons solely because of suspected undocumented\r\nimmigration status. In a stunning 10-day mobilization, over 10,000\r\nsignatures were collected on a petition supporting the position, according to\r\nCARECEN spokesperson Elda Martinez. The City Council received the petition\r\nand is expected to take up the request in the next week.<\/p>\r\n
Also notable among the public comments were half a dozen South Center\r\nFarmers, who pleaded with the Council to take action in what they called the\r\n\"dire situation\" at the farm. Only Reyes, Padilla, and LaBonge\r\nwere seated to hear their plaint. Padilla buried his head and sorted\r\npapers (as he did throughout public comments). Reyes rubbed his face and\r\nhead in apparent frustration. Rosendahl, usually noteworthy for his strong\r\nstatements in support of the people's interests, was buried in a corner\r\nconsulting with suited bystanders.<\/p>\r\n
Some of the remaining residents of Lincoln Heights begged the Council to find\r\na way to keep them in their homes. Supporters presented evidence\r\nindicating other housing was out of reach of the aging, fixed-income residents. \r\nTwo decades-long residents, one aided by a cane and the arm of a younger person,\r\nbroke into tears as they asked the Council for relief. Two Council\r\nmembers, including Rosendahl, added their concern.<\/p>\r\n
Full Resolution of the Los Angeles\r\nCity Council Intergovernmental Relations Committee<\/i><\/b><\/p>\r\n
The resolution against anti-migrant vigilantes passed by the Council\r\nreflected its endorsement of the Intergovernmental Relations Commitee's full\r\nfindings, as follows:<\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, any official position of the\r\nCity of Los Angeles with respect to legislation, rules, regulations or policies proposed to or pending\r\nbefore a local, state or federal governmental body or agency must have first been adopted in the form of a Resolution by the\r\nCity Council with the concurrence of the Mayor; and <\/p>\r\n
WHEREAS,\r\nmore than a quarter of California's residents were born abroad and more than half of California's low-wage\r\nworking families are immigrant families; and <\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, 36 percent of Los Angeles'\r\npopulation immigrated from abroad; and <\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, we must value the dignity of\r\nall our immigrant residents, regardless of immigration status, and recognize the importance of\r\ntheir many contributions to the social, religious, cultural and economic life of the City; and <\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, we must recognize the\r\nstrength derived from the cultural diversity of our immigrants and diverse\r\ncommunities in moving toward the end of discrimination in all its forms, and <\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, the media have reported the\r\nexistence of; and planned existence of, groups of private individuals who wish\r\nto take the initiative to achieve greater enforcement of the immigration laws,\r\nto prevent the entry of undocumented workers coming to the United States, and to\r\nhelp with the removal of persons who may be identified by those groups; and <\/p>\r\n
\r\nWHEREAS, it is feared that civilian\r\npatrol groups may no longer confine their activities to border areas, but have begun to enter major urban\r\nareas, where they have videotaped day laborers or stopped people to demand proof\r\nof citizenship; and <\/span><\/p>\r\n \r\nWHEREAS, border enforcement only\r\nworks when our laws are realistic and enforceable, and currently our immigration\r\nlaws are neither realistic nor enforceable as they divide families and prevent\r\ncivic participation by all community members; and <\/p>\r\n \r\nWHEREAS, we should strongly reject\r\ncivilian attempts to enforce immigration law; they threaten the public safety\r\nand civil rights of our residents and could only be conducive to a hostile\r\nenvironment, scapegoating and to aggressive behavior; and <\/p>\r\n \r\nWHEREAS, the City of Los Angeles has\r\nplayed a leading role in the protection of immigrant rights and has consistently\r\npromoted tolerance and respect for the rights, free speech and lives of all its residents,\r\nincluding immigrants and their families; <\/p>\r\n \r\nNOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, with\r\nthe concurrence of the Mayor, that by the adoption of this Resolution, the City of Los Angeles hereby includes in its 2005-2006 State and Federal Legislative Program\r\nsupport for any legislation which 1. denounces the vigilante actions of private\r\nindividuals or groups along the border and entering our urban communities to\r\nengage presumably in civilian patrol initiatives\r\nto assist the federal government in enforcing the immigration laws; 2. prohibits or otherwise hinders any vigilante type civilian action\r\nresulting in spying on others or sharing information with law enforcement\r\nofficers and fosters the view that each and every person who is present within\r\nthe city, county, and state, are presumptively here lawfully as citizen, legal\r\nresident, or visitor\r\nwith appropriate documentation; and 3. enacts comprehensive immigration reform\r\nthat combines a path to permanent status for immigrants here and wider legal\r\nchannels for those coming in the future with humane\r\nand effective enforcement. <\/p>\r\n PRESENTED BY:<\/p>\r\n <\/td>\r\n \r\n \r\n
\r\n \r\n \r\n(signed) Eric Garcetti
\r\nCouncilman, 13th District
\r\n<\/td>\r\n <\/tr>\r\n \r\n \r\n SECONDED BY:<\/td>\r\n \r\n (signed) Ed P. Reyes<\/td>\r\n <\/tr>\r\n <\/table>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n\n","contact":"leslie@radiojustice.net","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/html","summary":"In a stinging denunciation, the L.A. City Council goes on record against the Minutemen and Save Our State, but ices out the farmers.","numcomment":12,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2006\/02\/146318.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":146398,"heading":"Due to technical difficulties...","article":"Comments are not showing up, at this time.\r\n\r\nPlease try again in a few hours.\r\n\r\n:)\r\n\r\nBR\r\n\r\n","author":"Border Raven","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-05 12:22:19","modified":"2006-02-05 12:22:19","fileurl":""},{"id":146400,"heading":"Border Raven Speechless","article":"I'm at a loss for words: Border Raven - Speeeechlessss???!!!\r\n\r\n;-)\r\n\r\nWell the LA CIty action kinda leaves Costa Mesa in the dust, don't it BR?","author":"Morales","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-05 13:11:42","modified":"2006-02-05 13:11:42","fileurl":""},{"id":146409,"heading":"What do you expect?","article":"Under a city that harbors illegal aliens and considers themselves above the federal bonds of this nation.","author":"Quizling","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-05 16:25:02","modified":"2007-02-10 04:14:23","fileurl":""},{"id":146416,"heading":"it put a damper on SOS & MM","article":"it is not Los Angeles banning the bill.\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/la.indymedia.org\/news\/2006\/01\/145777.php\r\nhttp:\/\/la.indymedia.org\/news\/2006\/01\/145742.php","author":"El Chivo","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-05 18:42:28","modified":"2006-02-05 18:42:28","fileurl":""},{"id":146433,"heading":"This is Un-Constitutional","article":"\r\n\r\n1. denounces the vigilante actions of private individuals or groups along the border and entering our urban communities to engage presumably in civilian patrol initiatives to assist the federal government in enforcing the immigration laws; \r\n--\r\ndenounce = "pronounce especially publicly to be blameworthy or evil"\r\n\u00a0\r\nThis only says the City Government of Los Angeles, California, strongly disagrees with SOS\/MM, or the activities of\u00a0law-abiding\u00a0civilians, who choose to\u00a0cooperate with, or voluntarily assist, the government of the USA.\u00a0\r\n\u00a0\r\nIs this "sedition"?\u00a0 \r\n\u00a0\r\nsedition = "incitement of resistance to or insurrection against lawful authority"\r\n\u00a0\r\nYes, it is sedition, since the actions of the SOS\/MM, is lawful, under the US Constitution and Bill of Rights, which calls for the citizens and patriots to defend this nation, against all enemies, both foreign and domestic.\r\n\r\nThe government of the City of Los Angeles, California, is by their actions, a domestic enemy of the USA.\u00a0\r\n--\r\n\r\n\r\n2. prohibits or otherwise hinders any vigilante type civilian action resulting in spying on others or sharing information with law enforcement officers and fosters the view that each and every person who is present within the city, county, and state, are presumptively here lawfully as citizen, legal resident, or visitor with appropriate documentation; and \r\n-\r\nThis in effect cancels the Neighborhood Watch activities, within the city of Los Angeles.\r\nThis cancels civilian cooperation with law enforcement officers, in the city of Los Angeles.\r\nThis confers de facto citizenship on all persons within the city and county\u00a0of Los Angeles and state of California, until evidence to the contrary.\r\n\r\nThe Government of the City of Los Angeles, California, has no jurisdiction outside of the city limits.\r\nThis should be in violation of state and federal laws. \r\nThis is Un-Constitutional.\r\n\u00a0\r\n--\r\n3. enacts comprehensive immigration reform that combines a path to permanent status for immigrants here and wider legal channels for those coming in the future with humane and effective enforcement. \r\n-\r\nThis basically throws open the doors, to the immigrants, both legal and illegal, to attain citizenship, in Los Angeles. However, Los Angeles, is not a sovereign nation, until it secedes from the USA.\r\n\u00a0\r\n\r\n","author":"Border Raven","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-06 02:41:03","modified":"2013-11-11 00:38:09","fileurl":""},{"id":146444,"heading":"No taxation","article":"Well, since Los Angeles no longer considers itself part of the USA, I don't have to pay any taxes to support it. Since LA is probably sucking up 25% of my taxes, I will cut my tax payments by 25%.\r\n\r\nHey, I want a better life too. Plus I cannot be forced to support an Unconstitutional illegitimate government.\r\n\r\n","author":"Bowman","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-06 06:04:38","modified":"2006-02-16 19:13:40","fileurl":""},{"id":146476,"heading":"prohibits or otherwise hinders any vigilante type civilian action","article":""2. prohibits or otherwise hinders any vigilante type civilian action resulting in spying on others or sharing information with law enforcement officers and fosters the view that each and every person who is present within the city, county, and state, are presumptively here lawfully as citizen, legal resident, or visitor with appropriate documentation; and"\r\n\r\n I infer, from this, that as a member of the Minutemen and SOS, If I witness, anyone in the city of Los Angeles, commit a crime, then I am prohibited or otherwise hindered, from reporting the crime to the Los Angeles police department, or at least the LAPD is hindered from asking for my cooperation, in solving the crime.\r\n\r\nThis should help to swell the ranks of the SOS\/MM.\r\n\r\nImagine if the LAPD, call me in as a witness to a crime, and I claim to be a Minuteman. "I saw nothing. My lips are sealed."\r\n\r\nHow about a moving vehicle violation, the officer asks for my driver's license and proof of insurance, or to sign the ntoice to appear, and I say, "I am a Minuteman, and I would violate a Los Angeles City Council Resolution, if I were to share any information with you. But, thanks for asking."\r\n\r\n ","author":"Border Raven","parent_id":146318,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2006-02-06 12:50:55","modified":"2006-02-16 19:13:09","fileurl":""}]}