Post by crudo on Apr 2, 2006 2:19:55 GMT -5
Modesto students in the lead
Marchers urge others to join immigration reform battle
Why? How? What? Here are answers on a hot topic
By KRISTINA SEWARD
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: April 1, 2006, 06:28:15 AM PST
About 60 Beyer High School and Ustach Middle School students marched through much of Modesto on Friday in protest of federal immigration legislation that would make illegal immigration a felony and expand walls along the Mexico-U.S. border.
Carrying Mexican flags and encouraging motorists to honk, the group participated in what school officials described as a "peaceful protest."
They were among thousands of students protesting tough immigration reform proposals who marched peacefully in several California cities Friday, expressing fears that relatives could be deported if new laws are enacted.
Big marches in San Diego and Bakersfield and smaller protests in Merced County and elsewhere coincided with the 79th anniversary of the birth of the late César Chávez, the co-founder of the United Farm Workers union who became a champion of poor, Latino agricultural workers in the 1960s and '70s.
About 8 a.m., the students assembled in front of Beyer High on Sylvan Avenue in Modesto. They walked to Somerset Middle School on Floyd Avenue, Downey High School on Coffee Road, Sherwood Elementary School on Rumble Road, Davis High School on Rumble Road, and then across town to Modesto High School on H Street, said Jim Pfaff, an associate superintendent for Modesto City Schools.
The group remained on the sidewalk at each school, Pfaff said, and urged other students to join them. They had little success, however.
'Let's show how much we care'
Modesto City Schools and Sylvan Union School District administrators and Modesto police accompanied students throughout their march to ensure their safety, Pfaff said.
The Ustach Middle School students will be required to make up missed class time in Saturday School, said Principal Mitch Wood.
Principal Randy Fillpot said the participating Beyer High students will be considered truant, which could result in different disciplinary action depending on their attendance records.
Robert Diaz, a Beyer sophomore who organized the protest, said any consequences for cutting school are worth it.
"It wasn't about, 'Oh, let's just go against the school,'" he said. "It was, 'Let's show the school how much we care about this.'"
Diaz said the group accomplished its goal, which was to spread the word about the legislation. He put together a fact sheet on the issue so students would be informed.
Fillpot said he is working with students to organize an assembly on immigration issues, how laws are made and how to influence Congress.
Pfaff said the protest ended at the King-Kennedy Memorial Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in west Modesto, where students called friends and parents for rides home.
The Sylvan Union district provided transportation from the King-Kennedy Center back to the Ustach campus in northeast Modesto.
Students in Merced remained on school grounds Friday.
A small group of students protested after school at the Merced County Courthouse Museum.
Police deter Merced walkouts
At least 100 law enforcement officers monitored schools throughout Merced in a successful effort to deter students who had planned to leave local campuses.
"We definitely got word of plans for more walkouts," said sheriff's spokesman Scott Dover. "But I think our presence out there was enough to keep anything from happening again."
Several hundred high school students walked out of classes Tuesday to gather on the steps of the Merced County Courthouse Museum.
Four students were arrested and the rear window of a police commander's car was smashed.
Merced police intercepted three student-made fliers Wednesday and Thursday that encouraged students to join protests Friday.
Two fliers originated at Golden Valley High School and the third came from Merced College, according to Merced Police Department Cmdr. Tom Martin.
"In all the cases, students turned the fliers over to us," said Martin.
"Merced High School is doing it, too," read one of the fliers from Golden Valley High, which instructed students to bring a Mexican flag or shirt.
"Based on the flier, their time would be better spent on the basics of reading and writing," Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said, alluding to its poor grammar and multiple misspellings.
About 1,000 students marched in Bakersfield. Six were sus-pended for arguing with police and security guards, said John Teves, spokesman for the Kern High School District.
In Fresno, about 50 middle school students walked out but were rounded up and taken to a truancy center, said police spokesman Jeff Cardinale.
"We've tried to offer the students other avenues to express themselves, like a free-speech space and different forums," said Susan Bedi, a spokeswoman for Fresno Unified School District.
Smaller protests in LA
In San Diego, students, parents and young adults waved Mexican flags in Chicano Park. Police spokesman Sgt. Jim Schorr estimated the number at 1,500. A school district spokeswoman put it near 2,000.
Motorists honked in support and construction workers cheered as the group marched through downtown.
"The more we come out, the more people will start paying attention to us. We will not stay quiet," said Zaira Mendoza, a junior at Mission Bay High School in San Diego who missed school all week to join protests.
But there were no mass walkouts in the giant Los Angeles Unified School District, where a week of outcry began with tens of thousands of students leaving classes, triggering a police crackdown on truancy. A few small protests did take place in Los Angeles and about 15 truancy citations were issued, authorities said.
In Las Vegas, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Friday urged Latino students walking out in protest over proposed immigration reforms to stay in school and called the protests "counterproductive."
"The children need to stay in school," Gonzales told reporters, after addressing a group of Latino publishers meeting in Las Vegas. "There is time after school, there is time on the weekends. If they want, somehow, to convey a message to government leaders, they can still do that."
Bee staff writer Kristina Seward can be reached at 578-2235 or kseward@modbee.com.
Marchers urge others to join immigration reform battle
Why? How? What? Here are answers on a hot topic
By KRISTINA SEWARD
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: April 1, 2006, 06:28:15 AM PST
About 60 Beyer High School and Ustach Middle School students marched through much of Modesto on Friday in protest of federal immigration legislation that would make illegal immigration a felony and expand walls along the Mexico-U.S. border.
Carrying Mexican flags and encouraging motorists to honk, the group participated in what school officials described as a "peaceful protest."
They were among thousands of students protesting tough immigration reform proposals who marched peacefully in several California cities Friday, expressing fears that relatives could be deported if new laws are enacted.
Big marches in San Diego and Bakersfield and smaller protests in Merced County and elsewhere coincided with the 79th anniversary of the birth of the late César Chávez, the co-founder of the United Farm Workers union who became a champion of poor, Latino agricultural workers in the 1960s and '70s.
About 8 a.m., the students assembled in front of Beyer High on Sylvan Avenue in Modesto. They walked to Somerset Middle School on Floyd Avenue, Downey High School on Coffee Road, Sherwood Elementary School on Rumble Road, Davis High School on Rumble Road, and then across town to Modesto High School on H Street, said Jim Pfaff, an associate superintendent for Modesto City Schools.
The group remained on the sidewalk at each school, Pfaff said, and urged other students to join them. They had little success, however.
'Let's show how much we care'
Modesto City Schools and Sylvan Union School District administrators and Modesto police accompanied students throughout their march to ensure their safety, Pfaff said.
The Ustach Middle School students will be required to make up missed class time in Saturday School, said Principal Mitch Wood.
Principal Randy Fillpot said the participating Beyer High students will be considered truant, which could result in different disciplinary action depending on their attendance records.
Robert Diaz, a Beyer sophomore who organized the protest, said any consequences for cutting school are worth it.
"It wasn't about, 'Oh, let's just go against the school,'" he said. "It was, 'Let's show the school how much we care about this.'"
Diaz said the group accomplished its goal, which was to spread the word about the legislation. He put together a fact sheet on the issue so students would be informed.
Fillpot said he is working with students to organize an assembly on immigration issues, how laws are made and how to influence Congress.
Pfaff said the protest ended at the King-Kennedy Memorial Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in west Modesto, where students called friends and parents for rides home.
The Sylvan Union district provided transportation from the King-Kennedy Center back to the Ustach campus in northeast Modesto.
Students in Merced remained on school grounds Friday.
A small group of students protested after school at the Merced County Courthouse Museum.
Police deter Merced walkouts
At least 100 law enforcement officers monitored schools throughout Merced in a successful effort to deter students who had planned to leave local campuses.
"We definitely got word of plans for more walkouts," said sheriff's spokesman Scott Dover. "But I think our presence out there was enough to keep anything from happening again."
Several hundred high school students walked out of classes Tuesday to gather on the steps of the Merced County Courthouse Museum.
Four students were arrested and the rear window of a police commander's car was smashed.
Merced police intercepted three student-made fliers Wednesday and Thursday that encouraged students to join protests Friday.
Two fliers originated at Golden Valley High School and the third came from Merced College, according to Merced Police Department Cmdr. Tom Martin.
"In all the cases, students turned the fliers over to us," said Martin.
"Merced High School is doing it, too," read one of the fliers from Golden Valley High, which instructed students to bring a Mexican flag or shirt.
"Based on the flier, their time would be better spent on the basics of reading and writing," Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said, alluding to its poor grammar and multiple misspellings.
About 1,000 students marched in Bakersfield. Six were sus-pended for arguing with police and security guards, said John Teves, spokesman for the Kern High School District.
In Fresno, about 50 middle school students walked out but were rounded up and taken to a truancy center, said police spokesman Jeff Cardinale.
"We've tried to offer the students other avenues to express themselves, like a free-speech space and different forums," said Susan Bedi, a spokeswoman for Fresno Unified School District.
Smaller protests in LA
In San Diego, students, parents and young adults waved Mexican flags in Chicano Park. Police spokesman Sgt. Jim Schorr estimated the number at 1,500. A school district spokeswoman put it near 2,000.
Motorists honked in support and construction workers cheered as the group marched through downtown.
"The more we come out, the more people will start paying attention to us. We will not stay quiet," said Zaira Mendoza, a junior at Mission Bay High School in San Diego who missed school all week to join protests.
But there were no mass walkouts in the giant Los Angeles Unified School District, where a week of outcry began with tens of thousands of students leaving classes, triggering a police crackdown on truancy. A few small protests did take place in Los Angeles and about 15 truancy citations were issued, authorities said.
In Las Vegas, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Friday urged Latino students walking out in protest over proposed immigration reforms to stay in school and called the protests "counterproductive."
"The children need to stay in school," Gonzales told reporters, after addressing a group of Latino publishers meeting in Las Vegas. "There is time after school, there is time on the weekends. If they want, somehow, to convey a message to government leaders, they can still do that."
Bee staff writer Kristina Seward can be reached at 578-2235 or kseward@modbee.com.