The 1 May Day Without an Immigrant nationwide protest marches in the US promise to push the issue further to the top of the agenda of American politics, Anayat Durrani reports from Los Angeles In the 2004 film, A Day Without a Mexican, Californians awake to find that one-third of their population is inexplicably missing. The state's 14 million Hispanics -- cooks, gardeners, policemen, nannies, doctors, lawyers, farm and construction workers -- disappear. The state of California, the fifth largest economy in the world, is then left to deal with the economic, political and social ramifications. While this scenario sounds like something that can only come from the movies, immigration reform groups in the United States plan to do just that. A real life "Day Without an Immigrant" is planned for 1 May 2006 in the form of a national boycott. "We think that the 1 May National Boycott for Immigrant Rights will be a success. The word is out among the immigrant community and with others," said Ian Thompson, of the Los Angeles Chapter of ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), who took part in the mass 25 March immigrant demonstrations in Los Angeles. The group said the boycott means no work, no school, no shopping, buying, or business as usual. The boycott has emerged out of pro-migrant marches across the US with the goal of pressuring Congress to legalise millions of undocumented people. The group said immigrants contribute billions to the economy and get few benefits in return. "It isn't clear how many millions will stay home from work or school or refrain from buying or selling anything on that day, but we know it will be millions of people, and we know that the idea of the boycott has already changed the way people think about the struggle for immigrant equality all across the nation," said Thompson. Though Thompson believes the economic impact that immigrants have on the US economy is great, he said the boycott is not just about that. Rather, it is more a strike to demand equal treatment and justice. "It also will reveal what is true, but goes unnoticed by many; that immigrants can be found working in all areas of US society," said Thompson. For some, the boycott is not merely a debate on immigration, but by what many feel is mistreatment of immigrants in the US. "I am very sympathetic to the immigrant community in the United States and, as a former US history teacher of 35 years, I am keenly aware of the profound impact and positive contributions of immigrants through our history," said Don White, co-founder of CISPES-LA Committee in Solidarity with the people of El Salvador, "I have seen first-hand the enormous contribution of immigrants, their hard work, personal sacrifice and dedication to their families and to the community. Immigrants and their ethics and ideals have profoundly enriched the US and have built the country." Tens of thousands of immigrants in 102 cities took to the streets across the nation on 10 April to protest against the proposed legislation known as HR 4437, which would raise penalties for illegal immigration and classify illegal aliens and anyone who helped them as felons. The 10 April demonstrations followed a weekend of rallies in 10 states that attracted about 500,000 people in Dallas, and 50,000 in San Diego and other sizable gatherings in many other cities. Rallies and student walkouts were also held in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. White said the march of nearly one million people in Los Angeles on 25 March, 2006 "opened the eyes of many as to the numbers of immigrants and supporters we're really talking about." White attended a smaller march of 400 people in Mount Vernon, Washington State, a city of 12,000, where he said students walked out at their high school in solidarity with the national protests. "So the public is increasingly aware of the gigantic groundswell of immigrant protests. What they may be less aware of is the economic impact of the immigrant community and that is one objective of 1 May," said White. Protesters have been urging Congress to help the estimated 11 million illegal immigrants settle here legally. Organisers say their demonstrations are important in that they put pressure on politicians to produce what they hope is more "just and humane" legislation. "Before these massive demonstrations for immigrant rights, the demand of amnesty was not even being discussed in Congress; now it is a major part of the debate," said Thompson. And while Hispanics, the nation's largest immigrant group, is leading the movement for citizenship for illegal immigrants, they are not alone in their demand for immigrant reform legislation. The demonstrations have also been credited with bringing together various groups and establishing a growing movement. "Immigration reform has acted as the catalyst for many different groups that previously have not worked together to see a common interest and need for collaboration: church leaders, unions, Latinos, Asians, blacks, politicians, eastern Europeans, non-profits, students, medical doctors, etc. because they see the implications of what would happen if laws like HR 4437 are passed," said Brad Baldia, spokesperson for the Philadelphia- based Day Without an Immigrant Coalition. "Philadelphia and other cities are using this as an opportunity to build coalitions and band together to advocate for long-term social, economic and political empowerment." Baldia said The Day Without an Immigrant Coalition did a work stoppage (El Paro) on 14 February and was the first city to draw national attention to immigrant advocates and "the need to voice our concern and disapproval to laws that were heavy enforcement, anti- immigrant and anti-American." White said his group, CISPES, will be taking part on 1 May to help immigrants show the general public the hard work they do, their willingness to perform the least appealing work and to "start at the bottom" and build their dream through real dedication and sacrifice. He believes the 1 May boycott will prove effective in that at the very least it will escalate the discussion of the importance of immigrants to the US economy. "And the immigrants we are talking about are not all 'Latinos and Latinas', who speak Spanish. From the Philippines, Korea, Canada, Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan, South America, Egypt and scores of other countries and continents the immigrants have come to enrich our culture and build their own dreams," said White. "CISPES believes we need to go back to the poem on the Statue of Liberty in New York and re-dedicate ourselves to those principles." Forty-eight per cent of the nation's 34 million foreign- born immigrants come from Asia, Africa, the Middle East and countries such as Canada, with the remainder coming from Latin America, according to the Census Bureau. "The 1 May boycott won't be the end of the immigrant rights movement," said Thompson. "But the lessons of history in the US provide us with great examples of how the perseverance of a people's movement is the only way to overcome brutal discrimination and achieve full rights."
