PEP, September 2003: Rally For Immigrant Rights.

Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride

By ALFREDO ALVARADO

In the spring of 1961, interracial groups boarded buses for the Deep South to challenge racial segregation in interstate transportation. They were welcomed by violent thugs — many wearing the white hoods and robes of the Ku Klux Klan. As local police looked the other way, the racists slashed tires, smashed windows and clubbed some of the non-violent activists nearly to death.

The bravery of the Freedom Riders and the virulent response of the mobs won national support for dismantling the southern segregation system and helped build the civil rights movement.

Using the Freedom Rides of 1961 as inspiration, immigrant workers will gather in September from sites all over the country and converge on Washington, D.C. On Oct. 1 and 2 they will meet with members of Congress to press for reform of the nation’s immigration policy.

From Washington the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride will head to New Jersey on Oct. 3 for a rally in Liberty State Park and to Queens on Oct. 4 to culminate with a mass rally and all-day festival at Flushing Meadows Park.

Unlike the original freedom riders, scores of sympathetic elected officials and labor leaders will meet these activists, including U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who was a leader of the civil rights movement in the 1960s.

“It’s a matter of justice,” said DC 37 executive director Lillian Roberts, who urged members to show their support for immigrant rights by participating on Oct. 4. She pointed out that “Immigrants are pressured to take jobs that pay substandard wages, which ultimately undermines our jobs and our union.”

The AFL-CIO, DC 37 and AFSCME, its parent union, the New York City Central Labor Council and many other unions are supporting the national mobilization.

“Many civil rights leaders are looking at the plight of immigrant workers in the same way they looked at the plight of African Americans and other minorities in the 1960s,” said rally Chair Brian M. McLaughlin, New York State assembly member and president of the CLC. “September 11 accelerated concern over many of the civil rights and civil liberties for immigrants that are now jeopardized by the Homeland Security Act.”

“This project draws much needed attention to the many issues facing immigrants today,” said U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel. In addition to Rep. Rangel, many members of New York’s congressional delegation are supporting the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride.

The freedom riders hope to educate the public and elected officials about needed policy changes. These include protecting the rights of immigrants in the workplace, the right of immigrant workers to unite with their families, establishing a “road to citizenship” for all immigrant workers, and protecting the civil rights and liberties of all.

To learn more about these issues and the rally, attend the forum on immigrant rights that the DC 37 Citizenship Committee is sponsoring on Sept. 24, 6 p.m. at union headquarters.

You can get more information on the Freedom Ride at their Web site, www.iwfr.org. For details on participating in the rally — including bus arrangements — contact your local or check the DC 37 Web site at www.dc37.net.