100,000 are expected for pro-migrant march
Daniel Gonzlez The Arizona Republic Apr. 5, 2006 12:00 AM
The massive pro-immigrant demonstration planned for downtown Phoenix on Monday will begin at the Arizona State Fairground and end with a rally at Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza, drawing upward of 100,000 people, organizers said Tuesday.
The demonstration, in support of comprehensive immigration reform, will pass near buildings where thousands of state employees work, as well as city, municipal and federal court buildings, but away from the heart of downtown.
"It's up to the employers to determine whether they want their employees to be downtown during the demonstration," Phoenix police Sgt. Andy Hill said. "We don't want to say all of downtown will be affected when it probably won't be."
Organizers are asking marchers to begin gathering at 11 a.m. at the fairgrounds. The march will begin at 1 p.m., when organizers will lead marchers along Grand Avenue to Van Buren Street and then west on Washington Street to Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza.
Following the rally, marchers will walk back to the fairgrounds west on Adams Street and then north on 19th Avenue.
Monday's demonstration is being coordinated as part of a nationwide day of action aimed at pressuring Congress to pass immigration reform that allows the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the United States to earn citizenship. As part of the effort, marches, rallies, boycotts, work stoppages and walkouts are being planned in more than 50 cities.
In Phoenix, organizers said volunteers will conduct a voter drive as part of the march under the slogan "Today we march - Tomorrow we vote."
Monday's march comes just two weeks after a March 24 protest paralyzed 24th Street and parts of the city's east side, surprising organizers and catching city officials off guard.
To avoid similar problems, organizers have been meeting every morning with representatives of the Phoenix Police Department, Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, Arizona Capitol Police and Arizona Department of Public Safety, Phoenix Police Department spokesman Detective Tony Morales said. "Our main concern is that it's a peaceful march," Morales said.
Reach the reporter at daniel .gonzalez@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-8312.