Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer Charged with Racism Bigotry at Protest Outside National Governors Association Confab
BOSTON/Back Bay - Hundreds of immigrant advocates and supporters held a rally in Copley Square on Saturday to protest the controversial Arizona anti-immigrant law SB 1070 and a local appearance by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer at the annual meeting of the National Governors Association. Following speeches by several activists, the attendees marched in sometimes driving rain to the Sheraton Boston where they picketed outside the governors' meeting for a short time - surrounded by heavy security.
SB 1070 is scheduled to go into effect on July 28th, and will mandate that all immigrants in Arizona will be required to carry registration documents required by federal law at all times. Opponents say that the law violates the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution which states that only federal authorities may enforce federal law - and that it will lead to racial profiling by Arizona state and local police, violating immigrants' civil rights.
Protest organizers from the ANSWER Coalition repeatedly charged Brewer with racism and bigotry throughout the event, called to escalate the growing national boycott against the state, and made pointed remarks to governors from other states that are considering similar legislation.
Jennifer Zaldana, a Boston organizer for the ANSWER Coalition, said, "The message of the demonstration was ‘Full Rights for All Immigrants. This was not only a message to Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, but to all of the state governors who were meeting in Boston at the time of the demonstration. We will not let the racist Arizona law SB 1070—or any racist bills being considered across the country—go unchallenged. Jan Brewer and other state officials in Arizona can be confident that protests will follow their every appearance throughout the country. Immigrant workers and the targeted Latino community in Arizona need to know that people everywhere will stand with them in the face of racial profiling and vicious repression.
"The July 10 demonstration is one example but there will be many more to come. The turnout and energy of the protest in Boston showed the level of commitment the people have to the struggle for full rights for all immigrants. Brewer claims that her racism and bigotry represents the majority sentiment in this country, but we are proving that to be a lie. This is only the beginning of a movement that will challenge all anti-immigrant legislation around the country."
Bishop Filipe Teixeira, OFSJC - Diocesan Bishop of the Diocese of Saint Francis of Assisi, Catholic Church of the Americas in Brockton, Mass. - said, "No human being should not to speak loud about this racist action of Arizona's Governor Brewer. One must feel free to travel throughout this country without been profiled by any law enforcement agency. It is a war against brown people. Therefore, we should united our forces to fight our enemies wherever they may be. Saturday July 10th was a symbolic unity amongst people of many races and cultures, coming together despite heat and showers to demonstrate solidarity to those who are being discriminated by this unconstitutional law created in Arizona. Young people brought tremendous amount of energy and hope. The sense of unity was profound and was felt by everyone I encountered."
Chris Gonsalves, another Boston organizer for the ANSWER Coalition, said, "Despite torrential rains, a two-mile march went from the rally site at Copley Square to the Sheraton Hotel, where the governors were meeting. We estimated that over 600 people participated in the three-hour rally and march. Though the streets began to flood during the march, everyone remained undeterred. In fact, the energy of the crowd intensified, and the chants demanding an overturn of the Arizona law grew louder during the march through the streets of downtown Boston.
"Those who had come out locally and those who had traveled long distances all expressed their strong desire to be present when Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer came to Boston to make a strong statement to her and all of the governors from around the country who were present. We cannot simply sit by as SB 1070 goes into effect and other states consider similar laws. We must take action. The July 10 demonstration
in Boston was part of a growing movement opposing all anti-immigrant legislation and supporting for full rights for all."
A handful of Tea Party activists held a counter-demonstration, debated with the pro-immigrant protestors, and spoke with passers-by about their support for Brewer and SB 1070.
Rich Howell, a local Tea Party member, said, "We have to stand up. Things have gone so far because people just let this go. And I think it's important to make a stand. Gov. Brewer from Arizona's here. We're here to support her in the midst of this ... this rabble that's come in from out of town. And we want to make sure that the majority of the voices are heard.
"We support the Arizona law. We want to support the laws regarding illegal immigration. It's gone too far. People are being used all over the place. And it's undermining the country. It's undermining the laws. And it's killing Arizona and it's affecting the rest of us.
"A lot of the illegals that come over the border end up here. There's a lot, a surprising number of people from the border coming over the Rio Grande and such - from other parts of the world, not just Mexico. Other parts of Latin America. And they're actually taking a lot of the valuable services the people have. They're not paying any of their fair share of taxes here. I don't care what we're being told. And they're being used. They're being used for political purposes. Whether to vote. Whether to join the welfare systems. All sorts of things. It's affecting the whole country."
The event concluded peacefully. There were no incidents and no arrests.
The Boston day of action against SB 1070 was co-sponsored by the Student Immigrant Movement, the Boston Mayday Committee, the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Deported Diaspora, and several other organizations.
Gov. Jan Brewer's staff did not respond to a request for comment from Open Media Boston.
Article text by Jason Pramas. Video by Annie Shreffler.
