Crowd calls for reforms at ICE

Hundreds gather in Dearborn for immigration rally

Mark Hicks / The Detroit News

Dearborn — Metro Detroit was front and center Monday in the immigration debate as an Illinois lawmaker brought his national tour to town to highlight deportations and the need for reform.
"The system just isn't working, and we need to change it now," Rep. Luis Gutierrez said to cheers at the UAW Local 600.

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Gutierrez is petitioning President Barack Obama to back more relief to immigrants and fight for the federal DREAM Act, a proposal to give illegal immigrant students a pathway to citizenship through college or military service.
The issue has grown in places like Detroit, where Hispanics have complained about tactics by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials they call aggressive.
They say agents are engaging in "racial profiling" and point to several recent incidents, including on March 31 when ICE agents allegedly stalked Hispanic immigrants as they dropped their children off at school.
"We contribute by working hard," said Ruben Torres, 45, a Detroit Public Schools engineer and American citizen who was stopped by an unmarked agent last month. "To be treated like this — it's not good."
Hundreds cheered calls for reform from state Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Democrat who represents southwest Detroit; and U.S. Reps. Hansen Clarke and John Conyers. Leaders asked the public to step forward with their stories of encounters with ICE to spotlight abuse or civil rights violations.
"Our community is tired of living in fear," said Angela Reyes, a community activist and executive director and founder of the Detroit Hispanic Development Corp. "This is not law enforcement, this is intimidation."
Last week, ICE Director John Morton met with local immigration reform activists and community leaders.
He promised to review the agency's enforcement policies.
Meanwhile, the White House said Obama was scheduled to meet today at the White House with a bipartisan group to discuss revamping the nation's immigration system.
Local activists say they want policies that make it more difficult for officials to target working, law-abiding immigrants.


From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110419/METRO/104190365/Crowd-calls-for-reforms-at-ICE#ixzz1Jwd9dZoW