Los Angeles is preparing for another huge march for legalization and workers' rights on May 1st. In fact it looks like the "Gran Marcha" of March 25th revitalized the immigrant workers' movement in the whole United States and beyond. This blog entry will try to sum up some of the recent developments, point to news sources and local activist's websites and generally keep you in the loop as things unfold. Expect frequent updates during the next 4-5 days. (Last updated: 05/01 11:35pm PST)
There are going to be at least two huge demonstrations Monday in Los Angeles: One as part of the "Great American Boycott" during worktime, and another one organized by Miwon as well as the "We Are America Coalition" in the afternoon. Police already estimates that the demonstrations "could each draw a half-million marchers or more", LA Times reports.
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Update 1:
The California Senate passed a resolution supporting the boycott.
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Update 2:
Transnational families all over Mexico and Central America have adopted the boycott idea to celebrate May 1st as a "buy nothing gringo" day, LA Times reports. Meanwhile, the Zapatistas are going to demonstrate in Mexico City in front of the US embassy on Monday.
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Update 3:
LA's harbour as well as the International Airport will be targets of strikes and direct actions on Monday. These actions seem to be only loosely organized and are not connected to the unions. From the New Standard: "Thousands of truck drivers working out of the Port of Los Angeles and cab drivers who serve Los Angeles International Airport are expected to strike for the day or possibly the week. (...) The truckers and cab drivers are protesting against rising fuel prices and low pay, along with calling for immigration reform."
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Update 4:
One of the challenges of May 1st will be to truly embrace multi-ethnic organizing. New America Media reports that many Asian-American communities are mixed about the boycott. However, KIWA in Los Angeles managed to persuade Koran business owners to shut down on Monday.
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Update 5:
One of the main lessons of the ongoing migrant workers demonstrations seems to be: Don't rule out traditional media. School walkouts in March were largely "organized" by SMS messages and Myspace postings, but the huge marches had substantial support from mainstream Latino media outlets. Today the New York Times portrays one of the most influential LA-based radio DJs and his role in mobilizing the masses.
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Update 6:
Day X. Nobody really knows what to expect. More and more media reports are coming in of small and big immigrant-run businesses closing down to allow their workers to take part in the protests. In Mexico, all shops are reportedly closed down - except the ones catering to American tourists.
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Update 7:
Looks like Los Angeles did it again. Just a few weeks after the largest march in the history of the city even more people came out to protest repressive immigration legislation and demand legalization. Cummulative police estimates for the day's demonstrations range from 600.000 to 800.000 people, but most participants and many media commentators felt that there was significantly more people out there.
The boycott also had a big impact in many districts. Koratown and the Garment District were virtualy shut down. About 90% of the port's truck drivers went on strike and effectively closed the harbor. There were also huge marches in Chicago and numerous other US cities. The Tijuana border entry point to the US was blocked for hours by Mexican actvists. US businessses throughout Mexico remained empty.
The next few days might show the real impact of this remarkable May day. For now, some Flickr galleries: Si se puede, day without immigrants, Immigration rally.
