How did the 2006 immigration protests affect you?
Ten years ago, half a million people participated in massive immigration protests, demanding rights and respect. We would like to hear your story if you were one of them.
As part of a massive national movement, roughly half a million immigrants and their supporters took to the streets of Los Angeles 10 years ago, decrying federal bills that would criminalize providing food or medical services to undocumented immigrants and build a wall along the U.S.’ southern border. The demonstrations far surpassed the numbers that turned out against the Vietnam War, and California hasn’t seen anything like it since then.
We would like to follow up with those protesters and see where they are now, and in particular the young people who played a central role. Forty thousand students walked out of class on March 28, 2006 — organizing via then emerging technologies such as MySpace, instant messages and mass email. A month later, many of them also joined a nationwide “Day Without Immigrants,†where workers and their families on May Day boycotted jobs and businesses, dressed in white and hoisted signs declaring “Ahora marchamos, mañana votamos!†or “Today we march, tomorrow we vote!â€
Please consider sharing your story below to help us report on the legacy of the protests. A reporter may contact you with follow up questions.
Twitter: @dhgerson
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