National Immigration Marches Kick off across the USA

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) April 10, 2006 — Thousands of marchers in white T-shirts filled the streets of an Atlanta neighborhood, one of dozens of nationwide immigration rights protests kicking off Monday.

Demonstrators in nearly 70 U.S. cities will be voicing support for an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants.

On what is dubbed a "national day of action for immigration justice," Atlanta's was one of 30 marches in the South alone as focus on the immigration issue turned from Congress to the streets.

Other large protests are planned in Phoenix, New York, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.

They follow similar rallies Sunday in Dallas, Texas; St. Paul, Minnesota; Des Moines, Iowa; Long Island, New York; and Goshen, Indiana.

The two-mile Atlanta march was in support of immigrant rights nationally as well as in protest of state legislation awaiting Gov. Sonny Perdue's signature, The Associated Press reported. If signed, it would require that adults seeking many state-administered benefits prove they are in the country legally, according to AP.

Carlos Carrera, a construction worker from Mexico, held a large banner that read: "We are not criminals. Give us a chance for a better life," AP reported.

In Manhattan -- where three rallies are set Monday -- demonstrators expect to cross the Brooklyn Bridge and march through Chinatown and Greenwich Village before converging on City Hall Park.

Last week's Senate legislation was hailed as a breakthrough before the compromise drafted by Republican Sens. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska and Mel Martinez of Florida failed to gain enough support in a vote. (Full story)

On Sunday, lawmakers traded blame for the impasse, but they agreed on one thing: The result may be no legislation at all.

"I hope it's savable," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts. "I hope politics doesn't get in the way."

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, said he is optimistic but added, "I'm always optimistic."

Specter, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told "Fox News Sunday" that "there's a real risk of significant political fallout here."

Both parties are looking to win over Latinos -- the nation's fastest-growing voting bloc -- in this year's midterm elections.

Divisions within GOP

Republicans are divided over two of the Senate bill's provisions -- a guest-worker program for non citizens and a process allowing illegal immigrants to pursue legal status to stay in the country and obtain citizenship.

Some Republicans fear provisions helping illegal immigrants could damage the party's image as being tough on national security issues.

While some GOP Senate leaders have expressed support for provisions allowing illegal immigrants to stay in the country and obtain citizenship -- an idea espoused by President Bush -- others flatly reject it.

"A temporary-worker program that might be useful to supply labor needs in our country, when they exist, should be exactly that -- temporary -- so that when the work is not available for them, you haven't turned them into permanent legal residents and thereby created a situation where you have foreign workers here but no job for them," said Sen. John Kyl, R-Arizona.

Democrats largely support laying out an avenue to citizenship.

House bill focuses solely on security

But even if the Senate manages to pass a bill after a two-week recess for Easter, another uphill battle would follow: having to merge it with the bill passed by the House.

The House immigration legislation -- which has drawn fierce opposition from Latino groups -- calls for building a 700-mile-long security fence on the U.S.-Mexico border and for making illegal immigration a felony.

A joint committee of members of the House and Senate would have to hammer out a compromise.

"I think we can resolve the differences, and we can have a strong immigration-reform bill," House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."

But Boehner offered no indication how such a solution would be possible.

"I'm for securing the borders and enforcing the laws," he said. "Until we do that, if you try to create a guest-worker program, all you're doing is inviting more illegal immigration."

Rep. Peter King, R-New York, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, also indicated he would not support such legislation now.

"In 18 months or two years, we can go back and address that issue," King told "Fox News Sunday."

"But first we have to secure the borders. Otherwise we're just going to be taking a bad situation and compound it."

But Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Illinois, cast that position as unfair and impractical. "We do need reinforcement, but we also need compassion. We need a comprehensive bill, one that takes into account that there are 11 million undocumented workers currently in the United States," Gutierrez told NBC's "Meet the Press."

"The only sane, sensible, compassionate thing to do is to integrate them fully into the fabric of our society. ... And they're necessary to the economic well-being of our country. So let's include them."