Phila. Anti-Immigration Protesters Outnumbered By Demonstrators Backing Reform
By Cherri Gregg
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A group of immigration control advocates demonstrated today outside the Mexican consulate in Old City, as part of a "National Day of Protesting Against Immigration Reform, Amnesty, and Border Surge."
But, at least in Philadelphia, pro-immigration advocates outnumbered them four to one.
Margaret Adelsburger (at right in top photo), of the group Pennsylvanians for Immigration Control and Enforcement, was among the anti-immigration reform protesters who stood silently, near 5th and Chestnut Streets, holding signs in solidarity with other groups today around the country demanding more secure borders.
"The people have been silent for too long," she told KYW Newsradio. "We've been invaded. It's a war."
Meanwhile, a few feet away, scores of pro-immigration reform advocates sang songs, broke bread, and gave hugs, calling for humane reforms to immigration laws.
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"We've decided to confront that hate with love," said Erika Almiron, executive director of Juntos, one of the groups organizing the pro-reform rally.
Carmen Guerro, who says she fled to the US after being kidnapped and nearly killed in Mexico, added, "We are not criminals, we are not bad people. We are just human beings."
These protests come as communities around the country turn away busload after busload of illegal immigrants, including thousands of children.
