Racists go home! Baldwin Park Rally

Everytime the racist Minutemen and Save Our State people have shown up around Southern California they have been outnumbered by counter-protesters. It's gotten so bad that the Save Our State people are openly contemplating giving up on Los Angeles County:

"I really suggest we focus more on Orange County or the Inland Empire because LA County is basically a write-off situation at the moment. Since LA is essentially a municipality of Mexico we are not doing ourselves many favors by assembling there."

I live in the Inland Empire and I can tell you right now they won't be welcome here. But it might take them a while to realize this.


The police were a strong presence at the event. The picture to the left gives you an idea of just how intimidating they can be. They were clearly on the side of the SOS and Minutemen people, which numbered about 40 people. They had a number of streets blocked off. These pictures are from just one part of the protest. Other protesters were closer to the monument. I'm not very good at estimating crowd numbers so I'll wait until I hear something before I even hesitate a guess. But there is no doubt that our numbers dwarfed that of the Minutemen and SOS people.

It was a good peaceful rally of diverse yet like-minded people. Again again I heard the refrain: We have to nip this in the bud. There is a growing concern that these racist vigilante groups are nascent fascist movements.

Whether or not this is true, the fact remains that we have to stand up and oppose racism whenever it raises its ugly head. You can paint the arguments in any way you like. You can spin them from now until Jesus comes back. But what it amounts to is that the SOS and Minutemen would like nothing more than to blame all of our problems on immigrants. They can pretend it's about securing the border or however they are spinning it, but the bottom line is they are primarily white racists who would like nothing more than to beat up on our poor immigrant workers. They seek to demonize them and I won't stand for it.

There was chanting and singing. A few people brought drums. It was a good time and it uplifts the spirit to stand up for what is right. This was a small victory in the overall fight for social justice, but each battle whether we win or lose has its merit. Forty racists were shown today that they are not wanted in Baldwin Park. We have told them this in Alhambra and Garden Grove. Again and again, we will let them know that California has no need for their brand of racism.

You can read more at Indymedia by clicking here. You can also find more picture by clicking here.

Update: Estimates by the people at Indymedia are from 1,000 to 2,000 people protesting the Minuteman SOS group. The racists had about 40 people.

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