Talk-radio crowd pumps up the volume on immigration
WASHINGTON — John and Ken, the Los Angeles-area radio talk-show hosts, were on the air. They discussed claims by the Homeland Security secretary that more guards had been stationed along the Mexico border. “Outright blatant lies!” John said. They trashed the Border Patrol chief. “A cardboard bureaucrat,” he added.
From the back of a crowded hotel conference room here, where the pair was broadcasting on KFI-AM, one listener couldn’t contain himself. “You betcha!” he roared, and the sympathetic audience erupted in laughter.
For four days this week, John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou joined more than 30 other radio hosts from across the country, broadcasting live from Washington to demand immigration laws that secure the border, punish employers who hire illegal immigrants, and deny citizenship to immigrants who sneaked into the country. . .
March to force downtown street closures
Navigating through downtown Los Angeles tomorrow will be tougher than usual as an immigrants rights march will force the closure of numerous streets in the heart of the city.
Bus routes, Metro Rail and freeways will be affected.
This year, estimates range from 15,000 to 150,000 marchers, according to the city’s Department of Transportation.
Most of the closures, which will begin at 8 a.m. and are expected to last through most of the day, could affect traffic on any street bounded by Cesar Chavez Avenue to the north, Alameda Street to the east, Washington Boulevard to the south and Flower Street to the west, transportation officials said. In addition, Broadway between 9th Street and Olympic Boulevard and Olympic Boulevard between Main and Hill streets will be closed beginning about 7 a.m. as part of the march assembly area. . .
Students are urged to skip rallies
State and local education officials, citing safety concerns and potential financial penalties for schools, urged students Sunday to shun this week’s May Day immigration reform marches and stay in class.
The Tuesday demonstrations include a downtown Los Angeles rally that local transportation and law enforcement officials anticipate could draw as many as 500,000 participants. Although that would be smaller than the roughly 650,000 who showed up at last year’s May Day march, it would be the area’s biggest immigration rally this year. And it threatens traffic tie-ups that have prompted officials to urge the public to avoid downtown.
State Supt. of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, who appeared at a news conference with Los Angeles schools Supt. David Brewer and other local officials, said it was more important for students to be in class than to demonstrate. He urged educators to consider the day “a teachable moment” to address immigration and related issues. “I’m a strong believer in free speech … but not at the expense of educational opportunity,” he said. . .
