Immigrant advocates to rally in Hempstead

Immigrant advocates are calling for a May 1 street march in the Village of Hempstead to support policies that would allow undocumented immigrants to become legal residents and that would stop aggressive deportation policies.

The demonstration, a continuation of yearly protests that started at the peak of the national immigration reform movement in 2006, could attract anywhere from dozens to hundreds of protesters to the village’s streets. It’s being organized by The Workplace Project, an immigrant advocacy group in Hempstead.

“We know this subject is practically dead in Washington, but we don’t want politicians to forget about the 11 million [undocumented] immigrants who have risked their lives to come and offer their labor to this country,” said Saúl Linares, 33, a community organizer who lives in the village. “We want those immigrants to be respected and to be given the opportunity to live here as legal residents.”

The march will start at 4 p.m. at the corner of Fulton and Hilton avenues and will go east for about a half-mile to the corner of Fulton Avenue and Washington Street, where a rally for reform will follow.

Linares said the event is “not just for undocumented immigrants or even immigrants, but for all human beings who care about their rights.”