Foley Square – American-Rattlesnake

City of Refuge: Open Borders Activists Rained Out

Pamela Hall — Mon, 10 Apr 2017 06:17:57 +0000

The original “City of Refuge : Stop the Refugee BAN 24 hour Action” planned for March 14th had been postponed because of snow: the blizzard that didn’t.

Still, it was a lot of snow, so they rescheduled to March 28th and NOW… we had RAIN.

Cameras and rain, an even less friendly combination, but curiosity took me downtown anyway to 40 Wall St.

Day 1, March 28, 2017 (Noon-1pm) began outside a TRUMP Building at 40 Wall Street, followed by a night sleeping in a temporary “Tent City” outside historic Trinity Church.

[Trinity Church was a partner in this action]

“To bring attention to the need for more humanitarian refugee policies, Trinity is partnering with a coalition of organizations, including African Communities Together and the Interfaith Center of New York, to host a refugee action, including two marches, teach-ins, interfaith services, and an overnight “refugee tent city.”

From The Protest’s Press Release:

“We are calling for an end to the refugee ban, the preservation of asylum and TPS (temporary protected status), and truly humanitarian immigration policy. We will organize 24 hours of powerful actions in solidarity with refugees. We are invoking the spirit of the Statue of Liberty and the history of New York as a City of Refuge for immigrants and refugees from around the world.”

On Day 2, March 29, 2017, the protestors would march to Federal Plaza, past the African Burial Ground, ending at Foley Square. But, first, March 28. Noon. I arrived outside the 40 Wall st Trump Building as the protestors were stacking their rafts. Inflatable dinghies. Very orange.

Typically, the left knows how to do street theatre photo-ops, making the trip worth the inclement weather. Lots of cameras were on-hand waiting. Ready.

As the small crowd grew, there were now a few signs carried by Koreans of MinKwon amongst the umbrellas.

Rafts laid out. Photos in rafts. A banner from African Communities Together. And a steady rain that was not abating. Still, no one was leaving. Waiting patiently.

The sound system spazzing in the rain caused a brief delay and then the speakers began.

The speakers included, Cesar Vargas , New York’s First Undocumented Lawyer

After a nearly three-year wait, a five-judge panel in New York ruled this week that César Vargas — a native of Mexico and longtime New Yorker — can be admitted to practice law in the state he’s called home since he was 5, even though he remains an undocumented immigrant.

Rabbi Rachel Grant Meyer, a refugee advocate.

Nisha Agarwal, The Mayor’s Immigrant Affairs Commissioner.

Amaha Kassa, African Communities Together.

Elizabeth Arjok, Sudanese model and actor.

Elizabeth fled South Sudan at seven years old and waited five years to be resettled in the U.S.

Their messages were clear: “Stop the attacks on illegal immigrants, Mr President. Stop ICE. Open Borders, Si. No to immigration laws. YES to Sanctuary Cities.” Nothing new here. Still, they managed to hold a decent rally in the rain.

After the speeches had concluded, I headed back uptown so I didn’t walk the brief jaunt to Trinity Church – a short hop away (see picture below) – as they carried their very orange rafts to the temporary Tent City they set up outside the church.

At Trinity Church the schedule would include:

1:30pm: Opening at Trinity Church (including interfaith prayer service)

2:30-3:15pm: Teach-In: Immigration Law & Know Your Rights
3:30-4:15pm: Teach-In: Sanctuary in the Workplace
4:30-5:15pm: Teach-In: Criminalization
5:30-6:15pm: Teach-In: Foreign Policy & Migration

6:30-7:30pm: Dinner /Break
7:30-9pm: Cultural Jam
9-10pm: Torchlight Vigil
10pm: Doors of Trinity Church are closed. Camp out will begin.

Preferring rain to a ‘blizzard”, the protestors spent the night in a tent city at Trinity Church as they protested the refugee ban thoughout the night.

The south churchyard of 321-year-old Trinity Church hosted a tent camp-out as part of City of Refuge, to support refugees and immigrants. pic.twitter.com/BptHUDGg9s

— Trinity Wall Street (@TrinityWallSt) March 29, 2017

DAY 2 – March 29 – Foley Square.

The Sun was out. Temperature pleasant, even though the wind was a bit brisk. The protesters spent the night at Trinity Church and were now, after passing the African Burial Ground, ending their action in Foley Square (across from Federal Plaza) and still had those orange dinghies and drums (lots of African Drums).

Wednesday’s schedule – Day 2- included:

8:30-9:30am: Morning activity (leafleting, story sharing, “Call your Congressman/Congresswoman”)
9:30-10am: Closing at Trinity Church
10am-noon: The March to African Burial Ground & Federal Plaza
Noon: Closing Rally at Foley Square

Other than laying out those bright orange dinghies, this was a decidedly low impact second day protest/rally EXCEPT for some unplanned street theatre. Not organized by the protestors, seen below is “Chairman Mao’s”, Gary Pneuff.

“Build The Wall” Gary was back and he was NOT going to leave

But now he wears a Trump hat and holds a Build the Wall sign, portable radio in hand, pacing back and forth during the speeches; chanting and singing LOUDLY (Kumbaya was his song of the day).

Crazy Gary from Staten Island is a “professional” heckler. May Day, a.k.a Commie Day, is a favorite of Gary’s. Every year he marches through Union Square giving grief to those who support Russian/ Soviet/Lenin-style Communism. Known to hurl profanities as he aggressively promotes his love for Red Chinese Communism.

So, Gary sporting a Trump hat and carrying a Trump/Pence sign, as well as “Build the Wall“, begs the question from even the protestors on the LEFT, “WHAT is going on with Crazy Gary?”

He caused quite a bit of noise pollution for the intended speakers but the police took a tame approach to his presence. They tried to move him a few times, but he wasn’t breaking any laws, so Kumbaya droned on loudly through Foley Square. I must say, I had a bit of schadenfreude, watching the left be harassed by one of their own-Gary certainly isn’t one of ours.

As for the Refugee Action, today generated perhaps a smaller crowd. The African contingent was solid but minus the Korean faction. Rally points unchanged, the focus was still on (illegal) Immigrants. Sanctuary. Trump and Killer Cops, a.k.a. the NYPD.(Demoralizing the police being a huge campaign going on for DECADES.)

We heard a few speeches with GARY chanting and Kumbaya-ing in the background. Union shills. African immigrants. And Hawa Bah, the mother of a Muslim immigrant, Mohamed Bah. She claims he was murdered by the NYPD on September 26, 2012.

Not much if any media present. Not my problem. Nor theirs. Act like the media is there. Recruitment rather than media impact is often the goal. One day. One protest. One new recruit at a time keeps the ranks of resistance and discontent roiling. A decades-old methodology.

They. Never. Rest.

++ pictures and videos property of Pamela Hall ++

Speaking Truth To Power

G. Perry — Sun, 27 May 2012 19:39:29 +0000

Most of you will recall the outrageous assault upon NY ICE activists during May Day, an attack which was extensively documented by this website. Well, I’m pleased to report that the violent, pusillanimous open borders demagogues who tried to silence the voice of this great organization have not succeeded. I’ll let Joanna Marzullo tell the rest of the story.

Hi NY ICers!

As most of you know, our old NY ICE Banner was destroyed by the adversary during our May Day counter-demonstration. Most of you have seen the videos, but if you haven’t they are up on our new NY ICE website.

We have a new NY ICE banner due, in no small part, to donations made all over the country for our new, bigger, stronger banner!

Joanna Marzullo, President of New Yorkers for Immigration Enforcement (NY ICE)

More May Day Coverage

G. Perry — Thu, 10 May 2012 06:47:32 +0000

My apologies for not posting-as promised-the second part of my May Day photo-essay. There is some great coverage of May 1st by our friends at Vigilant Squirrel Brigade though, including footage of the attack upon NY ICE. You can find multiple videos of the confrontation-and what led up to it-on VSB’s Youtube channel. You can also find some fantastic photographs over at The Silent Majority No More.

You’ll see my last entry about the events surrounding May Day sometime later this week.

May Day 2012 (Marxists, Communists, Librarians)

G. Perry — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:01:24 +0000

One of the hallmarks of demonstrations organized by the left-as anyone who lives in this city can attest-is a consistently muddled message-or assemblage of messages-which often has little bearing on the theme ostensibly animating the protest movement in question. I’m not sure if the occupiers displaying the words of anti-USSR, Marxist Polish philosopher-turned anti-Marxist Solidarity activist-Leszek Kolakowski appreciate their import-considering the number of CCCP t-shirts and Soviet flags I saw displayed throughout May Day, I doubt most of them do. However, the Kolakowski quote did strike an ironic note when juxtaposed against the sea of slogans chanted by protesters this past Tuesday, some of them contradictory, some of them incoherent, and some of them not even leftist so much as anti-state.

Unlike in past years, the number of self-styled activists who were promoting mass legalization of illegal aliens was miniscule. There was the Aztec warrior you see below, who was wearing sneakers made of vulcanized rubber that I’m pretty certain was not part of pre-Columbian civilization.

There were also abandoned signs alluding to mass amnesty and opposition to immigration enforcement measures such as SB 1070:

However, the primary action was to be found among those agitating for a grab bag of legislative proposals, most consisting of the redistribution-some would say confiscation-of wealth from the “1 percent” and the transfer of said riches to the “99 percent.” The person below, for example, feels that “millionaires” should be taxed disproportionately. Leaving aside the fact that they already are in relation to the rest of the population, and that the phrase itself is incredibly misleading, insofar as the tax would be levied on those with six figure incomes, the idea that this proposal would reduce wealth stratification is completely erroneous.

Regardless of the message intended, there were several thousand of these people dispersed throughout the city Tuesday. Hence, the seemingly endless stream NYPD vehicles parked on the street opposite Bryant Park.

And signs denouncing the occupants of said vehicles. For what it’s worth, the application process for acquiring a sound permit in this city is incredibly difficult, although to be fair, the serpentine bureaucracy governing nearly everything in this city-including constitutionally protected activities-is probably more at fault than any individual police officer.

I spotted the gigantic sign bearing that singular, capitalized verb as I was entering Bryant Park from the west. I wasn’t able to discern its precise meaning. Then again, neither were the women walking beside me, who asked the seemingly obvious question, “rise against what?”

Some of the other signs on display were just as cryptic, such as the one above, which as a generic exhortation to creativity and industry is not such a bad suggestion. However, one wonders how much reinvention-or invention, for that matter-will occur once the optimal ratio of regulation and taxation envisioned by OWS is achieved. Some signs, of course, were even more inscrutable:

The somewhat contradictory ambitions of the movement could be found if one looked hard enough. For example, these two signs juxtaposed below, one urging an American spring-presumably with a concomitant flowering of individual freedom-while the one directly above it calls for the abrogation of freedom of speech.

The 1st Amendment, it should be noted, even enshrines freedom of speech and assembly for the fairer sex, a fact that I’m not sure the person who crafted this sign is fully cognizant of.

Many of the participants in May Day rallies used the opportunity to speak out against perceived injustices, including what they viewed as misguided American foreign policy. The interesting aspect of this segment of protest, from my perspective, was how often president George W. Bush was singled out for criticism, notwithstanding the fact that it’s been nearly four years since Barack Obama was elected to succeed him as POTUS.

The quietude of the anti-war left during the Obama administration has been much remarked upon, and the fact that there weren’t many protesters focusing on these issues-with a few exceptions, such as the man seen below-proves more than anything else that the anti-war movement was largely based upon partisan differences rather than any sincere philosophical attachment to pacifism and non-interventionism.

Although I wasn’t able to spot the Wikileaks truck, which was stationed across the street from Zuccotti Park during the first iteration of Occupy Wall Street, I did see one sign highlighting the prosecution of Bradley Manning, the Army private charged with handing over classified material to Julian Assange.

There was a surprisingly potent anti-government sentiment to be found at the gatherings I observed, although how far such expressions extend is open to question. Whether the critique of anti-terrorist surveillance techniques deployed by the federal government,

Will be broadened to include criticism of the state’s interpolation of itself into an individual’s working life is something that remains to be seen. Considering the litany of economic demands being made by OWS, it appears doubtful.

Even so, there were more than a few elements of Tuesday’s day of action that struck an almost Tea Partyish note, including a flag of Benjamin Franklin’s iconic woodcut urging resistance to British tyranny.

There was even a lone Ron Paul supporter standing amongst the throngs of occupiers who massed in Union Square, although I’m not sure he found much common ground with the scores of labor activists who traveled to Manhattan.

Which brings us to the main subject of this photo-essay. Namely, the public sector unions that have largely subsumed the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Kerry Picket, of the Washington Times, has analogized the labor unions that have taken over OWS to the Muslim Brotherhood, which exploited the unexpected success of mass demonstrations in Tahrir Square-which were initially led by students and nonsectarian anti-Mubarak forces-to achieve permanent political power within Egypt. As Picket has pointed out, while the unfocused, disorganized protests of OWS often result in reprisals by law enforcement, the disciplined militancy of Big Labor ensure that its followers-whose jobs depend upon political largesse more often than collective bargaining-are spared any harsh nights in Riker’s Island.

The main beneficiary of this uneasy coalition is the Service Employees International Union, which flooded Union Square with bodies during the May Day “strike.”

In addition to the SEIU, which served as the spearhead of President Obama’s initial presidential campaign, members of the American Federation of State, Municipal and County Employees-the single largest contributor to national political campaigns in the country-were there to demand their “fair share” of the public treasury, i.e. private wealth confiscated by agents of the government through taxation. Apparently, the portion that their employees in the legislature are giving them now isn’t quite enough to satisfy their wants.

For the most part, the interests of OWS and their union allies coincide. The fact the latter-and at least a large portion of the former-want to live off of the taxpayer ensure that they find many points of agreement, illustrated by the sign below, which enunciated the chief proposals outlined by the organizers of the May day strike.

In addition to the soft socialism pedaled by most of the attendees, there was also a much more explicit, hard communism endorsed by pockets within the crowd.

Despite the PRC flag-and copies of The China Daily-this man was not among them. In fact, he is what some would call a professional troll; he shows up at virtually every demonstration of any size that takes place in the City-you may even recognize him from the anti-police surveillance, CAIR-endorsed rally I covered earlier this year. There were, however, genuine Marxists and Communists participating in May Day, which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering the contemporary interpretation of May 1st.

The quote above is taken from Theodore Adorno, the German sociologist who was one of the chief theorists of the Frankfurt School, a branch of cultural Marxism that was transplanted to the United States from Western Europe after Adolf Hitler’s NSDAP seized power. Of course, there were those who didn’t feel the need to qualify their Marxism.

Or, if Marx is not to your liking, there’s always the ideology responsible for more unnecessary deaths than any other in the 20th century.

For the fashionable, historically and morally illiterate:

And no Occupy Wall Street convocation would be complete without a gaggle of neo-hippies ineptly copying what they perceive to be Eastern religious rites.

Pascal Bruckner would no doubt have a field day with some of the modern primitives that made their way to Bryant Park last week, although personally I don’t think they’re any more interesting than the Hare Krishnas I occasionally run into as I make my way through the Times Square 42nd St. station.

In my next post, I’ll scrutinize some of the artistic elements of OWS’s May Day “general strike.”

The Heckler’s Veto (May Day Attack on NY ICE)

G. Perry — Sat, 05 May 2012 02:50:47 +0000

Update: More great coverage of the May Day assault at The Silent Majority No More.

Here’s a followup from Joanna Marzullo, president of New Yorkers for Immigration Control and Enforcement, describing the events surrounding her assault at the hands of pro-illegal alien thugs during the May Day march to Foley Square. Unfortunately, the banner seen above is no more. However, the spirit of defiance it embodies lives on.

Joanna’s report after the jump.

Hi NY ICers,

Thank You.

I can barely keep up with my emails of encouragement that I have received from people throughout our country who have viewed the footage of NY ICE, which, at the point of filming, was down to just 3 members being mobbed by a pack of rabid bullies. For those of you who haven’t viewed the video, please view it and share with friends. Here is the link again, which I shot myself. Here is a link from the spectator’s view, where you can see the NY ICers.

Of course, I am grateful to all the NY ICers who came out on May 1, 2012, but particularly grateful to the 2 men who stood with me as we were: spat upon, had water and water bottles thrown at us, had our banner destroyed and parceled out in pieces as “trophies”; endured the onslaught of vulgarity, sexism (to me, the only “b*tch” there); and anti-white racism. So, I won’t ever forget that and will be always grateful to you two, Jim and Daniel.

Our video has been posted in many places and is being widely viewed and spoken about. This is due, in no small part, to the efforts of “Urban Infidel”. Thank you, Urban Infidel.

Here are links from some of the coverage:

I appear about an half-hour into the Darby–Stranahan Show.

Here is coverage from Digger’s Realm.

Here’s coverage from Breitbart.com.

As well as Urban Infidel.

And, of course, our good friends at the Ruthie Report.

Ruthie talks about NY ICE about 20 minutes into her segment. I’ll be her guest next Thursday, on May 9, 2012, beginning at 10pm EST, when you can call in and listen via this number: 917.388.4520.

This is what courage looks like,

Joanna, President

NY ICE (New Yorkers for Immigration Control and Enforcement)

Mayday

G. Perry — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:41:36 +0000

Update: Urban Infidel has some fantastic coverage of the sea of humanity in Union Square yesterday, as well as an illuminating slideshow.

I’ll post a more detailed recap of what happened yesterday later this week, but until then I’d like you to see a video shot by Joanna Marzullo when scads of illegal aliens and their enablers assaulted members of NY ICE. You can see more footage shot during May Day on this Youtube channel. I’m not sure if the lucha libre wrestler has his papers, but considering the fact that there are over 600,000 illegal aliens living in this state it wouldn’t come as a complete shock if he didn’t.

Counterstrike

G. Perry — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 18:39:13 +0000

That’s the word from organizers of the May Day general strike. No word yet on whether there will be any mass disavowal of loot, booze, or fun. In addition to the May 1st Coalition, whose somewhat muddled agenda includes a call for mass amnesty of all illegal aliens-a policy suggestion that is akin to pushing on an open door as far as this administration is concerned-the primary orchestrator of this year’s events is the Occupy Wall Street movement, which we’ve documented extensively on this site.

Although the main encampments of OWS on Tuesday will be at Bryant Park and Union Square, with various marches to and from both locations throughout the day, members of New Yorkers for Immigration Control and Enforcement will be staging their own rally at Foley Square. For those of you who want to join them, feel free to drop me a line at the e-mail address provided on American Rattlesnake’s Contact Us page.

I’ll be tweeting periodically throughout the day, and perhaps even dropping by the Haymarket Rager, if only to see how it matches up against the Sacco & Venzeti Ultra-rave. Hope to see you there.

Occupy The Border

G. Perry — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 06:41:45 +0000

Update: Thank you 9/11 Families for a Secure America for highlighting this entry on your Facebook page. Peter Gadiel-who lost his son James in the September 11th massacre at the World Trade Center-serves as an inspiration to us all for continuing to hold politicians’ feet to the fire on border and national security issues. Thank you, Peter.

Sunday, as most of you who’ve followed the past few updates probably know by now, was the day when Occupy Wall Street demonstrators decided to link up with open borders advocates a few blocks from City Hall. Of course, a number of speakers invited to the event were themselves illegal aliens, including the young girl sporting a disfigured American flag fashioned into a graduation gown. She was entreated to deliver a ten minute-long speech which-if the consequences were not so grave-would have been jaw-droppingly hilarious.

In addition to lamenting the misfortune that has befallen her family merely for consciously and premeditatedly breaking the law, she decried the injustice that made her at times ingest dirt. Yes, that’s right. In order to elicit sympathy from her audience-which was unnecessary, considering the crowd-she recounted an anecdote about being forced to eat cakes made of dirt. However, unlike the Haitians forced to eat dirt cookies in Cite Soleil, I doubt the veracity of her tale, not least because it would mean she didn’t avail herself of the free school lunch program in this city, that her parents somehow missed the lavishly funded network of Catholic services intended specifically for the benefit of illegals, and that everyone in her immediate family-including those proficient in the English language-ignored the dozens of open borders advocacy groups-at least half a dozen of which participated in this event-located in the Tri-State Area.

The political exploitation of children was a recurring theme, as was the deliberate obfuscation of the issues, which shouldn’t surprise anyone who followed last year’s debate over Congress’s possible approval of the DREAM Act. There was even a “family” that dragged itself to Foley Square, although the integrity of parents willing to subject their kids to sub-freezing temperatures in order to be propagandized is questionable.

Left unasked was the question, “why should families be separated?” Apparently, these adults graduated from the Elvira Arellano School of Parenting.

I’m not quite sure what the pink, artificial flowers signified, but they were ubiquitous at the demonstration, as plentiful as the palm fronds at a previous, equally absurd demonstration opposing the concept of enforcing immigration laws.

It took a while for the crowd to fill out-perhaps some would-be participants were scared off by La Migra-but eventually 70-80 illegals, their supporters, as well as Occupy Wall Street stragglers, made their way into the area the NYPD had cordoned off beforehand.

The folks in the red arm bands-one of the speakers described them as “orange,” so perhaps I’m color blind-were ostensibly there in order to provide security and protect their “community.” Evidently, the 100+ uniformed police officers did not constitute a sufficient force to deter a few dozen aging Communists and inept soccer players.

It wouldn’t be an unfocused, left wing demonstration without a number of platitudinous, seemingly incoherent placards, and this day was no exception. The one below would seem to imply that diversity is a necessary prerequisite for a functioning society, although as Adam Carolla has pointed out, true diversity seems to be the last thing on the minds of people agitating for unfettered immigration.

The artistic dimensions of this protest were manifold, although aside from the more ardent defenders of Roman Polanski, who’ve been taken to task elsewhere, I don’t know of many people who would consider obeying the law an esthetic choice.

There was also, perhaps unsurprisingly in a post-OWS world, a marching band.

We will not be silent. A call to arms, or-considering the talent level of the musicians in question-an implied threat?

Some of the demonstrators even brought their pets along, including this daschund. I don’t think I’m being presumptuous by taking it as a given that she was one of the few present with legal papers.

The only possible response to this sign? Too late, pal.

There was at least one activist who made a passing reference to the May 1st Coalition, a militantly open borders organization that stages anti-American protests each May Day. This website, as well as NY ICE, has tangled with them in the past.

Again, the signs on display expressed sentiments that ranged all the way from utterly vacuous, to incoherent, to utterly inaccurate and ahistorical. The one below is just one such example. Apparently, dignity isn’t a state that you earn through deeds your fellow man deems worthy of esteem, it’s something that you demand of the people you’re imposing youself upon-in this case, illegally. One wonders whether this person thinks about the dignity and self-worth of the millions of Americans rendered unemployable by our government’s deliberate actions, or the people who have to bear the costs associated with its inability to pursue a rational immigration policy that revolves around America’s interests. Somehow, I doubt he has.

Another trusty standby, immigrants pay taxes. There are only two problems with this one.

1. Illegal aliens are not immigrants.

2. The taxes paid by the cohort of immigrants this country currently absorbs are vastly outweighed by the amount of taxpayer funds they consume in the form of costly social welfare benefits.

Other than those two minor quibbles, she presents an irrefutable, logically airtight argument.

Ironically, many of the signs on display simply reinforced the arguments that this website and its supporters have been making for years. The ones decrying workplace exploitation of illegal alien workers, for example, did not convey any concept that Roy Beck hasn’t articulated quite vociferously and eloquently over the past two decades.

The generic nature of some of the signage began to get tiresome after a while. The banner below serving perhaps as the apotheosis of vapidity. Immigrants represent a better future for whom? The utterly superfluous nonprofits and advocacy organizations that suck up taxpayer subsidies in order to justify their existence? The political elite that cultivates them in order to remain ensconced in office and wielding power over the rest of us indefinitely? The media gatekeepers who intentionally squelch an honest debate about this issue? The beneficiaries of our current open borders policies were never specified.

The most obnoxious-to say nothing of historically inaccurate-sentiment expressed at this rally was the notion that “we,” the collective noun in this case referring to nonwhite Hispanics or Amerindians, were here first. The incandescent stupidity of this assertion was illustrated by a brief conversation conducted with the woman holding the sign seen below.

When I asked her who the referent was in the statement “we were here first,” after stammering for a few seconds she replied that it was the North Americans who were here before the Europeans. She averred that she was a Puerto Rican and that they had been there forever. Not quite satisfied by her answer, I pressed and was told that we referred to “brown people.” When I brought up the counterexample of Kennewick Man, who most assuredly wasn’t brown-unless the Ainu are now conidered members of La Raza- she demurred.

Unfortunately, her mistaken belief was echoed by many others in the crowd, including this woman, who seems to be operating under the misconception that there really is a North American Union.

This startingly incoherent banner expressed similar sentiments:

After glancing at the back of his oak tag, I realized that he was referring to the realignment of political cartography that resulted from this nation’s military victory in the Mexican-American War. Although the origin of the war between Mexico and the United States is an extraordinarily complex topic, and the political boundary between the two nations has been questioned by many since Abraham Lincoln served as a Whig congressman from Illinois, I don’t remember the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo including any mention of New York, current demographic trends notwithstanding.

The demonstrators attempt to play on the heartstrings of the overly emotional and credulous was consistent, as evinced by the banner below. Not surprisingly, the families torn apart by illegal aliens did not merit any sympathy among those in attendance.

Of course, the legality of enforcing any immigration law was brought into question by the protestors. Although it’s possible that she was referring to something else, “double jeopardy” in the context below means trying and/or deporting an alien because he or she was charged with a crime for which the defendent has already been acquitted. What puzzles me is why she went through the trouble of devising such a specific sign when in all likelihood she doesn’t believe any illegal alien-even those who have been subjected to fair legal proceedings-should be deported.

Note for the unitiated: La Migra, not to be confused with the Mexican grupera artists of the same name, refers to any immigration enforcement agency within the federal government, including ICE, the U.S. Border Patrol, and Customs and Border Protection. A popular staple of pro-immigration art, including a somewhat clever gloss on a Ramones’ classic, the anti-migra spirit was pretty abundant this weekend, although how much illegals have to fear from la migra is open to debate, especially in light of this administration’s rather lenient record with regard to these matters and this city’s lackluster record of cooperation with federal immigration agents.

This was one of the more unintentionally amusing signs I spotted:

Although the analogy between explicitly discriminatory and unconstitutional ordinances targeting African-Americans and laws intended to punish people who’ve disobeyed the law-and usually have no constitutional right to remain in this country-has been made many times in the past, this fellow must be commended for actually going to the trouble of drawing and inking two menacing looking crows, as well as a jubilant Rich “Uncle” Pennybags. Why a wealthy oligarch would be in favor of immigration enforcement is not delineated; Mr. Monopoly would certainly be an anomaly in that regard. There is a relationship between the corporate world and federal immigration enforcement agencies, although not in the way implied by this wholly misleading sign.

The Occupy Wall Street movement operated as the hinge of this protest, and there were a number of attempts to tie it to the open borders advocacy which was the ostensible reason for this event. The linkage between the two was made explicit by several demonstrators.

Although sectarian leftists and assorted Marxists attempted to monopolize the conversation, as they are wont to do. There were the Wobblies-yes, they still exist.

As well as Trotskyists hoping for a Fourth International.

The unconsciously ironic hipsters of the Party of Socialism and Liberation were also there.

And it wouldn’t be a full-throated, left wing NYC demonstration without a contingent from the brutally Communist, hard-line Leninist Workers World Party.

Some of the participants seemed eager to relive the halcyon days of the Contra wars of the 1980s, which-given their age-probably shouldn’t have been that surprising. However, unlike in past May Day rallies, I didn’t spot anyone holding aloft FMLN banners.

Our good friend, who henceforth shall be known as Button Man, seemed to combine the two predominant themes of the afternoon, espousing support for unrestricted immigration and an adherence to doctinaire Marxism.

His vest expressing support for the left’s favorite executioner, Ernesto Guevara Lynch…

In addition to Fidel Castro’s quintet of bumbling spies, whom El Jefe’s American fan club view as political prisoners.

The fervor seen earlier in the day seemed to die down as the crowd marched towards Zuccotti Park, but I did manage to snap a few interesting pictures before calling it a day. This banner proclaims that we will die on our feet before we will kneel. Those of you more proficient in Espanol, feel free to correct any errors in translation.

One of the last shots is a photograph of a duo representing the Ecuadorian Socialist Party of New Jersey. Yes, there is an Ecuadorian Socialist Party of New Jersey. Why there isn’t one in New York City is beyond my ken.

No more capitalism! We are constructing socialism. Isn’t that a sentiment that all Americans can get behind? No? Really?

Although the demonstration gradually dissipated, law enforcement remained.

Perhaps to keep an eye on Santa?

Fight Back Against Open Borders in Manhattan

G. Perry — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 04:13:46 +0000

Join other patriotic New Yorkers in opposing the demands of socialist radicals and open borders fanatics in Foley Square tomorrow afternoon. Here are the details-you’ll also find a press release at the bottom of the post.

What: Rally and March

When: Sunday Dec. 18th

1:30pm-5:00pm

Where: From Foley Square to Zuccotti Park

Immigrants are part of the 99% and on December 18th we will march with the Occupy Wall Street movement to demand immigrant justice including putting an end to wage theft, and stopping detentions and deportations of our beloved community members. As the Occupy Wall Street movement highlights corporate profiteering we would like to shed light on those that profit off our labor, exploit workers and refuse to pay dignified wages. We also march against the corporations who support racist anti-immigrant legislation that allows them to make billions of dollars by detaining immigrants in private detention centers and deporting nearly 400,000 people per year.

En el Dia Internacional del Inmigrante, UNETE a NICE Y MARCHA CON NOSOTROS A WALL STREET!!

Que: Mitin y marchaFecha y hora: Domingo 18 de Diciembre
1:30pm-5:00pm

Lugar: de Foley Square a Zuccotti Park

Los inmigrantes somos parte del 99% y el 18 de Diciembre marcharemos junto al movimiento Occupy Wall Street para exigir justicia para el inmigrante. Mientras el movimiento de Occupy Wall Street destaca las excesivas ganancias corporativas, nosotros quisiéramos enfatizar sobre aquellos que se enriquecen por medio del trabajo de los inmigrantes, explotan a los trabajadores y rehúsan pagar salarios dignos. También marcharemos en contra de las corporaciones que apoyan legislaciónes anti-inmigrantes generando billones de dólares recluyendo a inmigrantes en centros de detención privados y deportando a aproximadamente 400,000 personas al año. Queremos eliminar el robo de salarios y, frenar las detenciones, deportaciones y desintegración de nuestras familias!!

Occupy Legality

G. Perry — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 17:15:48 +0000

NY ICE is looking for willing patriots to counter a pro-illegal/OWS-affiliated march taking place this weekend. Our good friend Anthony Bialy was there the last time NY ICE stood up to the angry hordes; I hope to see you all there this time around. Here are the details:

WHAT: NY ICE Counter Protest of Illegal Alien Advocates

WHEN: THIS Sunday, December 18, 2011, at 1:30pm

WHERE: Foley Square in Manhattan.

(They plan to eventually march from Foley Square to Zuccotti Park) Bring copies of the NY ICE flyer, if you have it. Bring signs that are anti-amnesty for illegal aliens!!! Short and sweet, sound bite-driven signs written in big, bold capitalized letters work best. Bring a camera if you can. Bring prepared sound bites for the press, especially about how you will address being called part of the “1%.” (See earlier e-mail) Note: If travelling by subway, you can take to #4, 5, or 6 subway to the “Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall” stop and you will be at Foley Square.

Let’s have some fun!!!