Violent Attacks, Civil Rights Violations and Workplace Rights Abuses Against Day
Workers Rise from 2004 Through Summer 2007
Fact Sheet
Introduction
Recent years have been extraordinarily difficult ones for the national day laborer
community. Immigrant day laborers were increasingly targeted and victimized in
organized attacks jeopardizing their physical safety and their human rights. Day
laborers across the country experienced a sharp rise in violent attacks, civil rights
violations, and workplace rights abuses. This trend has continued, as day laborers have
been attacked not only as visible public scapegoats for hatred but also as vulnerable
targets for robberies and other exploitation.
In many municipalities day laborers were victims of robberies, violent assaults, and in
some cases murders. In others, day laborers experienced severe civil rights violations as
local police harassed, arrested, and imprisoned workers merely for seeking work in
public, in blatant disregard of their Constitutional rights. In most neighborhoods where
day laborers congregate to solicit employment throughout the country, they experienced
high rates of unpaid wage incidents, discrimination, and other labor law violations
committed by abusive employers. These abuses of labor rights are possible in part
because the basic rights of day laborers to be protected from violence and harassment are
ignored on a daily basis.
A significant number of these brutal attacks were racially motivated crimes and
mistreatment. Initially, reports of the criminal activity against day laborers appeared to
be random and sporadic, but as reports continued to surface, workers and advocates
began to detect an alarming trend of escalating violence.
Over years when commentators have observed a steady increase in immigrant bashing
and resurgent xenophobia, day laborers, because of their high visibility, are one of the
most vulnerable immigrant sectors. Some of the elements that have increased the anti
immigrant hysteria and anti-day laborer violence include, but are not limited to: (1)
Immigrants are associated with terrorism after September 11; (2) The rise of antiimmigrant hate groups such as Save Our State, Sachem Quality of Life Organization,
FAIR, PEOPLE, American Patrol, etc.; (3) The resurgence of mean spirited public policy
initiatives such as Proposition 200 in Arizona; (4) Local politicians running for office on
anti-day laborer agendas; (5) The association of day laborers with the deterioration of
living conditions in the neighborhoods where they live and solicit employment; (6) The
increasing pressure to deputize local police officers to enforce immigration laws; (7) The
media portrayal of immigrants as “invaders” and not as honest people who come to build
this country in order to feed themselves and their loved ones; (8) The exposure of day
laborers on public street corners, where they are visible and easy targets; and (9) Day
laborers’ lack of access to bank accounts, which forces them to carry all of their money
on their persons in cash form, leading robbers to seek them out.
Examples
The following is a list of some of the documented incidents of violence directed at day
laborers. These are only a few examples of the hostility directed at day laborers across the
country. It is by no means exhaustive, but it does reflect a growing trend of animosity
against innocent day workers.
Homicides against day laborers
Juan Mata and Manuel Esteban Méndez were killed in a suspected arson in Spring
Valley, New York when the abandoned building in which they were staying was burned
down on 2/27/05.1
Gaspar Beltrán Pérez, 50, was shot and killed in Highland, California by three men who
drove up in a car while he was waiting at a bus stop on 3/26/05. Police believed they
killed him only for sport.2
On September 7, 2005, Staten Island day laborer Leobardo Rojas was brutally stabbed in
the face and killed in Port Richmond, New York.3
Two men were stabbed to death and another was injured as they slept near a corner where
many day laborers seek work in Washington, D.C. in early August, 2005.4
Miguel Angel Alonzo, 23, was shot and killed in Oakland, California on 7/9/06 when he
was walking to get food from a taco truck parked near his residence. His two roommates,
also day laborers, aged 25 and 32, were also shot but survived. Their attacker approached
them and asked if they were members of a rival gang. They said that they were not, but
he opened fire anyway.5
Gordon Harris, 49, and Serafin Álvarez Negrete, 32, were killed 9 days apart in
Alexandria County, Virginia in September 2006. Harris had been a day laborer for two
decades, while Álvarez Negrete had arrived from México one year before. The killings
came as police noted an increase in street robberies of Latinos.6
Lieberman, Steve, “Day laborer seeks to withdraw guilty plea in fatal arson,” The Journal News
(Westchester County, New York) February 15, 2006. Lieberman, Steve, “Guilty plea in 2 fire deaths,” The
Journal News (Westchester County, New York) October 20, 2005. Spring Valley (news briefs), The
Journal News (Westchester County, New York) August 21, 2005.
2
Brooks, Richard, “Police Seek Leads In Death; San Bernardino: Last Month A Man Was Beaten And
Shot At A Bus Stop Near City Hall,” The Press Enterprise (Riverside, CA.) December 7, 2005.
3
Casimir, Leslie, “Blacks & Mexicans Scrap In S.I.,” Daily News (New York), November 6, 2005.
4
“Dispute Stalling Langley Center; Archdiocese's Plan Spurs Opposition.” The Washington Post. August
18, 2005. “2 die in Langley Park stabbings,” The Washington Times, August 11, 2005.
5
“Man slain on way to a taco truck,” Inside Bay Area (California) July 10, 2006. “Oakland man killed
during early morning walk to taco truck,” Inside Bay Area, (California) July 9, 2006.
6
Klein, Allison, “Washington Region's Homicides Fall Sharply; Local Decline Defies National Upswing,”
The Washington Post, January 1, 2007.
1
Oscar Cruz and a friend were beaten by four men with baseball bats in September, 2006
in Brentwood, New York. Cruz’s skull was fractured and his brain damaged, and he died
from these injuries in June, 2007.7
Samuel Hernández was shot to death on 10/14/2006 in Atlanta, Georgia as he walked
from his house to work early in the morning.8
Esmaraldo Salazar was killed in Brewster, New York in early May, 2007. After an
argument with men who had been drinking, he was drowned in the Croton River.9
Sebastian Bonilla, 38, was shot and killed on July 15, 2007 while walking home with his
cousin and nephew in Huntington Station, New York. A man ran by them and shot and
killed Bonilla. Bonilla had four children in Honduras.10
Homicides with Robberies
Two day laborers, including Francisco Pérez Malbanado, 33, were killed in Jacksonville,
Florida during an outbreak of 27 robberies and attacks, including home invasions,
targeting day laborers from September to December of 2004. Many of the attacks were
brutally violent with multiple victims, and many of the robberies occurred at people’s
homes. A November attack involved 4 armed men who entered a mobile home where 5
day laborers lived and opened fire on them, killing one and seriously injuring two
others.11
Eben Roblero and his father Arben were shot at during an attempted robbery while they
were fixing their old car in a parking lot near their residence on 12/9/05 in West Palm
Beach, FL. Eben, 21, was killed. The robbery was part of a rash of attacks on day
laborers by people who believe that they carry a lot of cash on them.12
“Sickening Acts,” New York Times, August 12, 2007. “An Abundance of Cruelties,” New York Times,
August 12, 2007.
8
“Day Laborer Killed on His Way to Work,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, October 18, 2006.
9
Jorge Fitz-Gibbon, “Cooperation from immigrant community helps solve cases,” The Journal News
(Westchester County, New York) May 14, 2007.
10
MacGowan, Carl, “Family, Cops Seek Clues in Day Laborer's Killing,” Newsday (New York), July 17,
2007.
11
Mangaliman, Jessie. “Day workers march for justice, safety,” San Jose Mercury News, January 28,
2005. “Ex-ATF inspector pleads guilty on false reports,” Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville), December
21, 2004. Mitchell, Tia, “Police arrest 3 robbery suspects; Men are accused of stealing from two Hispanic
day laborers; one suspect shot in another incident,” Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville), December 4, 2004.
Murphy, Bridget, “Police ID Slain Robbery Victim,” Florida Times-Union, November 18, 2004. “Armed
Robbers Targeting Hispanics; Death of Guatemalan Man Tuesday Latest in Series of Violent Crimes,”
Florida Times-Union, November 11, 2004.
12
Abbady, Tal, “Memorial Honors Shooting Victim; Family, Friends Grieve At Service For Man Killed
While Helping Dad,” Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida), December 20, 2005..
7
Emilio Ventura Mendez, 47, a day laborer known for his generosity to those around him
and his accessibility in helping other immigrants new to the area, was murdered by a
fellow day laborer who owed him money on 12/17/05 in Brewster, NY.13
Osmar Bernardo, 26, and Elias Eliceo, 19, were robbed and shot in West Palm Beach, FL
on 2/18/2006. Bernardo was killed, leaving behind 3 children in Guatemala who were
staying with their grandmother while Bernardo worked in the U.S. following Hurricane
Stan’s devastation. Day laborers have been targeted by thieves and robbers in the area
because they carry all of their cash with them and generally do not have bank accounts.14
In two separate incidents with similarly-described suspects, day laborers were picked up
by purported employers and were driven to remote areas, and were robbed and stabbed in
Las Vegas in September 2006. In each incident, there were 4 day laborers picked up and
all were robbed in remote or abandoned locations. In the first incident, three were
stabbed, one of whom died from the wounds. In the second, one man was stabbed, and
he survived.15
Victor Ramirez, 27, was gunned down in San Francisco on January 4, 2007 in broad
daylight as he walked in front of a church holding a funeral service. Police believe he
was targeted because he was an unarmed immigrant carrying his only assets on his person
in cash form.16
Juan Chales, 29, was killed on February 18, 2007 in Oakland, CA in a robbery by a youth
on a bicycle wielding a knife. The attack took place in part of the Fruitvale neighborhood
that had been designated as a sanctuary for day laborers, and occurred only five days after
Oakland police had reported to the City Council that robberies and attacks by youth
against day laborers had increased.17
Santos Salgado, 38, was shot and killed in Broward, Florida, on December 11, 2004, as
the first of at least four murders of day laborers who were targeted and killed for their
money. Another man with him, Oscar Mayorgos, was also shot. Salgado was robbed
and killed while he was visiting a struggling friend to whom he was planning to give
Corcoran, Terry and Marcela Rojas, “Brewster man admits killing fellow day laborer,” The Journal News
(Westerchester County, New York), June 22, 2006. Corcoran, Terry and Marcela Rojas, “Money called
motive in day laborer's slaying,” The Journal News (Westchester County, New York), February 24, 2006.
Corcoran, Terry and Marcela Rojas, “Brewster man held in slaying,” The Journal News (Westchester
County, New York), February 23, 2006.
14
Burdi, Jerome, “Botched Robbery Ends in Slaying,” Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida), February
19, 2006.
15
Levitan, Corey, “Labor Pains,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, May 7, 2007. Kihara, David, “Attacks target
day laborers,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, September 22, 2006. Kihara, David, “Day laborer stabbed to
death, two others wounded in morning robbery after false pick up,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, September
20, 2006. Kihara, David, “Four arrested in crime spree,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, September 30, 2006.
16
Johnson, Chip, “After Tragic Death, a Kindness; Brother of immigrant day laborer shot on Richmond
street sees best, worst of America,” The San Francisco Chronicle, January 30, 2007.
17
Chakko Kuruvila, Matthai, “Police ID day laborer killed in Fruitvale.” The San Francisco Chronicle,
February 20, 2007. Bulwa, Demian, “Oakland; Day laborer killed in job-seekers' sanctuary; He may have
been targeted as worker carrying lots of cash,” The San Francisco Chronicle, February 19, 2007.
13
money for holiday gifts. Police noted that there had been many attacks on day laborers in
Broward as well as Palm Beach County.18
Robberies
Several day laborers were beaten and robbed after being picked up for work in Atlanta in
2003.19
A series of five armed robberies targeting day laborers took place in Placentia, California
in May 2004.
On at least three occasions in late 2003 and early 2004, high school students in Canton,
Georgia offered day laborers work, kidnapped them, cruelly beat them, and robbed them
of their salaries. Elias Tiu was beaten with a baseball bat and robbed in November 2003.
Carlos Pérez, 22, was beaten with a metal pipe and robbed on February 2, 2004.
Domingo López Vargas, 54, was beaten with 3-foot metal fence posts and then robbed of
his cash and necklace on February 3, 2004. He missed at least 15 weeks of work with a
broken arm. After the arrests of students, who had bragged about the beatings at school,
for these beatings, tips poured in regarding other attacks on Latinos in the area.
Commenting to the press, one of the victims said: “No podemos vivir amenazados.”
(“We cannot live feeling threatened.”) Five of the seven high school students charged
later pleaded guilty and were sentenced for the kidnappings, robberies, and assaults. Two
cases, one of them against the wealthy grandson the founders of the county’s Republican
Party, were still pending as of mid-2005. Hate crime charges were sought but not
pursued.20
A day laborer was robbed, prompting police to warn the day laborers that they were
targets for future attacks. This took place in March 2004 in Yonkers, New York.
Two day laborers were abducted and robbed in Hoover, Alabama in June 2004.
Alanez, Tonya, “Murder Trial Puts Attention on Thefts; Immigrant Laborers Are Crime Targets More
Often, Officials Say,” Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale), August 9, 2007.
19
Feagans, Brian, “Duluth hall hailed a beacon for day laborers may close,” The Atlanta JournalConstitution, September 29, 2006. “Labor hall is facing shutdown,” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
September 29, 2006. “Duluth hall hailed a beacon for day laborers may close Duluth's model labor hall,”
Cox News Service, September 28, 2006.
20
Plummer, Don, & Doug Payne, “A case of 'vulnerability'?; Attacks on Hispanics may transcend money,”
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, February 14, 2004. Plummer, Don, “Hispanic Day Laborer Third to Report
Assault,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, February 26, 2004. Plummer, Don, “Hate Crime Charges Urged
for Teens,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, February 25, 2004. Plummer, Don & Doug Payne, “5 Ordinary
Teenagers, 2 Violent Robberies,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 7, 2004. Williams, Clint, “Teen
ordered to boot camp; Cherokee day laborers targeted,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 21, 2005.
Payne, Doug, “Three Students Guilty in Laborer Attacks,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, November 25,
2004. Payne, Doug, “2004: Looking Back on the Top Stories in Cherokee County,” Atlanta JournalConstitution, December 30, 2004. Niesse, Mark, “Attacks on Immigrants Stun A Small Town in Georgia;
Hispanic Laborers Are Allegedly Targeted by White Youths,” Washington Post, May 16, 2004. Barry,
Ellen & Rennie Sloan, “Case Hints at Split Between Longtimers, Latinos ; In a rural county coping with
big changes, five high school students are suspected of attacking immigrant workers,” Los Angeles Times,
March 22, 2004.
18
Workers in San Diego, California were robbed while waiting for work on the corner.
Six robberies have occurred in the first two weeks of 2005 in Bryan, Texas, with one
incident resulting in a shooting.
In late May and early June, 2005, about a dozen people, mostly day laborers, told a
Latino community store owner in Morristown, New Jersey that they had been assaulted
and robbed while walking home. Three of them had filed police reports.21
On February 4, 2006, a 24-year-old day laborer was kidnapped from the Home Depot and
robbed in Vallejo, California by men who promised him work.22
On April 18 and 22, 2006, in San Rafael and Novato, CA, at least three day laborers in at
least two separate incidents were picked up by men under the guise of offering
employment and were then robbed at knifepoint.23
In July 2006, a police officer in Coconut Creek, Florida robbed 4 day laborers in separate
incidents in which he made phony traffic stops, asked for their wallets to check their
licenses, and then stole their cash. The officer pleaded guilty but was not sentenced to
prison.24
At least twice in 2006, a group of three people picked up day laborers in Jupiter, FL,
promised them work, and then robbed them at gunpoint. At least one of the groups of
day laborers consisted of five men, who were robbed of $2600 and their cell phones.
Police suspected that the trio had robbed as many as 50 day laborers, the majority of
whom had not come forward for fear of deportation. One of the three robbers said that
they had completed similar robberies 4 to 5 times a day for several weeks. They were
apprehended when a day laborer whom they had robbed previously saw the most recent
group of day laborers get into their vehicle. After he tried to warn them but was too late,
he wrote down the robbers’ license plate and informed the police.25
Mulero, Eugene, “Guadalupe Benitez, co-owner of a restaurant on Lafayette Ave,” Daily Record
(Morristown, New Jersey), June 7, 2005.
22
“Local News Briefs - February 5, 2006,” Vallejo Times-Herald (California), February 5, 2006.
23
“Cops seek suspects in laborer robberies,” Marin Independent Journal (California) April 27, 2006.
24
Santiago, Roberto, “No jail for cop in robbery of illegals: A Coconut Creek police officer who robbed
undocumented immigrants during bogus traffic stops will plead guilty to a felony, but will not face prison,”
The Miami Herald, August 23, 2006.
25
Duret, Daphne, “Woman Gets 5 Years for Role in Robbing Guatemalans,” Palm Beach Post (Florida),
August 17, 2006. Taylor, Jill, “Brothers Get Prison for Robbing Laborers,” Palm Beach Post (Florida),
December 9, 2005. Taylor, Jill and Pamela Pérez, “5 Day Laborers Robbed, Dropped off in Martin,” Palm
Beach Post (Florida) September 24, 2005. Margasak, Gabriel, “Job Site Actually a Crime Scene; Three
Arrested in Robberies of Day Laborers,” Sun-Sentinel: Palm Beach Edition (Fort Lauderdale, FL),
September 24, 2005.
21
Day laborers are often robbed in Stockton, CA, and the Mayor and Police Chief initiated
a program to encourage them to report the crimes to the police.26
Oakland, California police issued a report in February 2007 that discussed the increase in
“amigo checking,” a series of robberies targeting undocumented Latinos, especially day
laborers, who carry their cash with them because they lack access to bank accounts.27
Day laborers in Roswell, Georgia have been robbed in four separate incidents between
February 10 and May 19, 2007. Day laborers have been targeted because they are paid in
cash, and have been targeted on Fridays and weekends, when people are more likely to
have cash on hand.28
A day laborer was struck from behind with a glass bottle, fell, and was robbed of his cash
on June 7, 2007 in Mountain View, California. He was treated at the hospital for a 3-inch
laceration.29
Two men and one woman were arrested and charged with multiple counts of kidnapping
for robbery, robbery/assault with a deadly weapon and false imprisonment in connection
with a series of about 30 assaults on day laborers across San Diego County, California
during the summer of 2007. They would offer day laborers work, then drive them to
isolated areas and rob them at knifepoint. Several of the incidents occurred on June 26,
2007, when the group offered work to two men and then robbed them of $700, before
attempting a second robbery of three other men at a different hiring corner. The second
group of men resisted and escaped, but only after one was stabbed, suffering cuts to his
arms and face.30 The robberies included attacks in Encinitas on July 22, July 28, August 4
and August 12, and two robberies on August 9 in Vista.31
New Orleans police said in August 2007 that they had observed a large number of armed
robberies of day laborers since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.32
Day laborers who were assaulted (but not killed, and not robbed)
Rodriguez, Jennie, “Day laborers still adjusting to new pickup location,” The Record (Stockton,
California) April 29, 2007.
27
Heredia, Christopher, “Thieves Preying on Undocumented Immigrants, Police Say,” The San Francisco
Chronicle, February 13, 2007.
28
Cochran, Tiffany, “Day Laborer Attackers Sought,” 11 Alive News, NBC affiliate, June 5, 2007,
http://www.11alive.com/news/article_news.aspx?storyid=98044&provider=top.
29
“Day Laborer Assaulted with Bottle, Robbed,” Channel 10 News, San Diego, June 8, 2007,
http://www.10news.com/news/13470054/detail.html.
30
“Woman, 2 Men Arrested in Day Laborer Attacks,” NBC San Diego, posted August 14, 2007, updated
August 15, 2007, http://www.nbcsandiego.com/mostpopular/13894189/detail.html. “Police - Day Laborers
Robbed at Knifepoint,” NBC San Diego, posted June 26, 2007,
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/13575871/detail.html. “Arrests Made in Connection with Day Laborer
Assaults,” Channel 10 News, August 15, 2007, http://www.10news.com/news/13894491/detail.html.
31
Alleged Ringleader in Day Laborer Robberies Faces Judge,” Channel 10 News, August 16, 2007,
http://www.10news.com/news/13911190/detail.html.
32
Page, Clarence, “Ignoring New Orleans' Poor -- Again; Don't Let Local Officials off Hook after Katrina,”
Chicago Tribune, August 29, 2007. Page, Clarence, “Local Leaders Share Blame;
Katrina Two Years Later,” Baltimore Sun, August 31, 2007.
26
In 2000, two day laborers were savagely beaten in racially motivated attacks by white
supremacists in Farmingville, New York.33 The crimes, and the resulting local backlash
against immigrant workers, were the subject of the documentary “Farmingville.” In
2003, the violence continued when a day laborer’s home was firebombed. In July 2004,
the escalation of aggression continued when a man posing as a contractor committed
armed robberies after offering day laborers employment.
A day laborer was shot in the head and critically wounded by police in a case of mistaken
identity in Broward County, Florida. The day laborer had just arrived from Chiapas,
Mexico and completed his first day working on a nearby construction site.
Jose Guadalupe, 35, was assaulted and hospitalized in 2004 in Port Richmond, NY.34
On June 12, 2005, a 19-year-old day laborer in Morristown, NJ was punched in the face
by four men and treated at the hospital for minor injuries.35
In September 2006, Artem Soloviev, 23, and Dennis Kaptilniy, 18, assaulted several day
laborers at a hiring site in Laguna Beach, CA. They tried to hire one man, who rejected
their offered terms, and then attacked him and his friend. They later returned, driving
their truck through the parking lot near the center, causing people to have to jump out of
their way to avoid being hit, and striking two other day laborers along with metal lunch
tables and a fence.36
On November 9, 2006, Jorge Ramos, a Miami-Dade developer who was frustrated with
day laborers who had waited for work near his property for years, picked up a metal pipe
and beat Carlos Cruz Gallegos, 50, a day laborer who did not leave the corner when
Ramos ordered him to. Ramos claimed that the presence of day laborers near his
property hurt his marketing efforts. Police had arrested some workers in the preceding
weeks for loitering.37
Estanislao Gonzales and Roberto Peña were assaulted by John Matthew Monti, a member
of Save Our State, which is affiliated with the Minuteman Project, and of the San Diego
Minutemen, on November 18, 2006 in Rancho Peñasquitos, CA. Monti photographed the
day laborers while they waited for work, and then called the workers at a site “dirty
Mexicans” and punched Gonzales, who is disabled and was trying to walk away from
Mead, Julia C., “Anti-Immigrant Group Active on East End,” The New York Times, April 23, 2006.
Jones, Bart, “Immigration project to target East End,” Newsday (New York) March 1, 2006. “Women of
Color gather for support,” The Journal News (Westchester County, New York), June 23, 2005.
34
Casimir, Leslie, “BLACKS & MEXICANS SCRAP IN S.I.,” Daily News (New York), November 6,
2005.
35
Chatham Twp. Daily Record (Morristown, New Jersey), June 13, 2005.
36
City News Service September 20, 2006 Wednesday 1:36 PM PST. City News Service (Laguna Beach,
California), (September 20, 2006).
37
Fordyce, Kathleen, “Growing dispute spurs fight, arrest: An escalating dispute between a developer and
day laborers erupted into a fight and ended with the developer being arrested on assault charges,” The
Miami Herald, November 12, 2006.
33
Monti. When Peña tried to help his injured friend, Monti assaulted him as well. Monti
then filed a false police report claiming he had been robbed by 6 to 8 day laborers.38
On January 29, 2007 in Rancho Peñasquitos, CA, vandals attacked a camp of day
laborers during the day while most were out working, slashing their clothes and boots and
damaging their belongings, stringing their slashed clothing from trees. The men moved
their camp to a new location, and some considered returning to Mexico out of fear.
Suspects included a local Minuteman organization.39
Homeless day laborer John D’Amico was assaulted in Daytona Beach, Florida in March,
2007 by three youths, ages 17, 10, and 10, who first punched him and then struck him
with stones and a cinderblock.40 He lost some of his hearing, and his vision has been
impaired since the youths struck him in the eye. He had worked as a janitor before three
knee operations forced him out of a job and into debt.41
A Hofstra study found that one-fourth of day laborers said they had been physically
assaulted at least once while looking for work or on the job, which is 109 times as often
as the general population in the Northeast.42
A day laborer in Seattle was threatened with a shovel on June 20, 2007 by a former
employer who had refused to pay him for his work. The employer arrived at a hiring site
to look for workers, and the laborer warned other workers about the past wage theft. The
employer got angry and threatened him with a shovel, when the worker kicked him in the
groin and pulled out a knife. The police arrested the employer on suspicion of assault.43
Artemio Garcia, a day laborer seeking work in Seaside, California, was picked up on the
morning of August 10, 2007 and offered a job for the day. Glenn Blevins, 27, of
Monterey allegedly drove Garcia to an abandoned military building, told him to pick up
some garbage, knocked him to the ground, and kicked and punched him repeatedly.
“Man tied to Minutemen charged with assaulting 2,” The San Diego Union-Tribune, March 27, 2007,
Article link available at http://www.nbcsandiego.com/ news/11391280/detail.html
(www.NBCSandiego.com) (last visited March 29, 2007).
39
Berestein, Leslie, “Eviction just short-term fix; Ousted migrant workers find new places to camp,” The
San Diego Union-Tribune, February 17, 2007. Berestein, Leslie, “Ousting of migrants is short-term fix;
Laborers find other places to camp,” The San Diego Union-Tribune, February 17, 2007. Sifuentes,
Edward, “Police Investigate Alleged Vandalism at Migrant Camps,” North County Times (California),
January 29, 2007. http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/01/30/news/top_stories/1_05_311_29_07.txt (last
visited June 6, 2007).
40
“Attacks on homeless spike hate-crime numbers,” Grand Rapid Press (Michigan), April 22, 2007.
“Unprovoked beatings of the homeless soaring around U.S.,” Sentinel & Enterprise (Fitchburg,
Massachusetts), April 9, 2007. Reed, Kristen, “Teen Calls Beating of Transient ‘Wrong’,” Orlando
Sentinel, August 23, 2007.
41
“John D’Amico: Homelessness Comes Suddenly,” Orlando Sentinel, July 29, 2007.
42
Jones, Bart, “Study: Job sites curb crime; Communities that offer solutions have fewer hate attacks and
lessen tensions, says report by Hofstra,” Newsday (New York) March 10, 2006.
43
“Would-be employer arrested, accused of attacking day laborer,” Seattle Times, June 20, 2007,
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003755355_webfight20m.html.
38
Garcia was able to escape and seek medical treatment for his injuries. Blevins was
arrested for kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon.44
The town council of Loxahatchee Groves, Florida held a public workshop on August 28,
2007 to discuss the problem of violence against day laborers working in nursery and
agricultural jobs.45 Day laborers there are often targeted in robberies.46
Killed on the job
Juan Amendano, 30, was killed in a construction accident while waterproofing the
foundation of a school in Brooklyn, NY on 5/4/07. An 8-foot trench collapsed, trapping
him under hundreds of cubic feet of dirt and debris.47
Luis De León was killed in December 2004 in Fort Myers, FL in a lawn care accident.
He was riding on a trailer, when the driver of the vehicle towing it accelerated, throwing
him off, after which he was crushed by the trailer.48
A day laborer was killed falling from scaffolding on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in
2002. The contractor was acquitted even though he neglected required safety
precautions.49
A day laborer was killed in a collapsed construction trench in Bessemer, AL in 2002,
which led to $100,000 in federal fines.50
Two day laborers were killed in a car accident while being driven to work in an
overloaded van in Montville, NJ on 11/4/05. They were riding in the back when the van
overturned, and they were crushed by wood that fell on top of them. The other five
people riding with them, four of whom may have also been day laborers, survived with
minor injuries. Investigators believed that overloading was a factor that caused the
accident.51
“Marina: Hate Crime Investigation in Day Laborer Beating,” Bay City News Wire, August 14, 2007,
http://cbs5.com/localwire/localfsnews/bcn/2007/08/14/n/HeadlineNews/HATECRIME/resources_bcn_html.
45
“Violence against Migrants on Council's Agenda,” Sun-Sentinel, August 28, 2007.
46
Hood, Joel, “Groves Weighs How to Help Migrant Workers; Day Laborers Often Become Target of
Thieves,” Sun-Sentinel, August 29. 2007.
47
Ramírez, Anthony and Ann Farmer. “Construction Accident Kills Laborer at School,” The New York
Times, May 5, 2007.
48
“Day laborer's family files wrongful death suit,” The News-Press (Fort Myers, Florida), December 12,
2006.
49
Solomont, Elizabeth, “Construction Worker Falling Deaths Rise,” The New York Sun, November 2, 2006.
50
Irvin, David, “Course teaches trench safety,” The Montgomery Advertiser (Alabama), May 4, 2006
Thursday 01 Edition.
51
Crouse, Douglas, “Two day laborers killed after van flips on I-287,” Herald News (Passaic County, NJ),
November 5, 2005. Crouse, Douglas, “Overloaded vehicle rolls, killing two,” The Record (Bergen County,
NJ), November 5, 2005.
44
Day laborers have been killed in accidents to which they were vulnerable because of
their status or job
Tulio Contreras, 54, was killed, and two other day laborers were injured, when a van
plowed into them while they were waiting for work outside a Home Depot in Cutler Bay,
FL on 8/16/06.52
Teodoro Martinez, 58, was killed on 3/3/07 in Fairview, NJ when he was struck by a car
while crossing the street on his way to work in the morning.53
Angel Caguana, 16, was killed in a train accident while taking a short-cut home in Spring
Valley, NY on 3/15/07. Eleven other people have been killed by trains in the same area
since 1985.54
Jose Fernando Pedraza, 57, a beloved and respected leader among local day laborers, was
killed on May 5, 2007 in Rancho Cucamonga, California by an SUV that drove into a
crowd of 20 or more people holding a counter-protest against anti-immigrant protesters.
The SUV also struck 3 other men, who survived. The SUV drove into the crowd after it
collided with a car in the intersection of Arrow and Grove Streets, where day laborers
have long gathered to seek work, even since a day labor center operated there by a nonprofit organization closed in June of 2006.55
Police and local government harassment of day laborers
In November, local police in Redondo Beach, California initiated a massive crackdown
against day laborers on two corners where workers congregate to seek work. Over 60
day laborers were arrested in sting operations where police dressed as employers and
offered jobs to the workers. When the workers accepted the offers, they were arrested
and in some cases jailed for violations of a municipal law making it a crime to seek work
on public sidewalks. After a large protest and initiation of a federal lawsuit by
NDLON, the city was enjoined from making further arrests when a federal judge noted
that there were “serious questions” about the Constitutionality of the municipal
ordinance.
“Van goes off road, kills 1 day laborer, injures 2 others: A van veered off the road and hit a group of day
laborers, killing one,” The Miami Herald, August 16, 2006.
53
Groves, Bob, “Day laborer struck and killed by truck,” The Record (Bergen County, NJ), March 4, 2007.
54
Clarke, Suzan, “Spring Valley residents seek aid to return dead teen's body to Ecuador,” The Journal
News (Westchester County, New York), March 21, 2007.
55
Leung, Wendy, “Labor issue ignites sparks at meeting,” Inland Valley Daily Bulletin (Ontario, CA), May
18, 2007. Leung, Wendy, “Meeting Heated on Laborer Issue,” San Bernardino County Sun
(California), May 17, 2007. Leung, Wendy, “Remembering a Lost Friend,” Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
(Ontario, CA), May 9, 2007. McNary, Sharon, “Accident: Man Killed Near Pickup Site is Honored; Latino
Group Seeks Center Named After Crash Victim; Day Laborers: About 75 People Gather for a Memorial.
Cities Struggle with the Right Balance,” The Press Enterprise (Riverside, CA), May 9, 2007. McNary,
Sharon, “Day Laborers Mourn Victim of Car Accident,” The Press Enterprise (Riverside, CA), May 8,
2007.
52
In October, 2004, 24 day laborers were arrested in Prince William County, Virginia on
charges of misdemeanor loitering. Eleven of the arrested workers were turned over to
federal immigration authorities for deportation proceedings.
Faced with increased tensions between local residents and day laborers, the Suffolk
County, New Jersey County Executive proposed a plan to “deputize” police into
immigration agents.
In the same city that witnessed kidnappings and robbery of day laborers, Hoover,
Alabama’s mayor proposed the creation of a local Homeland Security Department to
deport immigrants.
Day laborers in Las Vegas, Nevada and Encinitas, California are denied services in local
business establishments because of their ethnicity and physical appearance.
The Mayor of Freehold, New Jersey gave an executive order to bar day laborers out of
the muster zone where they congregate to solicit employment. In addition, the mayor
ordered enforcement of the housing code resulting in the evictions of several day laborer
families during early morning hours.
Organizers from the Workplace Project in Nassau County, New York have compiled a
list of 130 contractors known to have committed workplace abuses such as non payment
of wages.
After the town of Mamaroneck, New York closed its day laborer hiring center claiming
there were too many workers gathering there, the town police began to harass the workers
and force them to move locations while waiting for work. It took a lawsuit and federal
judge’s court order in 2007 to convince the town to stop its police from harassing
workers.56
Undercover police harassed and arrested five workers who solicit employment in front of
a local Home Depot Store in Cicero, Illinois on January 21, 2005
Fourteen day laborers were arrested for violating a local anti day laborer solicitation
ordinance in San Mateo, California on January 21st, 2005.57
Suffolk County, New York evicted up to 104 day laborers from overcrowded houses in
Farmingville, New York, making some of the men homeless.58
After a Stockton, California decision to relocate day laborers to a new hiring site, police
started ticketing day laborers who continued to seek work at the street corner where
“N.Y. Judge Signs Day Labor Agreement,” Associated Press, June 27, 2007.
Mangaliman, Jessie, “Day workers march for justice, safety,” San Jose Mercury News, January 28, 2005.
58
Amon, Michael and Chau Lam, “Tax Showdown: Hardball in Albany,” Newsday (New York), June 23,
2007.
56
57
employers were accustomed to hiring workers. In April 2007, at least 13 day laborers
were ticketed.59
Police in Suffolk County, New York, which includes Farmingville, increased their arrests
Latinos near day laborer hiring sites after the legislature asked them to increase
enforcement of laws against unlicensed drivers. A newspaper audit of police records
found that three-fourths of arrests, most of which were for lacking identification papers or
for driving without a license, were of Latinos.60
Day laborers in West Palm Beach, Florida, are about to be displaced by newly planned
development near the hiring corner. They may be forced to spread throughout the city to
look for work, since there is no hiring center yet.61
As of July, 2007, Cherokee County, Georgia, was considering an anti-loitering ordinance
that would ban day laborers from seeking work. Gwinnett County, Georgia, already has
an ordinance that requires contractors to ensure that they do not hire any undocumented
workers on public works projects. The state of Georgia also recently passed Senate Bill
529, which requires police, state agencies, and employers to verify people’s immigration
status.62
Residents of Southampton, New York sued the city to prevent the opening of a day
laborer center in a public park, saying “we just don't want anything in our front yard.” A
judge granted a temporary restraining order to delay the opening of the center.63
Herndon, Virginia started accepting applications in early 2007 from groups seeking to
replace the current operators of its day labor center. The current operator requests
workers’ names, addresses, and phone numbers, but the town is seeking a new operator
that would verify workers’ immigration status.64 The town also has an anti-solicitation
ordinance that would prohibit workers from seeking employment if they are not allowed
to do so through the hiring center. Fairfax County, Virginia, withdrew its $175,000
portion of the center’s funding after Herndon officials criticized the county’s continued
funding of the center.65 On August 15, 2007, the Town Council voted formally, 6 to 1, to
Rodríguez, Jennie, “Day Laborers Still Adjusting to New Pickup Location,” The Record (Stockton,
California), April 29, 2007.
60
Lam, Chau, “Traffic Stops Arrest Fears of Profiling; More Hispanic Drivers Nabbed; Newsday Review
Finds that Most Stops were Made in Heavily Hispanic Neighborhoods,” Newsday (New York), May 22,
2007.
61
Burdi, Jerome, “West Palm Beach Day Laborers Need a Place to Go, City and Police Say,” South
Florida Sun-Journal, July 2, 2007.
62
Pickel, Mary Lou, “Ex-Prosecutor to Lead Latino Community's Legal Rights Group,” Atlanta JournalConstitution, July 11, 2007.
63
MacGowan, Carl, “Decision on Village Hiring Site Expected,” Newsday (New York), July 12, 2007.
64
Gowen, Annie, “Two Apply to Operate Herndon Day-Labor Site; Town Officials Want New Manager to
Check Legal Status of Laborers,” Washington Post, July 12, 2007. Londono, Ernesto and Karin Brulliard,
“Liberal Suburbs Don't Avoid Heated Debates on Immigration,” Washington Post, August 18, 2007.
65
Somashekhar, Sandhya and Nick Miroff, “Herndon Wrestles with Where Day Laborers Will Go,”
Washington Post, August 17, 2007. Somashekhar, Sandhya, “Day-Labor Center Operator's Contract
Canceled,” Washington Post, August 8, 2007.
59
find an operator to verify documentation at the center, allowing the current operator to
continue running the center temporarily instead of closing the center altogether.66
Officials from neighboring Loudon County announced that if Herndon’s center closed,
they would consider passing an anti-solicitation ordinance and opening a day labor center
in order to prevent day laborers leaving Herndon from seeking work there. They said that
they would open a day labor center only in order to increase the chances that their antiday laborer ordinance would not be struck down as unconstitutional.67 They also said
that the day laborers in Herndon who stand on the Loudon County side of the center,
which is split between the two counties, are in violation of Loudon County zoning.68
Cobb County, Georgia, commissioners unanimously approved on July 24, 2007 an
ordinance that limits the number of adults who could live in a house. It requires at least
390 square feet of building floor space per adult and per car that can be parked within
visibility from the road, and was proposed in response to complaints about a Mexican
woman whose husband, two children, father, two brothers, sister-in-law, and two
nephews live with her. Residents who spoke at the meeting spoke against undocumented
immigrants. The ordinance also requires a $25 permit in order for more than six adults to
live in the same house, even if the house is large enough to meet the square-footage
requirement. Cherokee County, Georgia, has a similar ordinance, and Gwinnett County,
Georgia has an ordinance requiring public contractors to verify the immigration status of
all employees. Cobb County also planned to enact another ordinance that would have
banned day laborers from soliciting work in public, modeled after a similar ordinance in
Marietta, Georgia.69 In Marietta, police, sometimes pretending to be painters or other
prospective employers, have issue8 tickets to 80 day laborers over the last four years, and
arrest warrants have since been issued for 12 of them for failing to appear in court. It is
against the law in Marietta to solicit temporary employment on streets, sidewalks, public
parking lots, public property, or public rights of way.70 However, Cobb revised its
proposed anti-solicitation ordinance due to concerns that it would be struck down as
Somashekhar, Sandhya, “Council Postpones Vote on Day-Labor Center,” Washington Post, August 15,
2007. Somashekhar, Sandhya, “Herndon to Keep Day-Labor Center; Council Wants New Manager,”
Washington Post, August 16, 2007. Somashekhar, Sandhya, “Council Member Tirrell Discloses Illness,”
Washington Post, August 18, 2007.
67
Somashekhar, Sandhya, “Loudoun Awaits Fate of Herndon Center; County Might Open Facility if Town
Bans Illegal Immigrants From Seeking Work,” Washington Post, August 4, 2007. “Herndon, Va.'s
Labors,” New York Times, August 18, 2007.
68
Scheel, Eugene, “In Herndon, a Boundary Dispute Along Familiar Lines,” Washington Post, August 19,
2007.
69
Opdyke, Tom, “Cobb Toughens Law on Occupants in One Home,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July
25, 2007. Redmon, Jeremy, “Cobb Proposal Bans Overcrowded Homes,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
July 24, 2007. King, Mike, “Day Labor Ills Prove a Failed Job for Local Officials,” Atlanta JournalConstitution, August 16, 2007.
70
Redmon, Jeremy, “Laborers Cross Marietta Border for Rides; Absence of a Law against Worker
Gatherings in Cobb County Leaves the City a No-Hire Island,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 15,
2007. Hendrick, Bill, “Marietta Signs on to Verifying New Employees; Federal Program: Work Eligibility
Checked through U.S. Homeland Security Database Link,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 2,
2007.
66
unconstitutional.71 Instead, on August 14, 2007, the County Commission considered an
ordinance that would fine employers who pick up workers on four-lane roads within 150
feet of a traffic signal, and decided to drop it due to the same concerns of
unconstitutionality.72 The fines would have been as high as $1,000.73
The International Association of Chiefs of Police started distributing in July 2007 a guide
for local police work on immigration-related issues. The report does not go quite far
enough to endorse local police enforcement of immigration law, but advocates a more
consistent level of involvement in immigration-related issues, including disputes over day
laborer hiring sites.74
In the last ten years, nearly 50 California municipalities have passed ordinances
prohibiting day laborers from soliciting work in public streets or sidewalks.75
Harassment of day laborers by Minutemen or related organizations
Protesters yelled at day laborers in San Jose, California, who were waiting for work on a
street corner in October 2004.76
Day laborers in Houston decided to close their August 2005 meeting to the media out of
fear of Minutemen harassment. Workers pointed out that fewer contractors and residents
were hiring day laborers from the corners, and argued that this was due to fear of
Minutemen. The Texas Minuteman Civil Defense Corps announced it will begin
“Operation Spotlight” in Houston, through which they plan to observe day laborers and
write down contractors’ license plate numbers.77 The Minutemen proceeded to
photograph and videotape day laborer hiring sites.78
Members of the Minuteman Project marched up to the day laborer center in Phoenix,
Arizona with bullhorns and cameras and drove away many day laborers who were
waiting for work in late November or early December, 2005. They photographed day
Hendrick, Bill, “Cobb Will Drop Plans to Crack Down on Day Laborers,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
August 13, 2007. Pickel, Mary Lou and Tom Opdyke, “Hispanic Official Calls Cobb Coalition Dishonest,
Resigns,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 4, 2007.
72
Opdyke, Tom, “Cobb Proposal to Limit Day Laborer Pickup Sites,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
August 10, 2007. Hendrick, Bill, “Cobb County Drops Proposal to Limit Hiring of Day Laborers,” Atlanta
Journal-Constitution, August 14, 2007.
73
Hendrick, Bill, “Hispanics Commend Cobb's 'Courage'; Proposal to Restrict Day Laborers Halted, But
All Aren't Pleased Because Plan May Be Revisited Once Courts Rule,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
August 15, 2007.
74
Johnson, Kevin, “Report for Local Police Explains Immigration Issues; Chief Says Publication Aims to
Augment 'Very Little' Help from Feds,” USA Today, July 25, 2007.
75
“The Reality of Day Labor,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 1, 2007.
76
Mangaliman, Jessie, “Day Workers March for Justice, Safety,” San Jose Mercury News, January 28,
2005.
77
Hegstrom, Edward, “Minutemen Influence Claimed; Organizers Close a Meeting to the Media because
the Day Laborers are said to be Fearful,” The Houston Chronicle, August 28, 2005.
78
Plocek, Keith, “At the Ready: The Minutemen have come to Texas,” Houston Press, August 18, 2005.
Plocek, Keith, “Bubba Patrol: The Minutemen Are Ready to Patrol Texas’ Border. Are We Ready for
Them?,” Dallas Observer, August 18, 2005.
71
laborers and sent their pictures to the IRS and ICE and posted them on the internet as part
of their Operation Spotlight.79
Minutemen began in early February 2006 to photograph and videotape day laborers and
their employers at the first two hiring sites in Maryland. They send the information to
federal enforcement agencies. CASA Maryland responded by picketing at the homes of
Minutemen who were harassing the day laborers.80 The Maryland branch of the
Minuteman Project announced its intention to patrol all three day laborer centers in
Montgomery County, Maryland after the Gaithersburg center was established in May
2006.81
Minutemen photographed workers and employers at day laborer hiring sites in Seattle,
Washington on April 1, 2006, and posted their pictures on the internet.82
Members of the Minutemen often harass day laborers in Phoenix, Arizona. One of them,
named Tammy, assaulted a legal observer there.83
Members of the Minuteman Project, Vista Citizens Brigade, Encinitas Citizen Brigade
and other related organizations protested at about a half-dozen day laborer hiring sites on
July 22, 2006, including in Vista, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside and Ramona,
California.84
A day laborer hiring corner in Rancho Cucamonga, California was beset by protestors
from the Minuteman Project on August 5, 2006. The two sides exchanged chants and
songs as Minutemen disrupted the hiring process.85
Three men with badges and guns approached day laborers waiting for work in De Vargas
Park, Santa Fe, New Mexico in August, 2006 and used profanity while they demanded
the laborers’ documents. Multiple law enforcement agencies and ICE all said the men
were not affiliated with them in any way. The men work dark suits instead of ICE
McCarthy, Terry, “Stalking the Day Laborers; Border-patrolling Minutemen Turn Inland in their Fight
Against Illegal Immigrants. What's the Real Goal?,” Time, December 5, 2005.
80
Summers, Keyonna, “Counties Defend CASA Pickets; Group Targets Minutemen,” Washington Times,
April 17, 2006. Trejos, Nancy, “Minutemen Protest at Md. Day-Labor Centers,” Washington Post,
February 26, 2006. Summers, Keyonna, “Immigrant group to picket watchdogs; CASA responds to
'intimidation',” Washington Times, February 25, 2006.
81
Trejos, Nancy, “Gaithersburg Undeterred By Herndon Controversy,” Washington Post, May 16, 2006.
Trejos, Nancy, “Officials Support Laborer Center; Controversy Shifts To Gaithersburg,” Washington Post,
May 16, 2006.
82
“Group Urges Show of Support for Laborers,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, April 1, 2006.
83
“Creating the Minutemen: A Small Extremist Group’s Campaign Fueled by Misinformation,” ACLU of
Arizona, ACLU of New Mexico, ACLU of Texas, http://www.ilw.com/articles/2006,0619-ybarra.pdf.
84
Jones, J. Harry, “Day-laborer protesters, backers keep wary eye,” The San Diego Union-Tribune
(California), July 23, 2006.
85
Newell, Jason, “Face-off over illegal immigration,” San Bernardino County Sun (California), August 5,
2006.
79
uniforms, drove an unmarked white Suburban and refused identify themselves. When
they ordered workers into their van, several day laborers fled on foot.86
A biker group against undocumented immigrants engaged in surveillance of a day laborer
hiring site in Cave Creek, Arizona on December 2, 2006, arguing that day laborer centers
encourage undocumented immigration.87
George Taplin, founder of the Herndon Minutemen of Herndon, Virginia, leads groups of
Minutemen to enter day laborer hiring centers and corners, photograph the hiring of
workers, and follow them to their worksites to determine who is hiring them and whether
or not they have business licenses. He claims that they then turn over this information to
the authorities for investigation. The activity has intimidated many area day laborers.88
The Texas Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and its head Clark Kirby lead a group that
writes down license plates of contractors who hire day laborers without giving them I-9
forms. Then they send letters to employers informing them they may have broken the
law by hiring undocumented immigrants.89
On May 3, 2007, unknown arsonists set fire to a day laborer center in Gaithersburg,
Maryland, which is operated by CASA Maryland, and caused about $2,000 in damage.
Officials may investigate it as a hate crime.90
Due to protests by members of the Minuteman Project, Caltrans decided to sell the
property on which the Laguna Beach, California day laborer center has operated for 8
years. CalTrans claimed that the intended sale was part of a project to sell off unneeded
land, but the decision to sell came after repeated protests by the Minuteman Project and a
lawsuit by Judicial Watch alleging that it is unlawful for the city to spend public money
to maintain the center.91
Wong, Raam, “Mystery Men Confront Day Laborers; ‘Agents’ Attempted to Detain Workers,”
Albuquerque Journal, August 29, 2006.
87
Coomes, Jessica, “Bikers Work to Curb Hiring of Day Laborers,” The Arizona Republic, December 3,
2006.
88
“The Situation with Tucker Carlson”, MSNBC, December 13, 2005 11:00 PM EST. Holman, Kwame,
“Hired for a Day,” The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, December 23, 2005. Sylvester, Lisa, “Broken
Borders,” Lou Dobbs Tonight, November 2, 2005, 6:00 pm. Dart, Bob, “Minutemen shadow town's day
labor site; Illegal immigration issues have popped up in suburbs like Herndon, Va., where workers,
contractors are watched,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 5, 2006. Gilbert, Daniel, “Minutemen Target
Employers in Herndon; Group Has Day Laborers Concerned As It Monitors N.Va. Illegal Immigration,”
Richmond Times Dispatch, November 12, 2005.
89
Feldman, Megan, “The Hunted: Minutemen Train their Sights on a New Target: Hispanic Day Laborers,”
Dallas Observer, December 14, 2006.
90
Montes, Sebastian, “Fire Set at Day-Laborer Center Near Shady Grove,” Business Gazette, May 4, 2007,
http://www.gazette.net/stories/050407/montnew165732_32345.shtml. “Day-Laborer Center Arson Being
Called Hate Crime.” WJZ-TV, Channel 13 Baltimore CBS Affiliate, citing an Associated Press story, May
6, 2007 11:10 am, http://wjz.com/local/local_story_126111509.html. Email message from Kim Propeack,
Director of Community Organizing and Political Action for CASA Maryland, on May 4, 2007.
91
Delson, Jennifer, “Worker Day Job Site to Go on Block,” Los Angeles Times, July 10, 2007.
86
After the city of Vista, California started requiring employers of day laborers to register
with the city and to post their names and licenses on their vehicles, an anti-immigrant
group called the Vista Citizens Brigade filed a public records request to obtain the names
of employers who registered with the city. The ACLU sued on behalf of four employers
to block the records request.92 However, the Los Angeles Times, San Diego UnionTribune, and the California Newspaper Publisher’s Association are attempting to join the
lawsuit to make the records public.93
The San Diego Minutemen staged their third protest in a month on July 7, 2007 in front
of St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Fallbrook, California, which has offered breakfast and a
safe space for day laborers to meet employers on its property for about 15 years.
Protesters held an effigy of a priest wearing a devil’s mask, and yelled at children
entering for their First Communion on June 16, 2007 that their parents would be
deported.94
Anti-immigrant protesters from Help Save Maryland and the Minutemen held a two-hour
demonstration on July 21, 2007 at the day laborer center in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
About 20 demonstrators yelled while day laborers planted flowers outside the center.95
An organization called ProAmerican held an anti-immigrant rally on July 28, 2007
sanctioned by Mayor Donald Cresitello, who has targeted day laborers.96
Every week, anti-immigrant organizations protest against the day laborers who seek
employment at the corner of the street that divides Dumont and Bergenfield, New
Jersey.97
Conclusion
Because of their visibility, day laborers represent the public face of the immigrant
community and of the working poor. As they stand on corners seeking work, their labor
is accepted but their physical presence is not. Each instance of abuse against day laborers
further victimizes a group of people who are the most disenfranchised members of our
society.
Associated Press, “Day Labor Hirers Win in Court,” San Francisco Chronicle, July 10, 2007.
Jiménez, José Luís, “Naming Day-Laborer Employers at Issue,” San Diego Union-Tribune, July 14,
2007.
94
Sifuentes, Edward, “Anti-Illegal Immigration Activists Eye Fallbrook Church,” North County Times,
July 7, 2007, http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/07/08/news/top_stories/22_10_707_7_07.txt. “AntiCatholic Bigotry,” California Catholic News, July 12, 2007,
http://www.calcatholic.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?id=1388aa77-8bc0-4c7b-a123-bc31b38633c9.
95
Londono, Ernesto, “Anti-Illegal Immigration Group Protests Day-Laborer Center,” Washington Post,
July 22, 2007.
96
Hassan, Minhaj and Nick Lioudis, “Morristown Immigration Rally Results in Five Arrests,” Daily
Record (New Jersey), July 29, 2007.
97
Shih, Evelyn, “Peaceful Protest of Hiring Practices,” North Jersey Record, August 12, 2007.
92
93
For every example described above, there are many other instances that go unreported by
the mainstream press. Predatory employers, violent hate groups, and xenophobic
politicians are emboldened each time these events occur without response or
consequences.
The national day laborer community will not tolerate this violence. We denounce these
crimes and we organize to stop the hate. With our work, we are building a community of
peaceful and harmonious coexistence where every person enjoys the same rights and
responsibilities and is recognized for his or her contribution to society.