via Khmer NZ
Graduate: 'This experience has been emotionally intense'
By Vanessa Miller Camera Staff Writer
Posted: 07/29/2010
Growing up in Denver with Cambodian parents who came to the United States in 1979 to escape the violence in their home nation, University of Colorado senior Melissa Khat said she has a deep appreciation for the nation's immigration roots.
That's why on Thursday -- the day Arizona's controversial immigration law took effect -- Khat, 22, and several of her Boulder-based friends were on the streets in Tucson to "stand in solidarity" with others who feel the law goes too far and promotes racial profiling.
On Wednesday evening, after opponents celebrated a judge's order blocking much of the state's immigration law, Khat and her group joined dozens of protesters in the small town of Guadalupe, just south of Phoenix.
"A good number of community members blocked the main intersection into the community and stood there for an hour," Khat said.
The demonstration was peaceful, she said.
"Any peaceful action that we can take to get our voices heard will make a big difference," Khat said.
The judge's temporary injunction of the law Wednesday delayed some of its most contentious parts, including a section requiring officers to check a person's immigration status while enforcing other laws and parts requiring immigrants to carry their papers. Provisions of the law that are less controversial were allowed to take effect Thursday.
The state asked an appeals court to lift the judge's order Thursday as Arizona communities such as Tucson and Phoenix filled with protesters, including dozens who were arrested after confronting officers in riot gear.
Protests that Khat and her friends took part in Thursday were nonviolent shows of solidarity, she said. Some people held signs that read "I am not a document" and "We reject racism," and other people waved flags while walking through the streets and blocking intersections.
Temperatures soared to more than 100 degrees in parts of Arizona, but Khat said the heat was bearable because of the cause they were supporting.
"It's so worth the weather -- being here, standing among these people and being part of history," she said. "It's a motivating and inspirational experience for me."
Khat, who's studying international affairs at CU, said she's passionate about immigration issues because her parents were refugees.
"They have plenty of stories of struggling to be in the United States," she said, adding that the Arizona law adds even more pressure on immigrants trying to fit in and build a life. "It's racism, and clearly it's not something we can tolerate in the 21st century."
CU graduate Sergio Gutierrez, 23, who joined Khat in their drive from Boulder to Arizona this week, said he was compelled to protest out of disgust for provisions in the new law. Being among all types of people united in one cause has been refreshing, he said.
"It's nice to see everyone come together like this," he said. "This experience has been emotionally intense and symbolic for everyone, particularly for those people who are willing to get arrested."
He and Khat, who spent upwards of six hours in the Arizona sun Thursday, plan to hit the streets again today. Gutierrez said they will be "cop watching," which they have been trained to do.
"We will be watching the police and monitoring their behavior and their professionalism to make sure everyone is being treated appropriately," he said.
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