Immigration Supporters In Murrieta Call Controversy A Human-Rights Issue
MURRIETA (CBSLA.com) — President Barack Obama met with Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Wednesday to discuss the growing immigration battle along the border.
The president called the meeting constructive and said he's seeking to do much of what Perry is calling for, including sending more resources to the border to make the deportation process more effective.
On Capitol Hill, Congress debated the president's request for nearly $4 billion in emergency funds to handle the immigration issue.
Meanwhile, immigration activists came together in Murrieta to show support for the undocumented immigrants in the country.
"Los ninos no pueden hablar," a woman named Elva said at the rally, which translates to "The children can't speak."
Elva, who immigrated from Guatemala with her husband, was touching on the throngs of unaccompanied children who have been crossing the border into Texas.
Elva's husband Angel said: "We know that there are a lot of children in detention along the border, and it takes the work of all us to come together to support these type of causes."
The couple left the violence of their country hoping to give their children a better life in the United States, but now two of their children are detained in Texas for processing.
Their story is a common one.
Hundreds of undocumented mothers and children were bused to Murrieta last week for processing but were turned away by protesters. Those protesters were celebrating because they say no buses would be sent on Thursday to the Riverside County facility, even though government officials haven't confirmed as much.
One such protestor identifies himself as Kurt "The Patriot."
"Everybody wants to say this all for the children," Kurt said. "We know that it's not all for the children; that is theater. This is not a race issue. It's a color-of-law issue."
Kurt calls the busing of refugees a manufactured humanitarian issue.
But Rabbi Suzanne Singer, whose mother survived the Holocaust, was at the pro-immigration rally calling on people to show compassion.
"I think it's incredibly sad to not have the compassion for people escaping horrible conditions," Singer said. "I feel like it's important to learn from history and not repeat it, if that's at all possible."