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Just before 11 a.m., the protesters moved inside, filling three levels of the Capitol Rotunda.
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Omar Barberena, 42, waves an American flag outside the state Capitol.
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Maria Ferrera, 66, holds up a sign during Thursday's protest.
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At times the protest felt more like a celebration.
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Several protesters carried signs comparing Wisconsin to Arizona and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who has been criticized for harsh treatment of immigrants.
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Lila Resendez, 38, beats a drum during Day Without Latinos, an organized march and protest against proposed legislation.
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Several protesters gathered at First United Methodist Church on Wisconsin Avenue ahead of the event.
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Thousands protest proposed legislation outside the Capitol for Day Without Latinos on Thursday.
Sergio Guerrera came to the United States with his parents when he was just 2 years old. Now 18, he’s afraid that if Wisconsin’s Legislature approves a pair of proposed bills, a simple traffic stop could end with his deportation to a country he barely knows.
“I wouldn’t even know how to live in Mexico,” he says.
Guerrera was among as many as 20,000 people, most of them Latinos, who flooded the Capitol Square today to protest proposed legislation and show solidarity.
“We want to send a clear message to Gov. Scott Walker to veto these bills,” says Mario Garcia-Sierra, a member of Voces de la Frontera, shortly before the protest. Voces de la Frontera helped organize the rally as part of the Day Without Latinos, or Día Sin Latinos. The effort urged Latinos to close their businesses or walk off the job for a day, in order to underscore their importance to the economy.
The Legislature is currently considering two bills that would affect immigrants. Assembly Bill 450 would preempt local ordinances that prohibit citizenship inquiries by police. Critics of the bill say it endangers communities, since undocumented immigrants — an estimated 85,000 in Wisconsin — are less likely to call for police help or give witness statements.
“It erodes people’s trust in government,” says Madison Ald. Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, herself born in Iran and raised in Spain. “And from the perspective of local government, it’s taking away more local control from us.”
Senate Bill 533 and Assembly Bill 723 would prohibit towns and counties from issuing identification cards to anyone other than employees. It would also prohibit photo IDs issued by municipalities to be used for certain functions, including voting or obtaining public assistance benefits.
Undocumented immigrants already are prohibited from obtaining a state driver’s license under federal provisions Wisconsin adopted in 2013. But a local ID allows them to receive some services, such as assistance from food pantries and programs administered by the state Department of Health Services. If approved, this proposal would make these services much harder to obtain.
“The impact of these would be tremendous,” says Karen Andro, director of outreach ministries at First United Methodist Church.
Thousands heeded the call to oppose the legislation. Women, men and children chanted “Sí, se puede!” — “Yes, we can!” — as hundreds of students from schools throughout the county joined the chorus of opposition.
Rafael Ortiz, 12, attended with his father, Marcos, and his younger sister.
“My school is here today,” he says.
Ortiz’s father, Marcos, moved to the U.S. 20 years ago and has lived in Wisconsin for 18 of those years. “I came to America for the opportunities,” he says. “We don’t want Wisconsin to become a symbol of hate.”
Countless Latinos expressed fear of forced separations from family and friends. Many declined to provide their names. A Honduran family spoke of rampant corruption and street violence back home.
“It is no place to raise children,” says the father, whose 11-year-old daughter translated. “Now we are fearful here.”
Just before 11 a.m., thousands filled three floors inside the Capitol’s Rotunda, where the gathering felt less like a protest than a celebration of Wisconsin residents’ shared humanity.
“A person cannot be illegal,” says Jaime Rodriguez. “A more better life in the U.S.A, a land of opportunity, is not a crime.”
Editor's note: This article has been corrected to better describe Senate Bill 533 and Assembly Bill 723.
