Hundreds line streets in east Tulsa in protests over immigration reform

Tulsa's Hispanic population voices their opinions on immigration reform. Hundreds of protesters lined Garnett in east Tulsa. And as the crowd surged, their message got louder. <br/><br/>Protesters

Tuesday, April 11th 2006, 5:54 am

By: News On 6

Tulsa's Hispanic population voices their opinions on immigration reform. Hundreds of protesters lined Garnett in east Tulsa. And as the crowd surged, their message got louder.

Protesters started showing up to the corner of 21st and Garnett around 11 AM Monday. They went home after sunset, when dozens of Tulsa Police officers showed up to disperse the crowd.

Hispanic protesters waved American and Mexican flags. Others held handmade banners, saying "We are not criminals". Then the crowd surged, blocking traffic on the busy intersection. That forced Tulsa Police officers to intervene and send the crowd home.

First District Congressman John Sullivan sits on the House Immigration Reform Committee. His office gets bombarded with mail from Tulsans saying something must be done about the immigration issue. But for some Tulsa Hispanics, itâ€™s not happening fast enough. Rep John Sullivan: "We need to get something done about this. It's a terrorist threat as well as people coming into this country and taxing our social services, our hospitals, our emergency rooms to receive health care."

Immigrant Stephanie Angulo: "It's not fair for somebody who's here to trying to make a living, trying to progress, and they're going to kick them out? That's not fair for them."

Several Hispanic business owners felt so strongly about supporting the protestors, they closed their shops Monday for the day.

Organizers say another protest is set for May 1st. They're expecting more people to show up and their message to get louder.