Immigration reform advocates outside Kevin McCarthy‘s office weren’t the only ones demonstrating demonstrating for reform yesterday. In Oregon, farmworkers, students, faith leaders, and labor leaders with Pineros y Campensinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN), Oregon Action, Causa Oregon, and Rural Organizing Project held an act of civil disobedience inside Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR)’s Medford office to call for immigration legislation with a path to citizenship.
During the sit-in of Walden’s office, the activists asked to meet with Rep. Walden. “Farm workers pick, work 10 hours a day and we expect at least 10 minutes with him so that we could tell him that we need immigration reform now,” said Ramon Ramirez, President of Northwest Treeplanters and Farmworkers United, according to KTVL.
Police eventually arrived, but since Walden’s office reportedly did not want arrests made, the police arrested the activists outside, escorted them out of the building, then sent them on their way without citations.
Watch video of the demonstration here.
View a few of the tweets from yesterday below:
PCUN and UFW staged a sit-in @repgregwalden to urge a vote on citizenship. After 6 hours, they were arrested pic.twitter.com/po1hkQXYSG
— UFW Foundation (@UFWF) April 25, 2014
BREAKING: PCUN and UFW leaders are inside .@repgregwalden s office! call his office now 202-225-6730 #CIR #timeisnow pic.twitter.com/sPxkwRZ12O
— UFW Foundation (@UFWF) April 24, 2014
BREAKING: .@repgregwalden CALL A VOTE! Americans deserve a vote! IMMIGRATION REFORM NOW #timeisnow #CIR pic.twitter.com/Bsq0ysMUzI
— UFW Foundation (@UFWF) April 24, 2014