Thursday, April 11, 1996
Activists condemn rise of police violence against immigrantsBy
Patrick Marantal
Daily Bruin Staff
Mrs. Kim listened and cried as protesters denounced the recent
immigrant beatings and acts of violence  an act that claimed
her son, Hong Il Kim, who was shot to death by Orange County police
after a high speed chase two months ago.
Wednesday, more than 100 people joined Kim at the steps of
Campbell Hall for an immigrant rights rally.
At the rally, speakers denounced what they claim is a rising
tide of anti-immigrant sentiment. Members of the Asian Pacific
Coalition, with help from four other student groups and members of
the greater Los Angeles area, called for an end to the violence
which they claim are hate crimes.
"(Hong Il Kim) was shot by a hail of bullets while his vehicle
was boxed in," said Rodney Chai, a speaker at the rally. "The anger
and hatred toward my brother-in-law is a classic example of police
brutality."
While these recent incidents have received high publicity
because of the recent videotaped beatings in Riverside County,
speakers emphasized that police brutality against immigrants is a
common problem.
"What happened has happened many times before for many, many
years," said Moises Escalante, a speaker representing the Coalition
for Human Immigrant Rights in Los Angeles. "(People) are beaten up
just because of the way they speak."
"We are human beings and we must be there for the protection of
human rights," Escalante added.
But the fact that they were undocumented immigrants did not play
a part in the beatings, contended Carl Shusterman, a UCLA alumnus
and immigration lawyer.
Regardless of race, the Riverside police officers would have
still beaten the drivers because of the emotions which the high
speed chase created, he added.
While speakers focused on the need to work for human rights,
many pointed out that students should mobilize in order to achieve
concrete reform.
"Very few students organizations were involved in the (La
Placita Alvara) protest," Escalante said, referring to Saturday’s
demonstration of 6,000. "Students are a very important sector in
our society. The movement is very important and all it takes is the
willingness to do it."
Student activist members discussed ways for other students to
get involved and stop what they see as hate crimes.
Briseyda Zárate, a member of MEChA, UCLA’s Chicana/o
student activist group, asked students to get involved in
organizations that defend human rights, and called on those
organizations to make alliances with other groups on and off
campus.
"A lot of people of color are in class right now," Zárate
said. "Don’t sacrifice your identity. Don’t sacrifice your people.
Don’t put them on the backburner. If it means missing class then
that’s what it means."
In response to the beatings and murders, Juan Luis Gutierrez , a
speaker for One Stop Immigration, announced today that a letter was
submitted to U.S Attorney General Janet Reno. The organization
requested an emergency meeting with Los Angeles immigrant rights
representatives.
A response to the letter is pending.
In addition, members of the Asian Pacific Coalition are also
passing around a petition requesting an investigation into Kim’s
death, said Soyon Cho, a graduate student in Asian American
Studies. Family members may file a wrongful death civil lawsuit
against the involved departments.
SUSIE CHU/Daily Bruin
Top: The mother of Hong Il Kim, a Korean man recently gunned
down by Orange County police, is comforted by first-year undeclared
student Lilia Saldana at the rally. Bottom: Alyssa Kang, an
Asian-American studies student (lower-left, foreground) and other
students cheer to support human rights.