By THOMAS J. SHEERAN

PAINESVILLE, Ohio, May 21, 2007 (AP): Hundreds marched through this northeast Ohio city Monday evening to protest the weekend arrests of 24 people by federal immigration agents.

The marchers, estimated by police at between 300 and 400, staged a noisy protest along a five-block route from St. Mary Catholic Church in Painesville, where many hid from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Saturday, to City Hall.

They chanted, held U.S. and Mexican flags and waved at passing motorists who honked in support. They also held banners reading, “We come to work and feed our children.”

Greg Palmore, a spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said 24 people were arrested in northeast Ohio from Friday to Sunday based on immigration violations, including some who entered the country after a prior deportation, and criminals including a convicted sex offender.

“This was not a random sweep. This was a targeted enforcement,” he said. “We are enforcing the nation's immigration laws and we are insuring that they are applied fairly.”

Twenty remained in custody May 21, one was released on bond, a 16-year-old was released to await an appearance before an immigration judge and two were flown to México, Palmore said.

“Anyone that doesn't have a valid status in the United States may encounter ICE at some point. No longer are the days that you can consider the United States as a safe haven for individuals who have violated the law,'' Palmore said.

The arrests were part of a recent national crackdown, including raids in Detroit and McComb, Ohio, following a compromise bill passed by congressional leaders and endorsed by President George W. Bush that put the spotlight on the immigration debate.

The bill would give legal status to about 12 million undocumented immigrants, toughen border security, and create a temporary guestworker program.

The crackdown caused about 400 Mexicans who work in the area to take refuge May 19^th in the basement of St. Mary Catholic Church. All have since returned to their homes.

Toward the end of Monday’s march, the crowd gathered at a park and heard from family members concerned about loved ones who had been arrested. A boy introduced only as 10-year-old Ramón cried quietly and said in Spanish that he missed his father.

“Ramon misses his father very much,” a translator told the crowd.

Myra Peña, 17, said she had been pulled from bed by immigration agents. “I said, ‘How can they take me if I’m a minor?’ They said, ‘That doesn't matter, we’ll take the minors, too,’” she said.

When asked before the march about complaints from the immigrant community that a woman had been manhandled by agents, Palmore said no one had been mistreated during the raids.

“That’s not the way we go about business,” he said.

An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 Latino immigrants lived in the area in Lake and Ashtabula counties last year. Most work at the many nurseries in eastern Lake County. Painesville is located about 30 miles northeast of Cleveland.

Protestan en Ohio contra arresto masivo de inmigrantes
PAINESVILLE, Ohio, EE.UU., 21 de mayo de 2007 (AP): Cientos de personas marcharon por esta ciudad del noreste de Ohio el lunes en protesta por la detención de 24 personas durante el fin de semana por agentes federales de inmigración.

Los manifestantes—entre 300 y 400 según la policía—marcharon cinco cuadras desde la iglesia católica de Santa María, donde el sábado muchos se ocultaron de los agentes de inmigración, hasta la municipalidad.

Varios manifestantes hicieron ondear banderas estadounidenses, y una gran bandera mexicana, antes de una marcha a lo largo de cinco cuadras con destino a la alcaldía de la localidad de Painesville.

Los manifestantes portaban letreros con leyendas como ``Venimos para trabajar y alimentar a nuestros hijos'' y ``No pueden deportarnos a todos'', reunidos ante la Iglesia de Santa María, donde muchos se refugiaron de los agentes del Servicio de Inmigración y Aduanas durante el operativo del sábado.

El religioso Elías Goiz, capitán del grupo caritativo Ejército de Salvación en Painesville, le pidió a los manifestantes mantener en alto las banderas estadounidenses y evitar responder a los ataques verbales de los automovilistas que pasaran por Painesville.

``Si alguien dice, 'vete a casa mexicano', no le vamos a responder. Estamos aquí para apoyar a las familias separadas por los arrestos'', dijo Goiz.

Goiz dijo que hay órdenes de deportación contra algunos de los detenidos, pero que no sabía cuántos de ellos eran indocumentados. En cualquier caso, dijo que los agentes federales “se llevaron a todos” los que encontraban en su operativo.

Verónica Dahlberg, directora del grupo Hispanas Organizadas de Lake y Ashtabula (HOLA), dijo que las autoridades no detuvieron solamente a personas con órdenes de deportación.

``Nuestra comunidad ha resultado profundamente dañada por lo que han estado haciendo desde el viernes, con estos arrestos implacables. Hay niños que se han quedado sin sus padres'', dijo Dahlberg.

Greg Palmore, vocero del Servicio de Aduanas, dijo que 24 personas fueron detenidas en el noreste de Ohio de viernes a domingo, por violaciones a las leyes migratorias, entre ellas algunas que regresaron al país luego de haber sido deportadas, además de criminales que incluyen al autor de varios delitos sexuales.

``Esta no fue una barrida al azar. Este era nuestro blanco. Estamos haciendo valer las leyes migratorias del país y asegurándonos de que sean aplicadas de manera justa'', dijo.

Hacia el final de la manifestación, la multitud se concentró en un parque para escuchar historias sobre personas detenidas.

Un chico de 10 años identificado como Ramón dijo entre lágrimas que echaba de menos a su padre. Myra Peña, de 17 años, dijo que los agentes de inmigración la habían sacado de la cama.