Thousands protest US immigration reform

A woman holds Mexican and American flags in Fereral Plaza during a protest against proposed immigration policies Saturday in New York City. Thousands of protesters marched in opposition to tough US immigration bills. PHOTO: AFP

Organisers of the protest in the town of Costa Mesa, which is planning to become the first US city to allow its police to act as immigration officers by arresting and helping to deport undocumented workers, said 2,500 people took part, but police and reporters estimated the crowd to be around 1,500.

Protest organiser Nativo Lopez, president of the Mexican American Political Association, said the group was outraged by a plan, which would allow police to screen suspected criminals for US citizenship.

"We are here to make a tough statement right in the bedrock of the anti-immigrant movement," said Lopez at the protest that was rowdy but peaceful.