California protesters block migrants en route to Border Patrol facility

Flag-waving protesters in Murrieta were greeted as conservative heroes as they blocked busloads of migrants. Fresh from the spotlight, the town plans another protest on July 4, when another convoy of buses with migrants may arrive – but not everyone in town sides with the protesters

Associated Press

  • Residents and protestors attend a town hall meeting to discuss the processing of undocumented immigrants in Murrieta, California, this week. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • Singer Lipillo Rivera who is picketing for the migrants joins other demonstrators as they confront those picketing against the arrival of undocumented migrants on 1 July. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • Pete Santilli uses a blowhorn to shout at Border Patrol officers on duty on Thursday outside the facility in Murrieta. 'We've had it,' said Carol Schlaepfer, who protested Tuesday. 'You can't come to our country and expect American citizens to dole out what you need, from grade school till death.' Photograph: Frederic J Brown /Getty
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  • More protests are expected in the city Friday as rumors circulate of another convoy of immigrants arriving at the border patrol station there. The Murrieta Police Department plans to have additional staff in place, Lt John Flavin said. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • Lupillo Rivera speaks outside a town hall meeting on Tuesday. People on both sides of the issue want immigration reform, but immigrant rights advocates say anti-illegal immigration protesters chastise the mostly women and children crossing the border. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • Residents and protestors pack a town hall meeting on Tuesday. An overflow crowd filled a school auditorium, and those in the crowd chanted 'Send them back!' at a Border Patrol official. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • The Department of Homeland security said that because of security concerns, it will not publicize immigrant transfers among border patrol facilities. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • Murrieta resident Bryan Escobedo pickets against the migrants. Some local leaders said the outrage among some area residents is justified, given the already stressed social services infrastructure and the stagnant Inland Empire economy. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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  • 'It's sad that some community members don't see the big picture,' said Luz Gallegos, co-founder of the immigration legal aid center TODEC in nearby Perris. Photograph: Sam Hodgson /Reuters
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