Christian Beltran / The Collegian

Fresno State students marched Saturday alongside 3,000 protesters at the May Day rally through the streets of downtown in support of a comprehensive immigration reform.

Fresno joined demonstrations across the country in cities like Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and New York.

The event comes a week after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, signed a law that authorizes police to arrest an individual based on the suspicion that he or she is undocumented. However, recent changes to the bill, aimed to avoid racial profiling, allows Arizona police to inquire about a person’s legal status only while addressing other unlawful activities.

Raul Moreno, the University Migrant Services (UMS) coordinator at Fresno State, joined protesters in a chant of “Si, se puede (yes, we can).” Moreno, who works closely with undocumented students, said an immigration reform would allow illegal immigrants to become active members of society.

“It is time to legalize those living in the shadows,” Moreno said. “Everyone deserves to be treated as human regardless of immigration status.”

Moreno said undocumented students can contribute to the United States.

The May Day Committee organized the event that began at 4 p.m. at Eaton Plaza, near the Old Fresno Water Tower, with a rally featuring performances by traditional Mexican dancers and speakers from local groups such as Peace Fresno and the Brown Berets. Nearly 700 demonstrators marched through streets surrounding City Hall before ending back at Eaton Plaza.

Cesar Sanchez, the Associated Students, Inc.’s (ASI) 2010-2011 vice president of finance elect, said he marched in support of the Dream Act, a bill that would provide undocumented students who graduate from U.S. high schools, arrived in the United States as minors and have been in the country continuously for at least five years prior to the bill’s enactment with the opportunity to earn permanent residency.

“The Dream Act would help Fresno State students, because the university has a significant amount of undocumented individuals,” Sanchez said. “Certain people may conveniently categorize these students as distant. The truth of the matter is that these students are our best friends, our sisters [and] our brothers.”

Sanchez said, many times the immigration status of these students was not their choice, because they immigrated at a very early age.

Amid a sea of American flags and people in white shirts showing the “Reform Immigration for America” emblem, messages directed toward President Barack Obama crowded the streets.

“Obama, we voted for you,” read a sign. “Obama, you lied to us,” read another while a young man wearing a graduation gown displayed “Obama, I have a dream. You have the solution. We have the votes,” on a large cardboard sign.

Also, “Brown is not illegal” was held high on a sign in reply to Arizona’s new law.

Police escorted marchers as they approached intersections. A man played theme songs such as “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “Respect” while leading the crowd with chants from a sound system set up in the back of a truck covered in American flags.

Fresno State art major Mauro Carrera, a member of the Brown Berets, said the group fought for unity, equal rights and a comprehensive immigration reform.

“This movement calls for the students to implement their student duty in a call for social justice,” Carrera said. “It is part of an ideal university-education curriculum to demand for equality.”

Carrera supported undocumented students saying education is a basic human right.

To close the event, speakers at Eaton Plaza expressed the need to end immigration raids saying it separates innocent families. They also opposed a temporary guest program arguing it would allow employers to discriminate permit holders.

Camille Russell, the Peace Fresno president, urged Obama and the Congress to address the broken immigration system.

“We need a humane and just immigration reform,” Russell said. “We need it now.”