Protesters gather at Murrieta to await buses of immigrants

[pampango]

18. "In a shift from previous days, pro-immigrant supporters outnumbered anti-illegal immigration

protesters on the dusty roads leading to the Murrieta Border Patrol facility Friday.

With the steady beat of drums keeping time, dancers in indigenous garb chanted and held signs urging respect and dignity for immigrants. A crowd of roughly 80, down from the hundreds who had blocked buses on Tuesday, milled behind a police line under the hot sun.

Elizabeth Thornton joined them to argue against the intolerance she says has defined the debate so far. "I'm not a fan of ICE," she said. "But this is a necessary step for these people to be released. We're here to counter the overwhelming racism and xenophobia that we've seen here the last few days."

Maria Carrillo, a local resident, said she didn’t think that buses of women and children were such a threat. She said her daughter came to Tuesday’s demonstration but was spit on and asked to clean toilets."