The right of the people peaceably to assemble
Marchers for immigration reform on the Mall. Photo by Karen Kortesoja.
It was a big day for the First Amendment at the Capitol today, with what appeared to be more than 200,000 people marching from the Mall through the neighborhood of Capitol Hill urging immigration reform. The Washington Post reported that, perhaps not coincidentally, the INS raided several popular Maryland restaurants recently and detained 29 people for administrative immigration problems.
On a day when most eyes were on the health care bills, the long-scheduled march was almost entirely overshadowed by a much smaller number of Tea Party protesters on the south side of the Capitol urging the House to vote against the health bill.
