Death of activist has day-labor supporters lamenting a leader
By Wendy Leung, Staff Writer
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Article Launched:05/07/2007 11:32:59 PM PDT

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - Day laborers and their advocates mourned the loss of a local leader on Monday at the corner of Arrow Route and Grove Avenue - the site of much contention in recent months.

It is also the site where a traffic accident on Saturday claimed the life of Jose Fernando Pedraza, 57, a Rancho Cucamonga resident who had become a father figure to many of the men seeking employment at the intersection.

"Jose was a strong person and was definitely a leader," said Mike Nava, a friend of Pedraza's and an immigrant-rights activist. "People listened to him and respected him. With his guidance, a lot of fellows stayed out of trouble."

Pedraza was struck by a Toyota Camry driven by Crystal Lamb, 25, after her car collided with a Ford sport utility vehicle at 1:02 p.m. at the intersection. Pedraza was in a group of 20 people protesting a small anti-illegal-immigration rally taking place across the street.

Pedraza's death did little to stop the finger-pointing that has become commonplace in the immigration debate - particularly at that intersection.

Immigration-rights advocates on Monday said although Pedraza's death was an unfortunate accident, it was also a tragic result of their opposing protesters - such as Minutemen Project and Save Our State - creating a disruptive environment that distracts drivers.

Raymond Herrera, the national rally spokesman for the Minuteman Project, said he wanted to offer Pedraza's family his condolences but that his group was not at Saturday's protest.

"It's immoral to blame the Minuteman Project. The accident had nothing to do with us," said Herrera.

He said the group protests every other month against the loitering at that intersection, but no Minuteman members were present on Saturday.

Robin Hvidston, a Minuteman Project rally organizer, scoffs at the idea that her group has made the intersection unsafe and said the group will still plan a June rally.

"The issue that causes public danger is the employers picking up the day laborers," said Hvidston.

Since the day-labor center that was operated by a local nonprofit group closed last June, protesters on both sides of the debate have raised their voices on the issue.

At one corner, protesters urge the city not to open a day-labor center and to instead cite loiterers who linger on the street looking for work.

Across the way, workers and those sympathetic to their cause call for the city to open a site that would make it safe for the day laborers.

Perhaps the most contentious rally occurred in April when members of the Ku Klux Klan crashed a Minuteman rally.

On Monday, immigrant- rights activists renewed their call for a city-sanctioned site, saying such a center would make it safer for the workers.

"This probably would not have happened if they had a safe place to work," said Jose Calderon, a Pitzer College professor who has been pushing for the city to open a day-labor center. "The workers will continue to come because the employers need them."

Pedraza was the father of five children and had seven grandchildren. Friends say he was a permanent resident whose wife still lives in Mexico.

Friends and family of Pedraza are seeking contributions for his funeral. Send checks for the Jose Pedraza Memorial Fund to the Pomona Day Labor Center at P.O. Box 2496, Pomona, CA 91766.

Staff writer Wendy Leung can be reached by e-mail at wendy.leung@dailybulletin.com, or by phone at (909) 483-9376.