MEChA's latest march

Hundreds of college students and community members gathered during a "Zapata Vive" march on Saturday morning at Chicano Park in Barrio Logan, holding signs with slogans such as "No human being is illegal" and shouting cries for the freedom and justice of Mexican and Latin American people in the United States.

San Diego State Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano/a de Aztlán members were largely responsible for the event, which was aimed at unifying the Mexican community for the education of its youth and ending raids of illegal immigrant homes related to military actions such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Operation Return to Sender.

"Raids have caused a lot of fear in the community," MEChA member and public health junior Christina Lares said. "The march was very successful, and it's really important because it helps to empower the community."

Members of Unión del Barrio, a Mexicano liberation group, showed their support alongside Barrio Logan and other residents of all ages through the neighborhood streets in a course that led back to Chicano Park. Many young children cried rally mottos and jumped up and down beside their parents to the sound of drums and the scent of burning incense.

SDSU MEChA President Robert Maciel said having a strong link with community members, particularly the youth, is important.

"They're the future," said Maciel, a political science and Chicana and Chicano studies senior. "They need to start young, learn the history and be proud of who they are and where they come from."

Enrique De la cruz, a San Ysidro resident, said the event also links the struggles of all people, not just those in the Chicano and Latino community.

"Having the youth involved shows that their generation is conscious of the issues and problems," De la cruz said. "Whether it's better wages, housing (or) racial profiling, the march helps to inspire and remind everyone that the community is united."

MEChA members from San Diego City College and the University of San Diego also helped coordinate the event and enlisted the assistance of the San Diego Police Department to monitor the march.

Lt. Karen Tenney said she was contacted by student organizers and met with them on Friday to map out where police would be along the march route.

Tenney called the march "peaceful" and said there were no reported problems.

But the start of the march was mildly interrupted by the presence of former San Diego Minutemen spokeswoman and videographer Christie Czajkowski.

Czajkowski tried to videotape the event, but was intercepted by its supporters, who waved Mexican flags in front of her video camera and pushed her away from the main stage.

"Is it my blonde hair?" Czajkowski said to the event supporters who pushed her away. "Why don't you prove my racism?"

Officers formed a buffer between Czajkowski and the crowd, and at one point told her to leave to avoid angering the crowd.

Many yelled "Go home," but Czajkowski said she was not violating any rights by being present and would not be forced to move.

She was reportedly considered "too radical" by the anti-immigration group and was asked to leave the Minutemen, according to Tenney and Sí Se Puede member Leticia Talavera.

But organizers quickly brought the focus back to the attention of speakers and the cause of the march, which was named after leading Mexican Revolution leader Emiliano Zapata.

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