April 10th, 2010 was filled with chants of "Si Se Puede" (Yes we Can!) and "Reforma Inmigratoria, el tiempo ya llego!" (Immigration reform, the time is now!), each of these phrases perfectly embodied the atmosphere around Downtown Las Vegas. It was a beautifully sunny day as I was talking towards the rally, you could see the cars on Las Vegas Boulevard lining up to park for the event, you could hear the chants already echoing through the Downtown area, and the excitement was bubbling.

As I approached the main stage area, I was handed a sign that read "Reform Immigration For America" and I took it proudly. Activists and speakers took the stage for the first hour of the demonstration, riling up the thousands of people in attendance. Stories of hardships, of struggle, and of tragedy are the usual suspects when you think of immigration reform, but at this rally it was something different. The speakers and activists that took the stage spoke instead of their determination to fight for equality and justice rather than present their cases for pitty before the jury of the people; making their stories even more powerful.

One story that truly made waves with the audience was that of a young girl as she retold the story of how she would help her mother clean houses in order to pay the bills after her family was torn apart by the deportation of her father. It spoke to the core of what that day was really about, keeping families together through the passage of CIRASAP (Comprehensive Immigration Reform As Soon As Possible), legislation in the House that would place immigration reform on the center stage. Another young girl made an amazing case in explaining her sense of activism, she told a story of marching with the late leader, Cesar Chavez with her mother when she was just a child. She then went on to thank her mother and every other mother and father in the audience that was brave enough to fight for what they believed in. One delightful note was the many ordinary people that came to support the day's demonstration, neighbors shaking hands and talking about how everyone that they know was there at the rally. The sad part is that those stories won't get published in the papers, they never do.

A woman that I knew was there at the rally who's husband had been deported last year while they were still living in California, I'd met her a few months ago at a different event in the city. She was there with her young child wrapped in the American Flag and shouting at the top of her lungs "Si Se Puede"! I ran into another man who had came to stand next to me, I greeted him and we got to talking. His name was Jose Barrios, a naturalized citizen from Los Angeles, he had driven to Las Vegas to support the rally. He told me that his wife was caught in a raid and deported whie being 8 months pregnant, he then told me that he hadn't seen his wife in two years and in turn that he had never met his now two year old son. He told me that it's important for people to understand that our immigration system is tearing families apart, and that even after going through the proper channels, he has still gotten nowhere. He let me know that he was waiting for his son to be a little older before he tried to buy their passage through a coyote or people smuggler. He said the trip was too dangerous for his son to make until he was older.

It was nice to see the several different union groups out in support of immigration reform! It was also great to see the Stonewall Dems Chair, Derek Washington, at the demonstration in support of the movement. I'm going to tell you honestly that I was a little disappointed that I didn't see the usual suspects/Democrats out at the rally. I can understand that it's hard to rally behind a cause if you don't feel that it directly affects you, but I wish people would understand that if they can do it to one of us, they can do it to all of us. Although I noticed the lack of those strong Democrats, I was overjoyed to see my dear friends, Sandy Eddy and Simone Simpson wearing candidate apparel (Paul Murad t-shirts), and then I also met up with Paul Murad as I was walking away from the stage. I had friends at my side and I became energized and ready for the rally!

Then Ruben Kihuen took the stage, letting people know that his success story was one that everyone in the crowd could be proud of, being the first Mexican immigrant to be elected to the Nevada legislature. Another young man took the stage right after Ruben, but this young man had an even more powerful story to tell. He was an Iraq-War Veteran, having served his country, having to return from duty as a permanently injured soldier. He told the crowd that it gave him great pride to fight for the people of Iraq and the United States, but that he couldn't understand how he could be asked to lay his life on the line for a country that won't let him vote because he was an Indian living in America, not an Indian-American/American citizen. Michael Flores from RIFA was on the stage most of the time leading the masses in cheers and chants, warming them up for the real heavy hitters that were getting ready to take the stage. Being Southern Nevada's favorite Congressional Representative, Congresswoman Shelley Berkley came onto the stage and shared the story of her grandparents being immigrants to this country, not being able to speak english. It's always great to hear her speak because you never know what she's going to say! Then she created a buildup for the next speaker, however a slip of the tongue lead to the Congresswoman introducing CongressWOMAN Luis Gutierrez, a mistake that she immediately tried to correct, LOL. The crowd ate it up and laughed right along with her and the CongressMAN. He took the stage with grace and won the crowds over with his pledge to fight for immigration reform.

Then we hit the main event, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid took the stage, and the thousands in attendance went wild! With cheers of "Harry! Harry! Hary!", Senator Harry Reid was greeted by an overwhelming fanfare. Reminding those in attendance that immigration reform will happen this year, that he will continue to be a champion on this and many other issues, siting comparisons between the recently passed and embattled healthcare reform legislation and immigration reform that has yet to reach the Senate. Calling the case for immigration reform was as much a fiscal responsibility question as it was a moral question. Immigration reform is the right thing to do for our country, and Senator Reid assured us that he was going to fight and win for us! The Senator let everyone know that he only needed a handful of Republicans to cross the aisle in order to get the legislation off the ground, and that it was the responsibility of those in attendance to help Senator Reid acheive that.

Senator Harry Reid left us all with high hopes for a better year, he left us with a new sense of urgency and determination for the case of immigration reform. With shouts of "Se ve, se siente, el pueblo esta presente" (you can see it, you can feel it, the community is present) and the timeless "Si Se Puede" wrapped up the day's festivities and encouraged everyone to go home and work harder for reform.

Everyone that was present had their own reasons for attending, some had a husband or wife torn from their side by hideous raids that criminalize hard-working people, others had mothers and fathers that suffered the same fate, but I was there representing my cousin who was recently deported. His residency status was revoked after being accused of a crime that had no evidence against him, I was at the rally for his wife and his newborn son, because no family should be torn apart like that. A thought that will stay with me was the thousands in attendance representing the millions in the shadows.

Nevada needs comprehensive immigration reform, The United States needs comprehensive immigration reform, doing nothing is not an option.