About a dozen day laborers sat silently throughout most of the meeting, listening to a Spanish translation on headphones. A representative of several Latino groups spoke on their behalf.
"The fact that these folks are willing to stand on the street corner for a job is honorable," said Julian Bermudez, chief executive of Hispanic Outreach Leadership Action. "These folks are not terrorists, they're not mass murderers. . . . They just want to pursue the American dream."
But J. Haga, 45, a Woodbridge resident who lives near the 7-Eleven, had a more prosaic concern.
"It's okay that there are day laborers and stuff, but are they accountable for paying taxes?" she asked in an interview. "Are they accountable for paying into the medical system?. . . . They have to be accountable for that."
Barg said she plans to organize a community task force to study the issue and recommend solutions.
"I feel good about this meeting," she said. "People had to vent."
March organizer Ricardo Juarez said authorities are using the loitering charges as an excuse to arrest and deport laborers. He said his group, the Workers Committee of Woodbridge, plans to file suit challenging the constitutionality of the loitering statute.
Laborer German Silva Guzman, 21, said some of the people at the meeting treated the men as if they were terrorists. "This is unfortunate," he said through an interpreter. All the day laborers want "is a better life for their families and themselves."
