Illegal immigration across the U.S.-Mexico border is a “national crisis,” the president of the inuteman Civil Defense Corps said last night in Copley Formal Lounge in a speech that proceeded with only slight interruption.
Addressing a capacity crowd, Chris Simcox spoke about his campaign to increase border security. Since 2002, he has organized a group of over 8,000 volunteers who watch the border and report immigrants who cross illegally, and has founded a political action committee to lobby congress for border-security legislation. “Our agents are outmanned, outgunned and out-resourced,” Simcox said. “A group of us sat down and said, `No one is dealing with this.'”
Simcox’s speech on campus sparked demonstrations from a number of student groups who say the MCDC is racist and inhumane in its treatment of illegal immigrants. Protesters, gathering in an area cordoned off in Red Square, could be heard during Simcox’s address.
University officials put expanded security measures in place to ensure that the event proceeded without disruption. Last month at Columbia University, protesters stormed the stage to prevent Jim Gilchrist, the leader of a separate anti-illegal immigration group, from finishing his speech.
Simcox’s address was interrupted, however, by a fire alarm that went off in Copley Hall. After a delay of around 20 minutes, Craig Huntington (COL ’06), an assistant hall director in the audience, held the metal alarm to deaden its sound, prompting applause from the audience.
The speech was sponsored by the Lecture Fund.