Ban Sparks Immigration Protest
ATLANTA - Georgia's move to ban illegal immigrants from attending certain state colleges and universities sparked a protest that resulted in arrests, Atlanta police said.
Police apprehended at least seven of the more than 100 demonstrators who blocked traffic on a downtown street Tuesday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
The group included college students, civil rights activists and others who marched around the Georgia State University Campus before sitting down in the middle of Courtland Street.
Several of the activists declared they were in the United States illegally and criticized restrictions illegal students face.
Effective next fall, illegal immigrants are barred from admittance to the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Georgia College & State University and the Medical College of Georgia.
Officials said all of those schools have had to turn away academically qualified applicants.
A spokesman for the Georgia Board of Regents pointed out that the ban does not apply to 30 other state colleges and universities.
