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This week's demonstrations in downtown Salt Lake City that drew tens of thousands of people were empowering for many Latinos, but community leaders say it is going to take more than marches and rallies to influence change. The real power is in casting ballots - Latinos need to vote.
Meanwhile, some Utah politicians say the largest demonstrations in state history are not changing their views on illegal immigration.
Latino leaders plan to take advantage of the momentum in the Latino community, saying they already have ideas on how to get community members - regardless of U.S. citizenship - involved.
Luz Robles, a local activist, says Latinos need to maintain the energy created by a huge march Sunday and a smaller rally Monday by creating a powerful voting bloc. The demonstrations nationwide and in Utah have triggered "a passion" for change in the Latino community, she says.
. "It makes people feel empowered and part of something bigger and that they're not alone," Robles says of the rallies. "But the power lies in the vote."
Marco Diaz, Utah Republican Hispanic Assembly chairman who has not been a supporter of marches in the past, says this week's rallies were "respectful, orderly and patriotic," and he hopes the community continues to stand up.
To take advantage of the Latino community momentum, Diaz says he wants to discuss with the Utah Latino Legislative Task Force, a 30-member bipartisan group, how the group could educate neighborhood groups on the U.S. political system. That way, he says, those groups can organize to get their neighbors to vote.
Tony Yapias, the former director of the state Office of Hispanic Affairs who initiated the demonstrations this week, says that too often, the state's two main political parties depend on a "select few" of minority leaders to speak on behalf of an entire community.
Yapias says there is a lot of excitement in the Latino community, especially about the possibility of a strike. May 1 is the scheduled "brown-out day," a walkout being organized by groups nationwide. Yapias says he is not sure if Utah Latinos are going to support it, but much of their decision depends on what kind of immigration reform legislation is approved by Congress.
"We have the support," he says. ''Many are saying, 'So what if we get fired - we'll all get fired and get new jobs.' ''
In Congress, all three Utah House members - Reps. Chris Cannon, Rob Bishop and Jim Matheson - voted in December for a House immigration bill that would increase border security and enforcement. The legislation incurred the wrath of protesters because it would make it a felony to be in this country illegally.
Bishop says constructive input from voters is appreciated, but, ''I don't base votes on who may be making the most noise at a certain point in time, regardless of what side they're on.''
Matheson says the rallies nationwide demonstrated that the issue of immigration is emotional and polarized.
"I am opposed to amnesty. I do not condone anyone breaking the law. I support tightening border security," he says.
Sen. Orrin Hatch says he thought the felony language in the House bill went too far, but something needs to be done to strengthen borders and discourage illegal immigration. He and Sen. Bob Bennett opposed a compromise immigration bill that was before the Senate last week.
"If we keep doing an amnesty-type approach in another 10 to 12 years we'll have another 20 million [illegal immigrants]," says Hatch.
Provo Republican state Sen. Curtis Bramble, who sponsored legislation in 2005 that denied Utah driver licenses for undocumented immigrants and established the state's driving privilege card, believes the "silent majority" of Americans feel compassion for illegal immigrants trying to make a better life for their families. But he says those who challenge the right of illegal immigrants to protest raise a "legitimate question." "Do individuals who have violated immigration laws, who have broken laws to be here, do they have the right to protest against our government? Or is that a right that should be reserved for citizens?" he asks.
Bramble believes federal lawmakers first need to secure the borders, establish a guest-worker program and enforce existing employment laws before deciding what to do with those who already are here - ideas that Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. backed at his televised news conference in March.
"Immigration shouldn't be seen through the prism of politics, but should be based on good sound policy for our country," says Huntsman's Deputy Chief of Staff Mike Mower.
Meantime, state Rep. Glenn Donnelson plans to bring back three controversial anti-illegal immigration bills he sponsored this year - one to cut off the driving privilege cards and in-state college tuition for undocumented students and another to require companies to verify workers' Social Security numbers. Once Congress acts, even if federal lawmakers adopt the DREAM Act allowing in-state tuition and a path to citizenship for undocumented students, Donnelson says he will go along.
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Reporters Rebecca Walsh and Robert Gehrke contributed to this story.
Across U.S.
In Atlanta, many in white T-shirts, waving American flags, joined a two-mile march from a largely immigrant neighborhood.
In North Carolina and Dallas, immigrant groups called for an economic boycott to show their financial impact.
At the Mississippi Capitol, protesters sang ''We Shall Overcome'' in Spanish.
In Washington, D.C., thousands of immigrants, their families and supporters marched Monday from Latino neighborhoods past the White House, then converged on the National Mall.
In Los Angeles, Cardinal Roger Mahony led a prayer calling on Congress to hear their pleas, before the crowd, estimated by police at 3,500, began an evening march.
In Phoenix, police estimated that at least 50,000 people marched from the state fairgrounds to the Capitol for a rally; protest organizers put the number at 80,000 to 100,000.