PHOENIX — Thousands of people from across the U.S. marched to the Arizona state Capitol on Saturday to protest the state’s new crackdown on illegal immigration.
Marchers carrying signs, banners and flags from the United States and Mexico filled a 5-mile stretch of central Phoenix. Dozens of police officers lined the route, and helicopters hovered overhead.
Police declined to estimate the size of the crowd, but it appeared at least 10,000 to 20,000 protesters braved temperatures that were forecast to reach 95 degrees by mid- afternoon. Organizers had said they expected as many as 50,000 people.
About 20 people were treated for heat or fatigue-related symptoms, and seven of them were taken to a hospital, said Phoenix police spokesman Sgt. Tommy Thompson. There were no arrests.
The law’s opponents also rallied elsewhere — about 300 people at the Texas Capitol, and another 300 at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico
