Rallies sent a different message than intended

We understand the message that the demonstrations and work stoppages were meant to portray: Immigrants - including millions here illegally - are woven so tightly into the fabric of our economy that we can't cope without them.

But what we really learned is something far different: There are a lot of employers out there breaking the law who were exposed by the walkouts around the nation. They've become dependent on paying cheap wages, and we would probably never have known how common they were had not Monday's protests drawn attention to them.

Casino companies in Las Vegas, for example, sponsored flag-flying rallies with speeches about keeping families together. But what they really were protecting was their bottom lines. The rallies were an exchange they made to get their workers to show up to work on Monday.

In fact, any anger directed at immigrants is misguided, in light of how many employers are fueling the problem to begin with by feeding at the trough of cheap labor. Many of the immigrants have endured a great deal to get here in pursuit of better lives, and probably even our immigrant ancestors would admire their grit.

Those are traits that would serve them well in building a better country for themselves, and, for most of them, that country is Mexico. But that will never happen until businesses in this country wean themselves off cheap labor. Rest assured, they won't do it on their own volition. They have to be held accountable for complying with labor laws.

One counter protester at a rally in Reno was heard to say, "Illegals are coming here and impacting our economy." Others demanded that they be jailed. To avoid any hypocrisy, we hope the counter protesters would say the same thing about the employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.