11:04 PM CST on Monday, March 27, 2006

By JEFF BRADY / WFAA-TV

WFAA-TV

Hundreds of students walked out of class at mid-morning Monday.

Hundreds of students from at least five Dallas high schools walked out of classes Monday morning as part of an organized protest of the immigration reform bill now being considered by Congress.

Students from Molina, Townview, Skyline, Kimbell and Sunset high schools gathered at Kiest Park in Oak Cliff for a rally.

The crowd—some waving Mexican flags, others carrying hand-written signs—was estimated at 1,500 young people by midday, and News 8 received reports that there may be similar protests at other schools around the city.

They are protesting proposed changes the U.S. immigration law—changes that could make illegal immigration a felony.

Some students told News 8 that the proposals, if implemented, could mean that their parents—or entire families—could be forced to return to Mexico or even face legal action.

Most students said they were unaware of the protest until this morning, when word spread via flyer and the Internet.

Some 30 Dallas police patrols, along with DART and Dallas Independent School District officers, watched over the gathering at Kiest Park.

"We are here to mainly safeguard the youth," said officer Les Willie.

DISD spokesperson Ivette Cruz Weis said the district would arrange for buses to return the students to school once the rally is over.

Weis said there were about 1,000 students from Molina, 500 from Townview and an undetermined number from Sunset who participated in the event.

Monday’s walkouts followed a similar rally Saturday at City Hall that drew about 1,500 protesters, demanding that Congress abandon the House-passed measures that would make being an undocumented immigrant a felony and erect a 700-mile fence along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border.

Similar events were held over the weekend in other U.S. cities, including Phoenix and Milwaukee. One in Los Angeles drew more than 500,000 people.

DallasNews.com and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

E-mail jbrady@wfaa.com