A large group of American immigrants held their annual May Day rally this year in Union Square. New York Cool photographer Angelo Rivera was on hand and he got these images of the faces of our immigrants.

I covered this event last year and here is what I wrote then: The United States needs to come to its senses about immigration. This business of protesting the arrival of the "funny looking new people" has been going on ever since our country was born. And we have thrived just because our immigrants are hardy folk who braved tremendous obstacles to get here in the first place and then trudged on against our nation's predjudices after they arrived. It was so for my group (the Irish: freckles; frizzy hair; bad teeth from the famine - you know the drill) and it will always be so. The truth is we need these people or they would not be here. After all, do you want to pay $7 for an orange or walk to the Chinese restaurant to pick up your own food? People immigrate, take the jobs the old settlers don't want, send their children to school and work their way up the ladder. And this infusion of new blood is what has always made this nation great.

The situation has not changed since last year and that is a damn shame. Now is the time to do the right thing: quit the name calling and give our new neighbors a path to citizenship.

Six Year Old Emmy Rivera

Saul Linares

Sonia M. Tello