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A crowd of about one hundred people, many wrapped in Mexican, Ecuadorian and El Salvadorean flags, gathered at the corner of East 43rd Street and 1st Avenue in front of the United Nations Headquarters in Manhattan, New York. This was the evening of February 3rd, the nationally declared Day Without Immigrants, when many abstained from working or purchasing items in protest of the Trump Administration’s deportation policies, leading to business closures and workers’ strikes across the country.
In a self-protective circle, several individuals, ranging from teenagers to middle-aged workers, to elders, stepped to the middle to speak on why they chose to protest. The younger speakers gave thanks to their parents who immigrated to the U.S. to give them better opportunities, and expressed their intention to speak out on behalf of their families and those who are reasonably afraid to protest. Parents spoke about raising their children in this country, building their families and businesses here, and declared that they would be here to stay.
Just half an hour into the gathering, a policeman demanded that the group shut down their microphone and speaker setup, or that the protest would be physically disbanded. A participant of the protest spoke with the policeman and consequently turned off the speaker. Even without the microphone, individuals continued to step forward and speak as loud as they could.
“Look at this street, how horrible, and they suppose that we are a first world country”, declared a participant. “Why not improve it, healthcare for the large majority, in developing schools and universities so people can educate themselves.”
“Fortunately they didn’t get rid of us, here we are. As the Tigres del Norte say, we are more American than the son of the white man,” she continued, to loud responses of That’s right! from her audience, referencing the song “Somos Más Americanos.”
After the speeches, the group lined up along 1st Avenue, the Latin American flags gripped closely together, banner to banner, and began to sing the song “Cielito Lindo” by Trini Lopez, their voices loud and joyful especially at the chorus: Canta y no llores / Porque cantando se alegran / Cielito lindo, los corazones. Sing and do not cry / Because singing will bring joy / Beautiful sky, the hearts.
Multiple cars honked in support while driving by the demonstration. After the song, the group began to march west towards Times Square.
“It’s important that we protest on behalf of our countrymen, of all Latin American immigrants, so that they are not criminalized and deported. There are many that live here that work hard, are honest, are humble, and greatly support the economy with their taxis, with their work,” Isaac Ramírez, an organizer of the march, affirmed.
“We are with [the president Claudia Sheinbaum], with our flag, and our movement is one that is principally pro-humanist, for freedom, for justice, for emigration, but emigration that is not forced. So that the people can do it because they want to, no?” Ramírez added.
One young protestor, Briana Mendoza Peña, had red and green thread braided into her hair and held high a sign that read, Soy la voz de mis padres! I am the voice of my parents. As other youths expressed earlier that night, Briana intended to protest on the streets for those who could not.
“We are here, on the streets, to be the voices of our parents. Because at times our people are afraid, and they cannot say anything for their fear. And we are here, we are speaking out, we are going to fight for you all,” she declared.
“The opportunities that you gave us, now we are claiming them. They came to this country for this, to provide us with the best, and now they want to take that from us. How can that be? That is what this country is for, no? How can we be illegal, when this is stolen land? I cannot understand that,” Mendoza Peña concluded.
