Beginning this last weekend, a group of North Bay immigrants and their friends embarked on a march from Vacaville to the California State Capitol in order to lend their voices to the swelling wave of anger that is being directed toward the deportation arrests that have been carried out by the Trump administration.
Despite the fact that Trump’s attempts to intimidate the community were unsuccessful, we are still out here, which is evidence that the movement is continuing to grow. According to Danny Selaya, an activist from Oakland, all of us are going to be coming to the streets.
On Saturday, they set off on their trek, and by Sunday afternoon, they were walking along the country roads that were located close to the University of California, Davis. Over the course of the approximately 35-mile journey to Sacramento, around 350 individuals will have participated in the march at various points in time.
“I really disagree with the perception that we have no power,” Selaya stated in response. “But here we have folks from all walks of life telling Trump that we won’t take his attacks and we are fighting back.”
Despite the fact that it was planned in advance, the protest march took on a new level of significance when it took place during the course of a weekend that was marked by skirmishes in Los Angeles. These clashes were sparked by a large-scale arrest and deportation operation that took place in the city and involved Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as other federal agencies.
An immigrant rights activist from the North Bay named Renee Saucedo is quoted as saying that many of the people who participated in the march were risking a risk simply by being there.
“What courage they have to do this long walk, to attend peaceful protests, knowing that they could be picked up at any minute,” she said to reporters. “I think that this walk and the protests that are happening in L.A. and other parts of the country are really a culmination of many months of endurance and suffering.”
Congressmember Sam Liccardo, who is located in Palo Alto, joined a group of California politicians in expressing their disapproval of the president’s decision to dispatch National Guard troops to Los Angeles without first obtaining a request from the current governor.
Urban policing should be left to the professionals. During a press conference, he stated that the involvement of the military was not necessary. “This deployment of National Guard troops is a reckless use of the very good and well-intentioned citizens who serve in our National Guard.”
Bernice Espinosa, who was present at the march, perceived the events that were taking place as a crisis of the law. The news that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is arresting individuals at courthouses as they appear for their immigration hearings have caused the former public defender to express her displeasure.
“This is just illogical. “We ask for us to be a country of law and order, but when we follow the laws and do everything that is supposed to be done, there is no due process,” Espinoza stated. Espinoza was referring to the fact that there is no due process. “As a lawyer, I took an oath to protect the Constitution against adversaries both internal and in the international community. In addition, the president is included in this.
As soon as the protesters arrive at the state capitol on Monday, they will be addressing an audience that is largely sympathetic to their cause. However, Saucedo is of the opinion that there will be other demonstrations.
“So, I think you’re going to have a lot more protests,” Saucedo stated to reporters. “I think people are going to stand up more and more and say, this is not right.”
A poll that was conducted just prior to the disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles revealed that a slight majority of Americans are in favor of the deportation program that is being overseen by the Trump administration. This led to the march to Sacramento.
