By a Mazeda A Uddin
New York – On May 25, over 50 people came together in the Washington Heights area of New York City for a spirited press conference and community gathering. It was a powerful mix of activists, primarily immigrants, from the New Sanctuary Coalition, people from the Washington Heights area greeting the launch of the Holyrood Episcopal Church as a sanctuary, and those from Refuse Fascism and the Revolution Club, fresh from a day confronting ultra-Right fascists’ attempt to silence Linda Sarsour.
The joint call for the event from the New Sanctuary Coalition-NYC, Refuse Fascism-NYC and the South Asian Fund for Education, Scholarship and Training (SAFEST) made clear the urgency of the event:
On Thursday, May 10, immigration agents of US Citizenship and Immigration Service, a part of the Department of Homeland Security closely associated with ICE, came to the PS 58 elementary school in Queens to “investigate” a 4thGrade student. School officials, following procedures of the NYC’s sanctuary cities program, refused to allow the Federal immigration agents into the school.
Yet this incident achieved its objective – to spread fear among students and their families. The threat is real. The Trump/Pence regime and its Attorney General Sessions are moving to attack and remove the sanctuary cities programs which have provided some protection from Federal immigration agents for immigrants and their families.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department is leading immigration agents to massively increase the number of immigrants arrested and detained – now arresting more than 400 people per day!
All this must stop! Join in protesting these latest attacks on immigrants, these latest moves of the fascist Trump/Pence regime – and support those like this school who slam the door when immigration agents come. Hands Off Sanctuary Cities, Schools and Communities!
There were speeches and welcoming from the New Sanctuary Coalition and Holyrood Church and a representative of Black Lives Matter and music. Bengadeshi Muslim activist Mazeda Uddin spoke of the hate crimes, including three murders, unleashed against Muslims in the South Asian Muslim community of Queens since Trump was nominated for president last summer. And she spoke of what it meant for immigration agents to have come to that elementary school in Queens and which led her to propose that Refuse Fascism come together with immigrants rights and Muslim rights activists in protest against this.
The speeches by Noche Diaz from the Revolution Club (in English) and Travis Morales from Refuse Fascism (in Spanish) powerfully presented how this battle for immigrants’ rights is so closely bound together with the urgency to mobilize millions to drive out this Trump/Pence fascist regime.
After the speeches, there was a deep discussion about plans to expand the sanctuary movement from the sanctuary churches throughout the community – slamming the door on Federal immigration agents whenever they come to schools, jobs, community centers, and the like.
While the mix at the event was the first for many who came, important steps were taken to carry forward the connections made that evening.
