After President Trump declared a national emergency Friday to fund construction of a wall along the U.S. southern border, several Bloomington groups organized a protest against the wall Tuesday at Sample Gates.
About a dozen people were at the protest, which started at 11:30 a.m. They held handwritten signs and banners with messages in support of immigrants and against the president, U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and the border wall. The protestors waved at cars honking in support of them as they drove by.
“It’s not an actual emergency,” freshman and UndocuHoosiers member Deisdy Rodriguez said. “There are other, actual emergencies. He’s abusing his power.”
The president announced the emergency declaration after Congress passed a spending bill that did not include the money he wanted for the wall.
“I feel compelled to voice my concern against a border wall,” Marta Gerbig, 45, said. “I think the policy is grounded in racism.”
Bloomington’s Tuesday demonstration joined similar protests in cities around the country. Pamphlets handed out at the protest called for protestors to “create a real national emergency for Trump.”
The idea for the protest in Bloomington came from IU on Strike. According to the group's Twitter biography, it organized a strike in April 2013. “Can we mobilize here in #Bloomington against the #FakeTrumpEmergency and to support asylum-seekers? We can help deal #blockthewall and block Trump," the group tweeted.
