June 21, 2018 By Tara Law
Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer is organizing a rally in Woodside Monday to protest the Trump administration’s separation of immigrant children from their families.
The “March Against Family Separation” will congregate near St. Sebastian’s Roman Catholic Church at 58-02 Roosevelt Ave. at 7 p.m.
The protest aims to condemn the administration’s policy of taking children who illegally cross the border away from their parents. Although the president signed an executive order to end the practice on Wednesday, it is uncertain when and whether the 2,300 children held in detention facilities will be reunited with their parents.
Van Bramer said that he is holding the march as a means to let the immigrant and refugee community know that they are welcome in Queens.
Van Bramer said that he urges anyone who is disturbed by Trump’s immigration policies to attend the march.
“When this is all over, people will ask ‘what did you do,’ and ‘were you a part of the resistance?’” said Van Bramer.
It's now 1:53am here in NYC and the crowd at LaGuardia is standing strong to say #FamiliesBelongTogether pic.twitter.com/tg1avUxOCC
— ACLU (@ACLU) June 21, 2018
Van Bramer said that he attended the protest at LaGuardia Airport late Wednesday night and that it cemented his desire to help mobilize the community.
Van Bramer learned at 10:30 p.m. that evening that protesters were gathering at the airport to condemn Trump’s policy and to support a group of immigrant children who were being moved to a detention center.
He joined a group of several hundred protesters gathered at the airport from about 11:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. The experience, he said, both saddened him and made him feel inspired.
“It is really easy to lose faith right now— certainly in our government,” said Van Bramer. “The thing is, there are a lot of really good people who care [about the children], who are willing to put themselves on the line.”
Almost 1:30am at LaGuardia and these two signs are just so powerful. This is why we are here and why we must fight this. #Resist #endfamilyseparation pic.twitter.com/LAdxz9LF8M
— Jimmy Van Bramer (@JimmyVanBramer) June 21, 2018
