Thousands of immigrant workers, union members and labor advocates flooded Foley Square on Thursday to mark International Workers Day, also known as May Day—a global celebration of labor rights.
This year’s rally, held in Manhattan’s civic district, carried a powerful and unified message: Protect our families, respect our labor.
Marchers, many of whom hailed from Queens neighborhoods like Jackson Heights, Elmhurst and Corona, called on state leaders to pass the New York For All Act, which would bar local and state law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities.
“I’m a proud deliverista,” said William Medina, a Colombian immigrant and delivery worker who leads Los Deliveristas Unidos, a worker-led collective supported by the Workers Justice Project. “I’m a New Yorker who has called this city my home for the last six years. I came to this country like so many others, with a dream to live a better life for my family.”
Medina, who delivers food across Queens and Manhattan, said that essential workers like him continue to live in fear of detention under ongoing immigration enforcement policies.
“Today, on International Workers Day,” he said, “I march not just as a worker, but as a neighbor—and as someone who knows the fear of being stopped by the police for simply doing my job. I’ve seen my compañeros lose everything after being detained. I’ve felt the frustration of fighting for basic rights.”
While marchers represented a range of backgrounds and unions, they rallied around a shared cause: protecting immigrant communities from deportation and exploitation. Protesters held signs reading “No ICE in NY” and “Worker rights = Immigrant rights,” while banners flew from Queens-based advocacy groups, including Make the Road New York and Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM)—organizations that have long fought for fair wages, housing protections, and immigrant justice.
Medina warned that immigrant neighborhoods in Queens have become “hunting grounds” for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “While we work to survive,” he said, “billionaires profit from our suffering. They build prisons. They fund deportation. They grow richer while our people are locked in detention centers and disappear in the middle of the night.”
He referenced the recent case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran construction worker and father of three who was deported in March despite having a valid work permit and no criminal record. Accused without evidence of gang affiliation, Abrego Garcia remains imprisoned in El Salvador, while his U.S.-born children and wife await answers in Maryland. Legal advocates have challenged the deportation as unconstitutional, citing due process violations.
Speakers at the rally—including Medina—called on Governor Kathy Hochul and Queens-based lawmakers such as Senator Jessica Ramos and Assembly Member Catalina Cruz to advance the New York For All Act in Albany. Supporters argue the legislation is vital to ensure safety for immigrant workers across the state.
“We’re not alone. We’re not broken. We are powerful because we are organized,” Medina told the crowd. “Immigrant rights are worker rights. And worker rights are immigrant rights. Let’s stand together. Let’s fight together. Let’s win together. Sí se puede. Yes we can!”
