Immigrants rally in Harrisburg for change on national, state levels
The people rallying at the Capitol on May Day were organized by immigrant advocacy groups CASA and Make the Road PA. (Photo by Katie Meyer/WITF)
(Harrisburg) — The first of May–or May Day–saw protests spread across the country as people took off work to voice their frustrations over the Trump Administration’s immigration policies.
One such rally, held in a mixture of Spanish and English, coalesced on the Capitol steps in Harrisburg.
Demonstrators waved signs and red flags and chanted in both languages. All seemed very aware that just two days before, supporters of the president had gathered a few miles away to support, among other things, a very different vision for American immigration.
“Under our country’s current administration…we are more than ever before keenly aware that the light of liberty is going out,” said Gregory Edwards, pastor of Allentown’s Resurrected Life Community Church.
His tone was echoed by many at the rally, like Adanjesus Marin, director of the immigrant advocacy group Make the Road Pennsylvania.
And Marin argued that priorities are out of balance on the state level as well.
“The state of Pennsylvania has a lot of needs,” he said. “What we don’t need is for [state lawmakers] to be wasting their time trying to pass anti-immigrant, racist, hate bills.”
Marin was referring to proposals to withhold state funding from cities and schools that protect undocumented immigrants from deportation.
The rally was co-organized by Make the Road and CASA, another advocacy group for immigrants.
A collection of interviews, photos, and music videos, featuring local musicians who have stopped by the WITF performance studio to share a little discussion and sound. Produced by WITF’s Joe Ulrich.
