Hundreds gathered in subfreezing temperatures on Tuesday night to march across East Baltimore to protest the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and the Trump administration.
The rally and march through the Patterson Park and Highlandtown areas was part of a series of protests nationwide, held on the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s return to office.
Some, such as 27-year-old Amaris Duncan, were protesting for the first time.
Duncan lives in the Patterson Park area and had avoided similar protests out of fear for her safety. However, as someone who is Cuban, Grenadian and Black, Duncan said she’s been saddened and angered by the arrests of people in her neighborhood by ICE agents. Coming out Tuesday took a lot of reflection.
“I am terrified, but can I put that fear aside for an hour or so — or manage it at least for an hour — to come out and support my people who feel this fear all of the time?" Duncan asked.
She toted a cardboard sign that said, “Que Vivo Mi Gente,” which translates to, “Let My People Live.”
Women’s March, 50501, Color of Change and other organizations partnered for the national demonstrations dubbed “Free America Walkout.” People were encouraged to walk out of school and work and avoid commerce. As of Tuesday afternoon, more than 1,200 events were planned across the country with an estimated 45,000 participants, according to the organizers’ website.
“We will withhold our labor, our participation, and our consent. A free America begins the moment we refuse to cooperate,” the website says.
In response to an email seeking comment on the protests Tuesday, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson replied, “Who cares?”
In Baltimore, several groups called for residents to gather at 5 p.m. at the corner of Eastern and Linwood avenues near Patterson Park. The protesters hit the streets to demand justice for victims of shootings by ICE, including Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins and Solomon Antonio Serrano-Esquivel, who were shot and wounded on Christmas Eve in Glen Burnie; Renee Nicole Good, who was fatally shot driving her vehicle in Minneapolis; and Keith Porter, who was shot and killed by an off-duty ICE agent in the Los Angeles area on New Year’s Eve.
Organizers opted to start their protest in the early evening to increase participation, and they chose the Patterson Park and Highlandtown areas because they have been the sites of many arrests by ICE agents, said Rachel Viqueira of the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
Similar demonstrations were scheduled in Bowie, Chestertown, Laurel and parts of Montgomery County. Viqueira said she thinks worsening conditions have driven the growth of mass mobilizations.
“These demonstrations offer a first step for people to get engaged in a struggle long-term,” Viqueira said. “Not only have these kinds of demonstrations grown, but the other activities that happen behind the scenes — those long meetings, those calls, the different kinds of outreach activities, organizing around legislation sometimes, doing education — all of these activities, I think, have also grown around the city.”
Since Trump returned to office, Marylanders had taken to the streets for nationwide demonstrations in May, June and October. Sondre Barnett, who donned a red wool coat and a white floppy hat, an outfit similar to those worn by oppressed women in the dystopian novel and television show “The Handmaid’s Tale,” has attended multiple rallies against the Trump administration over the past year.
“As long as misogynists and racists hold the power, I’ll be marching,” Barnett said.
The Baltimore Police Department assisted with traffic flow, blocking off streets as protesters marched from Eastern Avenue, down South Highland Avenue and up East Baltimore Street. Demonstrators chanted, “No justice? No peace. No ICE on our streets,” under the sound of a police helicopter, drums and honking horns.
Recent polling by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about four in 10 Americans approve of Trump’s performance as president — virtually unchanged from when he first took office last year — but only half of those polled believe he has the right priorities.
Some 45% of Americans believe Trump has helped immigration and border security “a lot” or “a little,” but many believe the president has “gone too far” in his immigration crackdown, the AP found. Only 38% of Americans approve of Trump’s approach to immigration, down from 49% when he first took office, per polling.
Polling was conducted following the death of Good, a mother of three from Minnesota whose killing was captured on video. Trump administration officials have maintained that the ICE agent who killed her acted in self-defense. Good’s death sparked protests in Baltimore earlier this month.
“I love the fact that Good’s story has polarized people and gotten people moving, but she’s just one of many,” Barnett said. “We have to take a stand now. We have to be firm. We have to demand action.”
The Associated Press and The Banner’s Clara Longo de Freitas contributed to this story.
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