Across the US, immigrants and their allies took part in 'A Day Without Immigrants' protests on Monday, April 10, 2023, to demonstrate the vital role they play in the nation's economy and to challenge President Trump's immigration policies.
Across America on Monday, people took a day off from work to protest President Trump 's immigration crackdown. It was called 'A Day Without Immigrants' and in Sonoma County, a region highly dependent on immigrant labor, people gathered to make their voices heard. The immigrant community has often chosen to stay quiet to not draw attention to themselves, but that's something that has made them politically vulnerable. So, on Monday, they decided to make some noise.
The cries of 'Si, se puede,' could barely be heard over the cars honking in the street. Immigrant workers and their allies skipped work to come to Santa Rosa's Old Courthouse Square in a noisy protest over the federal government's threats of deportation. 'It was pretty spontaneous, but look at the turnout,' said North Bay immigrant rights activist Renee Saucedo. 'People are hungry to come out and protest. People are terrified, and today's a day where we can all come out and say, we're not going to put up with this.' The first 'day without immigrants' was in 2017, during Donald Trump's first term in office. It was meant to demonstrate how much the nation's economic prosperity is dependent on immigrant workers. And that is especially true in Sonoma and Napa counties, the nation's premier winemaking region. 'Without the farmworkers, many of whom are undocumented, that industry would collapse,' said Saucedo. But other businesses shut down in sympathy, as well. Railroad Square was pretty quiet and the A'Roma Roastery Cafe stayed dark. Manager Andreas Christensen said she hoped it would cause people to pause for reflection. 'We're hoping that if somebody stops by for their cup of coffee today they're going to think about how that might be limited,' she said. 'Just because of the new administration and the laws that are being put into place and the crackdown on our community. So, yeah, we're hoping it will get people to think, and we just want to show our support.' Stop-work protests were held in major cities across the country on Monday, including New York, Chicago, Washington D.C. and San Francisco. It's estimated that 8.3 million undocumented immigrants are employed throughout the United States, making up more than 5 percent of the nation's workforce. Back at the rally, a group of students from Rancho Cotati High took the day off from school to join the protest. 'We didn't attend school today because we know that half of our school is at least Latino community, so we wanted to show that we are here standing with everybody,' said senior Elizabeth Reyes. Reyes and Bryan Molina are co-presidents of the school's MEChA club, an organization for Latino students. In Spanish, the word 'mecha' means a wick or fuse used to start a fire, and it appears that may be happening with young Hispanics. 'I know a lot of my friends, they weren't really involved in movements like this, but I've convinced a lot of them to join the MEChA Club,' said Molina. 'Because, even though we're seniors in high school, a lot of us are turning 18 in the next year. So, I'm telling them this is the time to stand up and be more politically aware of what's happening in this country.' During his campaign, Donald Trump lit a lot of fuses over the issue of immigration. Now, it feels like the immigrant community is learning to fight fire with fire
IMMIGRATION PROTEST TRUMP DAYWITHOUTIMMIGRANTS SONOMA ECONOMY
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