Families Belong Together Rally in Eureka on Saturday

A local Families Belong Together rally will join hundreds of others taking place across the country Saturday to protest the separation of families at the U.S.-Mexico border as part of a “zero tolerance” approach by the Trump administration that has left thousand of children in detention centers away from their parents.

The march is scheduled to begin at Madaket Plaza, the foot of C Street, at 10 a.m. with a Native blessing and presentations before moving along the Boardwalk and through Old Town Eureka, including a stop at the local Department of Homeland Security office, according to a release from organizers.

“To separate immigrant families, victims of violence, hunger and poverty, is to re-violate them. Children as young as 18 months are torn from their mother’s arms by the U.S. government,” the release states. “This is violent abuse. These families are victimized again by the government to which they turn for help. Families Belong Together opposes the inhumane policies of the Trump Administration, Border Patrol, and I.C.E. and calls for immediate reform.”

Read the release from local organizers of the Families Belong Together rally below:

Families Belong Together! Public outrage is growing over the shocking and inhumane treatment of families seeking refuge at our southern border and in our communities. Joining over 3,500 concerned political and community leaders and 60 cities across the country, local residents are organizing the Families Belong Together Rally in Eureka, Saturday, June 30th.

Activities will begin at Madaket Plaza, foot of C Street at 10 a.m. A Native blessing will open the events, followed by a short program including representatives from the National Union of Healthcare Workers, Centro del Pueblo, and other community members and organizations.

Calls to action will include ways for local residents to help change these failed and illegal immigration policies. Organizers will provide letters and suggested language for contacting our Congressional representatives. We will then march along the Boardwalk and through Old Town, including the office the Department of Homeland Security. Signs are welcome – please raise your voices for compassion and fairness. This a family friendly event.

“Centro del Pueblo is proud to join with many other Humboldt groups and individuals to stand against the separation of children from their parents at the border,” states Brenda, an immigrant from Mexico living in Humboldt County and member of Centro del Pueblo. “We call on everyone in our County to stand for humanity and compassion, not racism.”

Families Belong Together is a nationwide initiative that opposes the cruel, inhumane and unjustified separation of children from their parents along the U.S. border with Mexico and at other ports of entry into the U.S. Families Belong Together protests the conditions in which these children are kept – and the irreversible trauma that has already been perpetrated on these children and their parents for the crime of seeking a better life.

To separate immigrant families, victims of violence, hunger and poverty, is to re-violate them. Children as young as 18 months are torn from their mother’s arms by the U.S. government. This is violent abuse. These families are victimized again by the government to which they turn for help. Families Belong Together opposes the inhumane policies of the Trump Administration, Border Patrol, and I.C.E. and calls for immediate reform.

This article appears in Crimes Against Nature.