Fil-Ams join Migrants Day rally against Trump’s mass deportation plan

Photo from Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights

LOS ANGELES – Filipino immigrants were among hundreds of people who marched through the streets of downtown Los Angeles on International Migrants Day to protest President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan.

Pilipino Workers Center representative John Perales, who spoke during the rally on Wednesday, said Trump’s immigration policies are a “direct assault on values that all Americans hold: family fairness and freedom.”

A human trafficking survivor,  Perales said he knows first-hand “how critical immigration protections are.”

“I know what happens when the system fails to protect us,” said Perales, addressing rallyists who carried signs that read, “Keep families together and safe,” “No person is illegal” and “Education, not deportation.”

Perales said that like other immigrants, he came to the United States with “hopes and dreams for a better future.” He said undocumented immigrants should fight for “safety, dignity and the opportunity to build a life” in the US and that they should “not let anyone dehumanize” them.

There are more than 950,000 undocumented immigrants, including about 48,000 Filipinos, according to the Migration Policy Institute, but immigrant advocates believe the actual number is much higher.

Photo from Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights

In honor of International Migrants Day, local organizations and hundreds of people gathered in downtown Los Angeles in an act of solidarity with immigrants, who fear President-elect Donald Trump’s promised plans for mass deportation.

Immigrant advocates, including members and supporters of the Pilipino Workers Center and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) led the 1.5-mile march, rallying at Placita Olvera, 125 Paseo de la Plaza.

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The event was part of the Fair Immigration Reform Movement national week of action, which calls on President Joe Biden and Congress to protect immigrant families, and do what they can to enact measures to prevent incoming President Trump’s promised crackdown on illegal immigrants.

Biden and the 118th Congress can take action by voting against a proposal to increase funding requests for immigration enforcement and detention, according to CHIRLA.

Additionally, federal leaders have an opportunity to extend protections for immigrants who have temporary protected status and deferred action for childhood arrivals, also known as DACA.