DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Hundreds of protesters are gathering along Buford Highway in DeKalb County and in the Marietta Square just a few days after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced “targeted operations” in metro Atlanta.
Nationwide, ICE has been cracking down on immigration in the weeks since President Donald Trump’s inauguration earlier this month.
ICE said they are focusing their crackdown on people who have committed crimes or have final orders of deportation, but also say those aren’t the only people.
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Channel 2′s Eryn Rogers was among thousands of people protesting along Buford Highway near Plaza Fiesta in DeKalb County.
At one point, protesters were marching in the street, shutting down a portion of the highway. Police and Georgia State Patrol have had several lanes of the highway blocked since early Saturday afternoon.
The Party of Socialism and Liberation told Rogers they organized the rally because they stand in solidarity with the immigrant community.
“A lot of people are affected by the deportations taking place across this country, a lot of people, but as you we’re not going to be scared, we’re coming in to the streets, we’re building this movement, we’re going to protect our brothers and sisters and family, we’re not going to stay inside, we’re going to come out, build this movement, and we’re going to fight,” Estevan Hernandez said.
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Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco was in the Marietta Square in Cobb County where hundreds more people gathered on Saturday afternoon.
Some were out driving cars, holding flags, beeping horns and revving engines to get the attention of those passing.
Most of them who Francisco spoke with say they have family members who immigrated to the U.S.
“We want an immigration system that won’t fail us. there’s people waiting 20 years by the time they get it they’re dead,” Mitchell Delibrado said.
Georgia’s GOP Chairman Josh McKoon responded to the protests saying he’s in support of President Trump’s immigration policy.
“We are having federal law enforcement take dangerous criminals out of communities and send them back to the countries where they belong, and that is what the majority of Americans want,” McKoon said.
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