Competing demonstrators duel over immigration in downtown Huntington Beach
Competing demonstrators duel over immigration in downtown Huntington Beach
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Protesters share words as one is detained by police after a small skirmish during protests in Huntington Beach on Saturday, April 27, 2019. Groups opposed to illegal immigration held a protest calling for the end to California’s Sanctuary City Law and marched down Pacific Coast Highway. A counter-protest held by Indivisible OC and Occupy ICE L.A. occurred across the street. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)By JEONG PARK | jeongpark@scng.com and BRIAN ROKOS | brokos@scng.com | Orange County Register
PUBLISHED: April 27, 2019 at 10:19 am | UPDATED: April 28, 2019 at 6:47 pm
Groups with opposing views on illegal immigration staged demonstrations in Huntington Beach on the afternoon of Saturday, April 27.
The “March to End Sanctuary State” began at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and 2nd Street at 2 p.m. The Democratic Socialists of America, Indivisible OC and other groups gathered across the street around the same time for the counterprotest. The dueling demonstrations, each with dozens of protesters, went on for about an hour and a half.
The group “What you can do now,” which organized the march, said on Facebook that it is protesting against California’s Senate Bill 54, which limits cooperation between police agencies and federal immigration agents.
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“Our politicians need to stop playing games with our lives and fully fund border security at our southern border,” the group said on Facebook.
The Orange County chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America said the counterprotest would “oppose hatred and white supremacy.” Many of the demonstrators chanted phrases such as “immigrants are welcome here.”
“We are not here to confront them,” Lulu Hammad, a leader of Indivisible OC said. “We are here to send a message.”
Soon after the demonstrations began, a scuffle erupted when a man tried to enter the counterprotest and challenge the demonstrators’ stance on immigration. The man did not leave even after police had told him that he was just instigating the situation.
Some people were separated by Huntington Beach Police following the scuffle; police said they made five arrests at the dueling protests, although it was not immediately known how many of them were related to the scuffle.
No other major incidents between the dueling groups happened afterward, although there were a few verbal skirmishes.
Senate Bill 54 was introduced on the first day of the 2017 California legislative session in response to President Donald Trump’s plan to crack down on sanctuary cities and step up immigration enforcement.
The premise of SB54 is that local and state law enforcement authorities cannot investigate or arrest people for federal immigration enforcement purposes.
Though aimed at reassuring the state’s vast immigrant community, the law also has become a political rallying point. Huntington Beach had sued the state last year over the bill.
This story was updated and corrected to reflect that organizers of the “March to End Sanctuary State” say they are opposed to illegal immigration; and are not anti-immigrant.
See also:
https://www.ocregister.com/2019/04/2...each-saturday/
