If you have been paying attention to the news you will know the terrible situation surrounding the refugee children being separated from their parents. The idea of children being ripped from their parents in an unfamiliar country can be scary. Not only that but the images that were shown of the conditions where they were being held, like prisoners, was just disgusting. So when I heard about the Families Belong Together protest I decided I needed to participate.
Let me go back a few days, I was sitting around watching the news when they discussed the Families Belong Together protest that will be taken place Saturday June 30th,. Watching this made me realize that I needed to do something, yes voting helps but also being present and standing your ground helps as well. I decided that I would be attending my first protest. So on Saturday morning I threw on a white t-shirt and headed out to Westlake Village California (where majority of the residents are republican). I had this notion beforehand that it would be under a hundred people attending because of the type of town but boy was I wrong. Pulling up to the location I could see a sea of white in the distance, the amount of people who showed up surprised me. On every corner was a sea of supporters with signs showing their frustration with the separation of kids, this administration, Planned Parenthood, racism and more.
The one thing that stuck out at this protest was the stories I got to hear from three women I met. All three of the women were immigrants to this country and had stories of when they arrived and stories from their parents’ childhood. Two were Jewish and talked about the stories of their parents being in concentration camps and how it reminded them of those stories. It just goes to show that so many people you stand next to work with, and live next door to were possible immigrants, if they weren’t their parents or great grandparents were. Hearing these stories made this protest that more special.
Overall, other then voting I thought it was time for my to take a stance against something I do not agree with. For my first protest it was a great experience. To see everyone with different backgrounds supporting a cause to try and make a change was awesome. From everyone standing outside with the signs to the drivers blowing their horns in support showed the solidarity of the people. With everything going on, depending on your perspective, it was a brightness in the cloudiness our country is experiencing right now.
OH AND DO NOT FORGET TO VOTE!
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