Dozens of people gathered outside the American consulate in Calgary on Saturday to join global action protesting the treatment of immigrant families in the U.S. and striving to reunite those who have been unjustly divided.
More than 2,500 migrant children have been taken away from their families in recent weeks and held in detention centres as part of the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
Many of the people who attended Calgary’s rally said they were there because someone needed to send the right message to the government.
“People need to start standing up to injustices like this and let the governments know that we’re tired of it and we’re not going to take stuff like this,” said Amanda Puerzer. “It’s just unconscionable to know that kids are being held like political pawns in camps without their parents.”
Pam Cole, a social worker, also attended the rally says she is passionate about the fight and knows that a rally in Calgary is just as important as one on the steps of the White House.
“Every little bit of impact, every little bit of influence helps.”
Calgary wasn’t the only community in Alberta to hold an anti-Trump rally on Saturday.
A group also gathered on the streets of Lethbridge sharing the same message of disapproval of the immigration issues.
Krysty Munns, who organized the gathering, says that while they are smaller than most communities participating, they are still making their voices heard.
“We are standing in solidarity as this is something that we are not cool with. What’s going on in the United States is inhumane. There are still a lot of children who have not been reunited with their families. It’s a call to action to make a statement.”
One of the attendees of Lethbridge’s rally was Alejandro Davila, who was an immigrant himself to Canada from Ecuador.
He’s been in Canada for the past seven years and never could imagine being treated in such a way.
“I cannot imagine myself being separated from my family, living in a different country. It’s just heartbreaking.”
Davila hopes that people will be able to relate to the situation that immigrants face when they are trying to make a better life for their families.
“Being far away from families is difficult and if they can put themselves in our shoes. Hopefully politicians can put laws in to change things.”
More than a dozen other events were organized in Canada on Saturday, including in Winnipeg, Edmonton and Ottawa.
They joined hundreds of thousands of people in over 700 communities across the United States all marching in defiance of Trump’s immigration policies.
(With files from Ina Sidhu, the Canadian Press and the Associated Press)
