Since the current wave of ICE raids began, protests against Donald Trump’s hardline immigration stance have risen across the country. Some of those gatherings have been large, like the march which drew an estimated 20,000 people to the heart of Houston earlier this month. That event was sponsored in part by FIEL Houston and the immigrant-led civil rights organization was back at it last night, presenting From Houston With Love, a midweek rally at Guadalupe Plaza Park on Houston’s east end
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This come-together wasn’t quite as large. The group attending the 90-minute protest covered about half the plaza’s concrete meeting slab. They were able to squeeze together at the end of the evening for a group photo. But, on a chilly evening, in the shadows of the park’s ornate fountain, FIEL’s executive director Cesar Espinosa reminded the gathered that if even one person had arrived for the meet-up, it could still yield something productive and positive.
“One of my mentors who passed away said as long as one of us is challenging the system, then that’s all it takes. Every single one of you is a beacon of hope for all of those who couldn’t be here, who didn’t want to be here, who had trouble getting here and so, thank you for coming,” he said in his closing remarks before adding the quip that, despite the cold, the protestors were there to “melt ICE.”
FIEL teamed with rapper, social activist and philanthropist Trae tha Truth for the rally. Espinosa said From Houston With Love was planned after he’d received a surprise phone call from the legendary Houston rapper, who’d seen the super rally FIEL helped organize on Sunday February 2, a massive outpouring which stretched from Montrose to Hermann Park and caused road closures.
“He said, ‘I’m mad at you,’” Espinosa shared, with Trae standing behind him awaiting his turn to address the crowd. “I was like, ‘Trae, this is the first time we’ve talked, how can you be mad at me?’ And he said, ‘I should have been there on Sunday alongside of y’all.’”
Before passing him the microphone, Espinosa reminded the protestors that it was indeed Black History Month, however assailed months which celebrate cultural and gender identities are under the present administration. He reminded the crowd, which was predominantly Latino, that black Americans are allies who are frequently pitted against Latinos. He quoted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and referenced W.E.B. Du Bois in his comments. Calling him one of Houston’s unsung heroes, he then gave way to Trae tha Truth who confirmed his introduction to FIEL.
“That’s a true story, I did call him,” Trae said. “Me and my daughter, we just flew back in from L.A., helping with the fires, and I had seen the march that they had. I wasn’t mad but I was like, man, I should have been there. I reached out to him and was like, well, what can we do? Because at the end of the day a lot of us go through a lot of situations and it’s important for a lot of people to stand together. We’ve got to figure out what we can do, how I can play my part.”
Trae said he urged Espinosa to organize something quickly, not just to fit his schedule but because of the urgent nature of the matter. ICE raids continue, reporting is on the rise and civil rights groups are working overtime to ensure immigrants know their rights in the face of this frenzied activity.
“These situations that’s going on are affecting people as we speak now,” Trae reminded. “I seen a sign out there – let me see. I want them to see this because I felt this when I seen this sign. I’m gonna explain why. It says, ‘Just as my parents fought for my future, I’m going to fight for theirs.’
“I’ve seen so many people and I’ve had people that I’m actually hands-on with get all the way to the finish line and then randomly one day they say even though you went through every procedure you needed to do to take care of your family and make you a citizen, everything’s on hold right now. Even with that being on hold, we’re gonna let everything fall apart. For me, I don’t feel that’s right.”
Neither did many of Trae’s fellow speakers, passionate Houstonians who took the podium to share their stories in English and Spanish. FIEL’s legal services director Aura Espinosa, Cesar’s sister, spoke to the legal assistance FIEL offers immigrants with applying for or renewing DACA and advancing their path to citizenship. She also asked the parents in attendance to make the fight for immigrants’ rights a family affair.
“As an undocumented person, I came to the United States at 7. It was really hard to learn the way the United States works. Now I feel that this is my home. I’m a mom of three,” she said. “It’s important to teach them since they’re young to fight for what is right. We need more people to get their kids involved at a small age.”
Additional speakers included Melissa Blanco, a longtime journalist and morning radio show host, Susana Oxlaj, the director and founder of Houston’s Miss Chiquitita pageant and Reinas Fiesta Patrias and Norma Lopez, a former DACA recipient who shared her story. The evening included an Aztec drum and dance performance led by Enereya Salazar and a rap performance by Juan Carlos Rodriguez, a Houstonian by way of Honduras who delivers socially-conscious messages through hip hop. The evening’s emcee was local journalist Samara Perez.
Perhaps the most impassioned speaker of the night was Frida Adame, a busy social justice advocate and DACA recipient. Adame shared she came to the U.S. as an undocumented 10 year-old. That was 19 years ago and since she has seen Dreamers’ rights assailed first-hand. She became an activist after her younger sister applied for DACA, investing her money and heart, only to see the program halted during Trump’s first presidential term.
“My sister didn’t get her money back and worse, she had her hope taken away. The security that she longed for, the assurance that she wouldn’t be deported, was ripped from her. I remember her crying, with fear in her face, my little sister, who had been here since she was 5 years-old. And that’s the moment that I knew I had to do something. So, I stood up and I took action.”
Adame was telling her own story but she, Trae the Truth and the gathered – a small but vocal crowd – embodied Cesar Espinosa’s mentor’s ideal. Just one person can make a difference.
“I am here today to stand up for myself, my mother, my sister, my neighbors, my friends, my immigrant community,” Adame said to cheers, “because we are everywhere. We are taxpayers, nurses, educators, engineers, construction workers and farmers. We pick up the food that feeds this country and we built the very places that we stand on today. We are the backbone of America. We might not run America, but we make America run.”
