Lights for Liberty began with a series of tweets describing the conditions of detention camps at the U.S.-Mexico border. With support from immigrants’ rights organizations and other grassroots activists, it grew into a global vigil and protest against inhumane treatment of asylum seekers.
On July 12, approximately 600 gatherings assembled on five continents and in every U.S. state to hold a vigil for all persons held in U.S. detention camps and, according to the press release, “to bring light to the darkness of the Trump administration’s horrific policies.”
Natick resident Julie Gordon read an Op Ed published in the New York Times on June 24, entitled “Children Shouldn’t Be Dying at the Border. Here’s How You Can Help.” One opportunity listed was the Lights for Liberty protests. When Gordon learned that Natick had not scheduled a vigil, she organized one. “I wanted people to come together. People are upset and horrified what is being done in our name to people seeking asylum, which is what this country was founded on.”
On Friday, July 12, from 6-8 PM, 120 people gathered along the sidewalk at the corner of Route 27 and Route 135, displaying signs that read: “End the Camps Now,” “No Family Separation,” “Seeking Asylum is an American Value,” and “Never again is now!” Members of the Natick Town Democratic Committee, the Wayland Democratic Committee, Swing Left, Natick is United, Indivisible, Force Multiplier and other local groups and congregations were present. Because the protest conflicted with Friday night services at the synagogue, some used the demonstration as a way of serving their religion. “That’s true for me,” said Gordon. “I’m Jewish.”
In response to the protest, “hundreds of people gave a thumbs up or waved,” Gordon said. One driver shouted, “Trump 2020!” out his truck window. “People stopped to join us, which is what we want. People have to become active. We’ll keep demonstrating to keep people aware.”
The anti-immigration policies dehumanize immigrants by designating them as “other,” said Gordon. “They are humans. They could have been my ancestors. Families are fleeing horrific violence. There’s not a whole lot of difference.” In addition, she said, “the policies the government is currently pursuing put border patrol – ordinary people – in an impossible situation. It’s partly cruelty, partly corruption. They are for-profit camps. People are making money from it, in the name of our country, with our tax dollars. That’s what upsets me the most. We have to be careful of becoming numb to what is being done in our name.”
While many impacted persons, advocates, and activists spoke at Lights for Liberty events nationwide, and candles were lit across the globe, a group stood on the perimeter of the Natick Common displaying messages, “to keep hope alive,” Gordon said.
Issue Date:
August, 2019
Article Body: