Inland Empire residents gathered June 14 to participate in two “No Kings” protest in Corona in response to illegal immigration enforcement sweeps and to denounce the Trump administration.
“No Kings” took place in about 2,000 cities across the country and with more than 100 activist groups joining. The Inland Empire residents participated in multiple cities, including Riverside, Victorville and Temecula.
Corona’s protests were scheduled near City Hall and Rimpau Park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The town’s rally was planned by Zoe Garcia, 18, a Corona native and 7-year activist.
“It first started when one of my relatives got detained by ICE,” she said.
She explained her family member was held in the Adelanto ICE Processing Center located in San Bernardino County. Garcia described the conditions as inhumane, which led her to become an advocate for her local community.
Garcia posted about the Corona protest on Instagram with details of the event. Her goal with the demonstration was to bring the city’s residents together to showcase empathy and solidarity for its undocumented communities.
“Corona PD saw the post first and had some general questions,” Garcia said. “They just wanted to monitor the area to make sure no one would hijack the protest.”
The crowd remained peaceful as people befriended each other and danced to the music playing on Garcia’s speaker.
By 11 a.m., a crowd of around 60 people formed in front of the Civic Center on 6th Street with a mix of U.S. and Latin American flags. Cars honked their horns in support as they drove by, with the crowd cheering every time.
Although people came with signs directed towards ICE and immigration policies, others expressed their discontentment with the Trump administration as a whole. Sheyla Rosas, 19, attended two other protests earlier this week before joining the Corona-based rally. She expressed her disdain for Trump’s military parade, which coincided with the weekend’s protest, relating it to the acts of other authoritarian countries.
“This parade is a waste of money,” she said. “I pay tax dollars and contribute to this society. Trump is not working my shifts to be taking my money and using it like that. But when I ask for [financial aid] for school, where is the money?”
Troops and tanks rolled into Washington, D.C. for a parade that celebrates the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army and falls on Trump’s 79th birthday.
Lexi Sanchez,20, attended the 6th Street protest to advocate for her neighborhood’s undocumented residents..
“As a child of immigrants who and someone who witnesses needless violence, I believe if you need refuge, you have the right to enter wherever you need to be to feel safe,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez liked the fact that the nationwide protests happened on the same day as D.C’s military parade.
“It shows a good marker of opposition,” She said. “It’s more powerful to use our voice today.”
