Three Hispanic House Democrats were arrested for blocking the street outside Trump Tower on Tuesday during a sit-in protesting President Trump’s immigration policies.
According to The Hill, Democratic Reps. Luis Gutierrez (Ill.), Raúl Grijalva (Ariz.) and Adriano Espaillat (N.Y.) were arrested after sitting in the street outside the building in Manhattan.
@MMViverito @RepEspaillat Rep Luis Guitierrez, Rep. Gravalja stage sit-in infront of Trump Tower for #DACA pic.twitter.com/ZGrQ5O4DCG
— Laura Figueroa Hernandez (@Laura_Figueroa) September 19, 2017
https://twitter.com/UniReEditor/status/910220538961960960
Reps. Luis Gutierrez, Raul Grijalva and Adriano Espaillat were arrested #Resist https://t.co/uQWz4Gp13a
— Thorsten (@Airvooocht) September 19, 2017
Before his arrest, Gutierrez tweeted:
Standing w/ diverse allies to make sure Congress & President do more than just talk about solutions, they actually follow through w/ action https://t.co/YxZjkKT2VT
— Luis V. Gutierrez (@RepGutierrez) September 19, 2017
“We’re making it clear to Trump, GOP & Dems: we will continue peaceful fight for #Dreamers & immigrants as long as it takes."#defendDACA
— Luis V. Gutierrez (@RepGutierrez) September 19, 2017
Via The Hill:
The lawmakers and advocacy groups are pressing Trump to work with Congress to pass a “clean” version of the DREAM Act granting undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as minors a path to citizenship, without including border security measures meant to placate immigration hawks.
“We’re taking the necessary steps to make it clear to President Trump, the Republicans and the Democrats that we will continue this peaceful fight for DREAMers and immigrants as long as it takes to enact legislation and put DREAMers in a safe place,” Gutierrez, the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force, said in a statement.
A spokeswoman for Espaillat, one of the first former undocumented immigrants to serve as a member of Congress, said he “stood up for immigrant youth to say loud and clear — unequivocally, that he dedicates his work in Congress to protecting immigrants, immigrant families, and their future in America.”
Trump is in New York City this week for the United Nations General Assembly and is staying at his namesake tower.
This comes after House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was run out of her own DACA press conference in San Francisco on Monday by illegal alien protesters who called for a clean DREAM Act.
Thirty-four people were arrested in all, ABC7 reported.
The protesters gathered at 56th Street and Fifth Avenue in front of President Trump’s home at about 11 a.m.
Just before noon, approximately 12 of the protesters decided to sit down in the middle of Fifth Avenue as a part of an organized effort. When officers asked them to move, they refused and were arrested.
The NYPD confirmed 12 arrests were made at that time. All were transported to a downtown precinct for processing.
But then another sit-in happened about two hours later, blocking traffic at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street.
People on the sidelines chanted and waved signs. They yelled “undocumented – unafraid.”
Twenty-two people were arrested in that second sit-in. Police say as long as they give their names and dates of birth, they won’t be fingerprinted.
https://youtu.be/ujZFkEY3p0o
Tuesday was just the latest arrest for Gutierrez. The Illinois congressman has been arrested at least four other times, according to The Hill:
Gutierrez was also arrested last month outside the White House during an immigration protest commemorating the fifth anniversary of DACA.
He had been arrested outside the White House twice before that, in 2010 and 2011, during similar protests. Gutierrez was additionally arrested at a Chicago Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in March while protesting deportations of DACA recipients.
You would think that a lawmaker would know better than to repeatedly break the law — but I guess that’s too much to expect from some Democrats.
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