Tulane students, faculty unite in immigrant rights demonstrations

Students+and+faculty+rally+on+the+steps+of+McAlister+Auditorium+in+a+demonstration+defending+immigrant+rights.+

Emily Fornoff | Staff Photographer

Students and faculty rally on the steps of McAlister Auditorium in a demonstration defending immigrant rights.

The past week at Tulane was marked by two student- and faculty-led demonstrations in protest of President Donald Trump’s executive order temporarily banning immigration from seven majority Muslim countries, which a federal judge in Washington temporarily suspended on Feb. 4.

The first demonstration was part of the Academics United movement, which seeks to demonstrate the extent of the impact of the executive order on students and academics around the world. This demonstration was held Thursday on the steps of McAlister Auditorium. 

The Tulane demonstration occurred at the same time as other national Academics United demonstrations at colleges and universities across the country.

International students and faculty spoke at the event, sharing their emotions and experiences. Kristy Magner, director of the Office of International Students and Scholars, shared that there are 24 Tulane-affiliated people directly affected by Trump’s executive order.

The demonstrators chanted “No ban, no wall, justice for all” and “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here.”

The second demonstration, entitled “Defend Immigrant Rights” was a smaller protest held Friday on the Gibson Quadrangle hosted by the International Youth and Students for Social Equality organization.

“The protection of immigrants and the defense of democratic rights can be advanced only through the unification of the working class, of all races, ethnicities, and nationalities, against their common enemy, the capitalist system,” its mission statement said.

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