MIDTOWN — More than two dozen people were arrested after unfurling pro-immigrant banners in Trump Tower on Thursday afternoon, according to the NYPD and activists.
Protesters draped banners reading “No Ban,” “No Wall” and “No Raids” above the lobby at President Donald Trump’s Fifth Avenue skyscraper a little after 2 p.m., video showed.
“Say it loud and say it clear, immigrants are welcome here,” demonstrators chanted before the NYPD detained 25 people on a range of charges including disorderly conduct, refusing to disperse and obstruction of governmental administration.
All were given desk appearance tickets, police said.
Footage of the second banner coming down at the Trump Tower protests, with leaflets falling. The group is @riseandresistny. pic.twitter.com/rKXXeoia6z
— Jack Smith IV (@JackSmithIV) April 13, 2017
Six others were arrested Thursday at another anti-Trump protest in Foley Square, police said Friday morning. They faced many of the same charges.
There were no injuries in the Trump Tower protest, a police spokesman said.
“My grandparents, who fled Eastern Europe looking for both religious freedom and economic opportunity, taught me to respect all people regardless of their race, nationality or religion,” said protest organizer Jamie Bauer in a statement. “I’m honoring them today by saying loud and clear that all immigrants are welcome in the United States.”
City officials have vowed to shield undocumented immigrants arrested for low-level crimes from federal immigration officers.
“We oppose and reject the Trump Administration's hateful policies towards immigrants and refugees,” protester Alexis Danzig said in a statement, “specifically those targeting Muslim-majority countries named by Trump's Islamophobic ban, and policies directed towards the people of South and Central America.”
