San Francisco
Over a thousand protestors gathered at the Embarcadero Plaza in opposition to President Trump’s deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents to the Bay Area at 5:00 p.m.
Supervisor for San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, Bilal Mahmood, spoke to the protestors about growing up in a dictatorship Pakistan that eventually returned to a democracy. He said it was necessary for the people to never stop fighting for their rights for the switch to happen.
“You being out here is how we got change today, but it’s not enough. We have to be out every single day, as much as we can,” Mahmood said. “Because when a dictator sees that the people oppose him, he loses power.”
Members of the Alameda, Richmond and San Francisco Labor Councils led the crowd on a march to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Field Office on Sansome Street at 6:30 p.m. They filled the streets, chanting “no ICE. no KKK, no fascist USA,” and “what do we say to the president? We want justice for immigrants.”
A protestor at the event, Martha Banda, said she was proud to be a voice for those who couldn’t be there.
“Being first generation and being able to express ourselves-doing it in such a peaceful way, it makes me feel really blessed. I’m extremely lucky to be here,” Banda said.
Alameda
At Coast Guard Island in Alameda, the crowd was a mellow group of about 50 protestors at 4 p.m. Thursday, following a mass gathering earlier that morning when protestors originally attempted to block the arrival of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents from crossing the bridge.
At 5:30 p.m. the group swelled to over 500 as protestors marched peacefully from Fruitvale Plaza to the island’s bridge and assembled in front of the driveway, where a line of U.S. Coast Guard Security Personnel blocked them from proceeding any further up the bridge.
By 6:30 p.m., protestors were coaxed into a stand off with Security Personnel as more arrived from the base, holding assault rifles pointed towards the ground but with hands at the ready to fire. On one side of the line, protestors shouted in the faces of Security Personnel who were within inches of them, creating a tense 30-minute stand off.
By 7 p.m. Security Personnel retreated back towards the span of the bridge, causing the crowd to cheer and shouting “Victory, we will be back tomorrow.”
Shortly after Oak Leaf reporters left the Alameda Coast Guard Base, a U-HAUL sped backwards up the bridge, causing Security Personnel to fire at the vehicle, as seen on KTVU FOX 2’s YouTube page. It is uncertain if it was less-than lethal rounds or live rounds. It is also uncertain who was driving the vehicle or if the driver has been found as of publishing.
This is a developing story, check back for updates as they follow
