Nearly 100 people rallied outside the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in San Jose on Thursday to protest what they called repressive immigration policies as the U.S. Supreme Court considers the legality of President Donald Trump’s immigration-related executive orders targeting children of non-citizens and permanent residents.
Protesters opposed the possible end of birthright citizenship and humanitarian parole programs that protect more than 532,000 immigrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti. They also condemned U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s treatment of non-citizens and criticized the Trump administration’s attempts to accelerate the deportation of undocumented people.
Richard Hobbs, an immigration attorney and co-founder of the nonprofit Human Agenda, led a press conference at Thursday’s rally alongside members of the Solidarity and Unity Network, a South Bay coalition of at least 23 immigration advocacy organizations.
“We oppose Trump policies leading to the deportation, separation, and trauma of immigrants,” Hobbs said. “The SUN coalition stands firmly on the side of meeting the human needs of all people in the United States, in stark contrast to the Trump administration.”
The Bay Area is home to an estimated 500,000 undocumented immigrants, with Santa Clara County having the highest concentration at about 134,000 residents, or roughly 6.9% of its population.
The demonstration began at the USCIS office and proceeded peacefully for half a mile to the regional ICE office on Blossom Hill road. No law enforcement officers or counterprotesters were present.
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Community organizer Uriel Magdaleno with the Silicon Valley Immigration Committee highlighted the chilling effect of ICE actions in the region and specifically mentioned the case of Ulises Peña Lopez of Sunnyvale, who was hospitalized after an operation in February.
“While the Bay Area does not have as many ICE raids as other regions, it’s still happening,” Magdaleno said. “The ones that have been here, they’ve used excessive force.”
Lopez, a 30-year-old Mexican citizen, was arrested by ICE officers on Feb. 21 in Sunnyvale, prompting conflicting accounts of the circumstances surrounding his detention.
ICE stated Lopez was detained as part of a “targeted enforcement action” and cooperated with officers, while a GoFundMe page established for his family alleges he was forcibly removed from his car and physically assaulted after exercising his right to remain silent and request a lawyer. ICE reported that Lopez experienced a “non-specific medical emergency” during the arrest and received medical attention.
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is aware of news and social media accounts with reports on the recent arrest of illegal alien Ulises Peña Lopez, which are inaccurate and not supported by facts,” the agency said in a statement.
During the protest, Huy Tran, a lawyer and executive director of Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network, read a statement from community member Maria Aceves, an immigrant who said she was too afraid to attend due to concerns about potential repercussions.
“We are afraid because this president who came into office is deporting immigrant families and doesn’t respect immigrant rights,” Aceves’ statement read. “We don’t know what could happen to us — that’s why we’re not here. I have my children and we can’t risk it. But through this message, I hope to make it clear: Stop seeing us as if we’re criminals. We are all human beings and have the right to be treated with respect.”
Thursday’s demonstration was at least the second anti-Trump protest in San Jose within a month. On International Workers Day, large May Day marches were held across the Bay Area, including in San Jose, where many participants carried signs opposing the president’s immigration policies, potential cuts to Social Security and other programs.
Barbara Oceanlight, a Sunnyvale mental health professional who attended Thursday’s rally, said the administration’s “cruelty” motivated her participation.
“The cruelty angers me the most,” Oceanlight said. “That people are being detained who should absolutely not be detained. The brutality of arrests and detentions is agonizing to me.”
She added, “We are all immigrants to this land, except for Indigenous people who were here before all of us. Our ancestors came for a better life — just like what people are doing today. And we need to respect the dignity of that.”
