SCRANTON — About 80 people gathered around Courthouse Square on Sunday afternoon to support immigrants and oppose raids and violence by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Many pointed to the fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday after an encounter with an immigration officer as their reason for braving cold temperatures to make their voice heard.
The Minnesota killing and a separate shooting in Portland, Oregon, a day later by Border Patrol agents set off protests in multiple cities and denunciations of immigration enforcement tactics by the U.S. government, according to an Associated Press report. The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents, per the AP.
“Anybody who viewed the video can see what happened, and any way that this administration tries to color it is a blatant lie,” said Tony Acquaviva of Elmhurst Twp., who attended the rally with his wife, Mary Alice. “It was cold-blooded murder. These guys are untrained and trigger happy. They’re just ready to explode, many of them.”
Will and Julie Cohen of Scranton participate in a rally Sunday afternoon on Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton to support immigrants and oppose ICE raids. (ROBERT TOMKAVAGE/STAFF PHOTO)
Tony and Mary Alice Acquaviva of Elmhurst Twp. participated in a rally Sunday afternoon on Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton to offer support for immigrants and oppose ICE raids. (ROBERT TOMKAVAGE/STAFF PHOTO)
Sister Suzie Armbruster recites a prayer Sunday afternoon during a community rally on Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton to show support for immigrants and protest ICE raids. (ROBERT TOMKAVAGE/STAFF PHOTO)
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Will and Julie Cohen of Scranton participate in a rally Sunday afternoon on Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton to support immigrants and oppose ICE raids. (ROBERT TOMKAVAGE/STAFF PHOTO)
Alejandra Marroquin of Scranton showed up Sunday to support immigrants and refugees.
“Anyone who has ever moved from one place to another, seeking a better life, should not be criminalized, killed or defamed,” she said. “It’s my Christian value.”
Sister Suzie Armbruster, I.H.M., Scranton, recited a prayer during Sunday’s event.
“We do not need to accept what is happening in our country and in our own community,” she said. “We stand strong and believe that good people overtake evil. We hold everything in our hearts. We hold all of our brothers and sisters, no matter where they’re from. We hold all of them … those that are living right here in our own community. We remember Renee Good. We remember all those that have been victims of violence, and we know that we can join our hearts and voices in a peaceful way.”
Mary Valburg of Clarks Summit said she believes local community members must take action to bring about positive change amid tumultuous times.
“I’m here to show my support for immigrants and highlight the violence with which our administration is proceeding,” she said. “I think we need to pressure our local politicians with our votes and with protests like this, as often as we can, to try to bring all this to light.”
Will Cohen of Scranton also feels it’s important for people to bond together for the common good.
“It’s a very volatile and delicate time in our country,” he said. “People are calling good things evil and evil things good. It’s important that we try to ground our country and communities in moral clarity. What happened in Minneapolis was not right, it was not just, it was not legal. We’re interested in making sure that our country gets back onto a path of legality and justice.”
Julie Cohen stood up for immigrants and stressed they should be embraced in Northeast Pennsylvania.
“Many of us, I think, are joining here as Catholics, but also as residents of Scranton, which has such a rich immigrant heritage,” she said. “We want to continue that and welcome immigrants and refugees who have contributed so much to this area. We don’t think we need ICE here. If there are people who are committing serious crimes, they can be apprehended in other ways. The whole policy of mass deportations is really an affront to human dignity. We’ve heard that from Pope Francis and we’ve heard it from Pope Leo. It’s really against Catholic social teaching but also our values as Scrantonians and Americans.”