‘Jews Against ICE’ marks annual day of mourning with anti-Trump protests across US

Organizers from various Jewish groups protested the Trump administration’s immigration policies in cities across the country on Sunday for Tisha B’Av, a Jewish day of mourning and remembrance.

Protests were held in New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and 60 other cities, according to The Washington Post.

{mosads}Dozens were arrested in Manhattan in a “Jews Against ICE” protest after demonstrators occupied an Amazon bookstore demanding that Amazon Web Services end its contracts with immigration authorities, HuffPost reported. The company provides cloud computing services to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other services that help the agency track migrants.

The Tisha B’Av holiday commemorates the destruction of two ancient temples, and protesters reportedly said they picked the holiday to also mourn the suffering of migrants in the U.S. 

“We are demanding an end to this unfolding modern-day catastrophe,” said organization T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, one of the groups that participated in the protests across the country.

Today, on Tisha B’Av, #JewsAgainstICE are taking action to say #NeverAgainIsNOW. Tisha B’Av is a Jewish day of mourning, and today we mourn for the people rounded up, torn from their families, thrown in cages, and deported by ICE. pic.twitter.com/zspFxS4yv8

— Jews for Racial & Economic Justice (@JFREJNYC) August 11, 2019

Video of the first arrests at #JewsAgainstICE #NeverAgainIsNow in Midtown (before the bus showed up)
So proud of the way this community shows up

Heard an estimate of 40 arrests, not sure if there’s an official number pic.twitter.com/muxdpspQxm

— Cashew (@aravahshifra) August 11, 2019

In Washington, more than 250 Jews rallied in Lafayette Square across from the White House, The Washington Post reported. Some came in groups with T-shirts and signs that said “never again,” a phrase commonly used to represent standing against the horrors of the Holocaust.

Rabbis and organizers led the group in songs and prayers.

This crowd of Jews and friends are gathered in Lafayette Square, in front of the White House in support of immigrants, and demanding that the government #CloseTheCamps. #JewsAgainstICE #TishaBAv pic.twitter.com/iiTH6iE6uf

— ❄️ Solomon Granor ❄️ (@ssgranor) August 11, 2019

Ann Ingram, 87, attended the D.C. rally with her 59-year-old daughter. Ingram criticized the Trump administration’s raids last week on poultry facilities, which resulted in the arrest of 680 people and left some children alone after their parents were detained.

“Can you imagine a child coming home to find her parents have disappeared?” Ingram asked. 

ICE has defended the raid, and acting ICE Director Matthew Albence told the Post the raids were part of a “textbook operation, carried out in a safe manner and done securely.”