Hundreds Rally Against ICE Enforcement in Hempstead and Brentwood

Hundreds of protesters marched through Hempstead and Brentwood Saturday to oppose U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and support Long Island’s immigrant families, according to rally organizers. As detailed in a previous report on North Shore Democrats rallying against ICE operations in Nassau County, community opposition to federal immigration enforcement has been building across the region.

Nearly 150 people marched from a shopping center parking lot to Hempstead Village Hall in the morning, while approximately 300 demonstrators walked 1.5 miles along Fifth Avenue to the Suffolk County Police Department’s Third Precinct in the afternoon.

The weekend rallies marked the first of four planned protests, with additional demonstrations scheduled for Sunday in Huntington and Riverhead, according to organizers.

Courtney Belanger of Assemble Long Island, a progressive activist group that helped organize the Brentwood rally, said organizers selected locations in areas of Long Island hit hardest by ICE enforcement.

“I really hope that it just helps people see that these are our neighbors, our friends, our family, and they need our help,” Belanger said.

The Brentwood march targeted the police department after ICE agents were seen using three Suffolk precincts, according to Belanger, although the department maintains it does not cooperate with ICE.

Demonstrators held signs, waved American flags, blew whistles and chanted while calling for elected officials to support immigrants. The protests continue a series of demonstrations across Long Island that began during the previous Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

Maryorie Saravia, 22, of Bay Shore, said friends of hers have been detained and deported, making the issue personal for her as a child of immigrants.

“I remember that uncertainty I felt,” said Saravia, who was born in the United States to Salvadoran parents. “I can’t imagine how people who are undocumented feel.”

Saravia recalled how her younger siblings feared their parents would be taken during the first Trump administration.

Hazel Leon of the nonprofit Así Vamos NY helped organize the Hempstead rally and said part of the messaging focused on supporting the New York For All Act, legislation that would bar state and local agencies from collaborating with federal immigration officials.

The legislation “will really help protect our immigrant communities right now from the collusion that is happening between our local police and our federal immigration,” Leon said.

The rallies come as federal officials say the immigration crackdown targets violent criminals. However, a report last month found more immigrants in Nassau County jails have no criminal history than those who do.

Two weeks ago, a pro-ICE caravan originating in Bellmore drove past anti-ICE demonstrations in Nassau County to show support for the agency and its mission.

The youngest speaker at the Hempstead rally was 13-year-old Hailey Ramos, who recited an essay describing how immigration enforcement affects children. She spoke about kids being afraid to attend school and others unable to focus on classwork while wondering if their parents would still be home at day’s end.

“Children shouldn’t be used as leverage,” Hailey said, drawing loud cheers from the crowd.

Her mother, Nathaly Ramos, 31, of Uniondale, embraced her daughter after the speech.

“I want everybody to know exactly how kids her age feel,” Nathaly Ramos said afterward.

She said while her eighth-grade daughter is typically shy, she expresses herself through writing. Hailey said she felt it was important to use her voice at the rally.

One day before the weekend protests, a coalition of Long Island community groups held a news conference urging Nassau County to end its cooperation with ICE.

In his February State of the Union address, President Trump repeated his stance that “unrestricted immigration and open borders” causes problems including “higher medical bills, car insurance rates, rent, taxes and, perhaps most importantly, crime.”