POSTED INARTS & COMMUNITY
Multiple community groups participated in the march through Fruitvale on Saturday, Feb. 8.
by Azucena Rasilla Feb. 10, 2025, 12:33 p.m. (Oaklandside.org)
Around 100 people carrying signs and flags gathered along 34th Avenue and International Boulevard on Feb. 8 in solidarity with immigrants living in the community without legal status and to protest the looming threat of mass deportations under President Donald Trump’s administration. Another group of a little over 100 marched from 98th Avenue along International to join the demonstration.
Loud chants of “Deportations, please say no, Donald Trump has got to go,” and “ICE, shut them down, Oakland is an immigrant town” rang out as the marchers waved flags and handwritten signs. The honking of drivers in support of the rally drowned the chants as cars drove by.
The protest was organized by Oakland resident Jovanna Diaz, whose father was deported in 2006.
“To me, this is personal. After my dad was deported, he ended up passing away in Mexico. I never got to see him again,” Diaz said. “I’m here to use my voice for my dad and anyone else afraid to come out and use their voice. I wanted to know that there are people here who will speak up for you.”
Diaz told The Oaklandside that she posted the flyer on social media, and it began to spread. As more people learned about it, local organizations reached out to her to join the march. BAMN and Homies Empowerment were two of the organizations that rallied more people to join.
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Around 11 a.m., the group that had been rallying on International Boulevard marched to the intersection of 35th Avenue to meet the other group that had marched from 98th Avenue. The group, led by Cesar Cruz, co-founder of Homies Empowerment, based out of deep East Oakland, started as a youth development organization that has transformed into helping the underserved community and Oakland youth.
According to Cruz, the march began on 98th Avenue with a handful of people and others joining as the group started marching to Fruitvale.
“It’s beautiful when it’s grassroots organizations and people standing up to protest. While it doesn’t change things for society, it does for the individuals who march, who see sisters and brothers next to them from the community because right now, so many of us feel isolated and disillusioned,” Cruz said. “When people start to come together and march, it’s a way that they can feel their collective strength.”
At the corner of 35th Avenue and International, Aztec dancers led by the local Oakland group Ehecatl Tonatiuh conducted a healing circle and a prayer to bless the march, the land, and all participants.
Johanna Salazar and her daughter Julianna Garcia Salazar came to march and recruited friends to join them. The duo displayed posters designed by Salazar’s husband, Javier Salazar, who was deported in 2014 and now resides in Tijuana and works as a visual artist.
“This isn’t just about my husband, but my community. I have students who have been directly affected. People think kids don’t understand, but they do, and it is heartbreaking. We have to represent and show that we are united. Vamos a seguir apoyando a la raza,” Salazar said, concluding with, “We are going to continue to support our Latino people,” in Spanish.
Salazar works at a school in San Leandro and said the students and their parents fear the possibility of immigration officers showing up. The school, she said, held a “Know Your Rights” event to educate students and their families about what to do if they encounter ICE agents or other federal immigration enforcement personnel.
In January, under the new administration, the Department of Homeland Security announced the rollback of a Biden administration policy that restricted federal agencies enforcing immigration laws from conducting activities in“sensitive” areas,” including schools, churches, and hospitals.
After the prayer, the group marched back to Fruitvale Plaza, where Cesar Cruz of Homies Empowerment addressed the crowd and emphasized the importance of rallying.
By noon, the larger crowd had dissipated, with a handful staying behind listening to a Mexican corrido called Inmigrantes Unidos, by Jesus Mendes and Los De La Norte, which narrates the sentiment shared by those who attended the march.
“Resulta, ya quieren deportarme, en eso no estamos de acuerdo. Resulta que por ser inmigrante, mi valor es insignificante. Si supieran lo que hemos sufrido para salir adelante.”
(So, they want to deport us, and we disagree. Because I’m an immigrant, my value is insignificant. If only they knew what we went through to get ahead.)
AZUCENA RASILLA
Azucena Rasilla is a bilingual journalist from East Oakland reporting in Spanish and in English, and a longtime reporter on Oakland arts, culture and community. As an independent local journalist, she has reported for KQED Arts, The Bold Italic, Zora and The San Francisco Chronicle. She was a writer and social media editor for the East Bay Express, helping readers navigate Oakland’s rich artistic and creative landscapes through a wide range of innovative digital approaches.More by Azucena Rasilla
