(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) Over 150 people attended Lights for Liberty: A Vigil to End Human Detention Camps at Washington Square, July 12, 2019 to protest the inhumane conditions faced by refugees.
A vigil was held at Washington Square Park in Salt Lake City to call for the end of immigrant camps at the border. Called Lights for Liberty, the vigil was one of thousands of gatherings held across the nation to protest the inhumane conditions faced by refugees coming to America through the southern border. Speakers at the vigil included members of the Latinx community.
Vigils in Texas, Florida, New York and Washington D.C. were held outside of the detention centers themselves. Those in attendance demanded the end of the camps.
“The Trump administration’s immigration policies and detention camps meet the United Nations’ definition of genocide and crimes against humanity,” said Elizabeth Cronise McLaughlin, lawyer, activist and organizer on the Lights for Liberty website. “Congress is refusing to stop the president and his policies. We cannot allow these atrocities to be perpetrated in our name.”
The vigils comes two days before Immigration and Customs Enforcement will carry out mass arrests of undocumented immigrants.