Activists join in widespread immigration protests

In more than 700 cities and towns across the United States, hundreds of thousands of people gathered Saturday to demonstrate against President Donald Trump’s immigration polices. Protesters demanded the end of the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy, which requires criminal prosecution of all people apprehended for illegally crossing the U.S. border. They also called for the government to stop detaining families and to reunify immediately families who were separated. The White House has curbed its policy of holding parents separate from children but continues to detain illegal immigrant families. In Washington, D.C., on Saturday, a massive crowd gathered in Lafayette Square across from the White House in what was expected to be the largest of the day’s protests. Meanwhile, the president took to Twitter to express support for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), telling agents, “Do not worry or lose your spirit. You are doing a fantastic job of keeping us safe by eradicating the worst criminal elements.” As the day progressed, protesters converged near a New Jersey golf course where Trump was spending the weekend. They waved signs with messages such as, “Do you know where our children are?” and, “Even the Trump family belongs together.”