Approximately 300 people gathered on Blackstone and Alluvial Avenues on May 1, or May Day, largely in protest of deportations and the Trump administration.
From there, they marched to the Mexican Consulate and then to the Tesla dealership in Fresno where they rallied, chanted and protesters took turns speaking.
May Day refers to International Worker’s Day and is typically accompanied by demonstrations and protests. Its origins date back to 1889 when international socialist groups and trade unions designated May 1 in support of laborers.
Thursday’s weather reached a high temperature of 88 degrees. Nonetheless, people young and old walked approximately two miles along busy streets under the blazing sun.
Among the protesters was Andrea. Due to her current immigration status, she chose to keep her last name anonymous.
“I’m undocumented fighting for my rights,” Andrea said. “As we see right now, international students are being attacked.”
Andrea said that she is feeling rage about the immigration policies pushed by the Trump administration, but has high hopes for the May Day protest.
“I’m hoping to get a sense of community,” Andrea said. “I think, not only are immigrants really feeling tired of what’s been happening federally, but also citizens, legal permanent residents [are feeling the same.]”
Andrea is not alone in her rage. The general consensus from many of the protesters is that they feel fear, anger and sadness. Benita Morris is a nurse practitioner and discussed her unique perspective as someone who works in healthcare.
“There are people that are suffering, that aren’t getting healthcare, that aren’t getting their immunizations,” Morris said. “People are going to come down with Polio because we have stupid people in our administration.”
While Morris was speaking with The Collegian, she became emotional.
“If I can’t provide good healthcare to other people, because it’s not there for them or they can’t afford it, then that makes our whole country sicker,” Morris said.
At each location, a car was driving by with flags attached that were in support of Trump. Josh Fulfer was the driver and explained his motive in the demonstration.
“We were just driving around documenting,” Fulfer said. “I have a video camera up here recording.”
The Collegian asked Fulfer how he felt about the May Day protesters.
“It’s their first amendment [right], I love the first amendment– that’s the great thing about the United States of America,” Fulfer said. “If they went back to their home country, they probably couldn’t be doing this.”
As the interview with Fulfer was taking place, a car parked roughly three feet away and honked until the interview was completed.
Atticus Martin attended the protest in association with the Party of Socialism and Liberation and spoke about the significance of May Day.
“I think this is the most pivotal moment in the working-class history for Americans,” Martin said. “May Day is an especially important day because it is built off of the backs of people who fought and died for their worker’s rights.”
Martin discussed his thoughts on the large turnout of the protest.
“[Immigrants are] some of the most exploited people within the working class, and so it’s incredibly important that we are not just advocating for, you know, citizens of the United States as a working-class, but also people who come over here,” Martin said. “It’s awesome to see so many people here for this.”
Rafael Avitia was on the organizing committee and among the several security entities at the protest. He also emphasized the amount of people present.
“This is unique, especially in the times we’re living under the Trump administration,” Avitia said. “This is incredibly unique because I did not expect as many people to come out.”
Throughout the protest, several people distributed water bottles and a van followed the march in case anyone needed to be driven back to their car.
Despite the community’s frustration, the May Day protesters voiced their concerns in a peaceful manner.
The protest concluded at the Tesla dealership, where some protesters offered others rides back to Blackstone and Alluvial Avenues. The entire event lasted approximately three hours.
