Sessions' Visit Draws Protests

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was in Fort Wayne Thursday to deliver remarks on the immigration priorities of the Trump administration, and his appearance drew a reaction.

The protests were organized by People For the Common Good and United Activists of Fort Wayne Indiana.

Hundreds of  protesters gathered on the corner of Jefferson Boulevard and Ewing Street. They held up signs and chanted things like, “This is what democracy looks like” and “Vote them out.”

Sarah Hyndman is one of the co-founders of People For the Common Good. She was confused as to why Sessions chose Fort Wayne. She knows that the area is known to be conservative, but also has a lot of refugees and hopes that’s not why he came.

“It would be a shame if he is trying to stir up divisiveness. But I think what he doesn’t know is we really thrive on diversity here,” Hyndman said.

Assem Nasr has been a Fort Wayne resident since 2010, he waved a large American Flag throughout the protest. He hopes the takeaway from today's events is that people need to continue the conversation.

“It’s not about partisanship. It’s not about Republican, it’s not about Democrats. It is however about humanity. It’s about human rights. Let us stay true to being human rather than being partisan,” Nasr said.

Those in attendance were urged to register to vote and there were people ready to take registration forms.

Feliz Martinez attends Northrop High School. He identifies as a DACA recipient. He said he believes it’s important to be politically active, even though he is in high school.

“I feel like most people do have the time to listen to us and hear our voices.  I feel like people in the community do think we are mature enough to talk and have a voice,” said Martinez.