In what's being called a stand for justice, several groups rallied in Baltimore protesting President Donald Trump's recently revised travel ban.
In the backdrop of a St. Patrick's Day parade downtown, several groups stood amid the parade-goers fighting to make sure their cultures were recognized.
"The hate that we're seeing is the flip side of the same coin in many communities that have been impacted: Japanese-Americans, Irish-Americans, African-Americans. It makes it even more important for all of us to stand together," Dr. Zainab Chaudry said, recognizing the irony of the day's events.
She is in charge of Maryland's Outreach Department for the Council on American-Islamic Relations or CAIR. Chaudry and dozens of others protested condemning recent hate crimes around the country, including threats to places of worship in Maryland.
"For any community to live in fear or to be afraid of waking up the next day not knowing if they're going to still be safe and secure in their homes -- I think that's something that's antithetical to the values that our country was founded upon," she said.
Protesters call President Trump's executive order banning people from certain countries a contrast to the United States' values and say it's tearing families apart.
"We responded to dozens of calls from families right here in Central Maryland who have been divided by this immigrant detention," Elizabeth Alex, of Casa, said.
It's a reality the group wants to change.
"This is Maryland's opportunity to stand up for justice -- to stand up for immigrant families," she said.
It's a push for solidarity and bringing people together.
"This country is a nation of immigrants. Unless you are Native-American, you came to this country on a ship, on a plane. We make up the fabric of this nation," Rabbi Daniel Burg said.
Protesters want to make sure state lawmakers pass the 'Trust Act' that would limit how much state and local resources can be used during the enforcement of immigration laws.
