Less than a mile away from the El Paso, Texas stadium in which President Donald Trump delivered what critics described as a bigoted and lie-filled case for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, as many as 15,000 Texans rallied and marched Monday night in a powerful display of opposition to both the wall and the broad anti-immigrant agenda it represents.
“This is the strong and resilient border community I proudly grew up in,” Cynthia Pompa, advocacy coordinator with the ACLU’s Border Rights Center, said as the “March for Truth” kicked off early Monday evening. “No boots. No detention beds. No border walls. No more dollars for DHS.”
According to Texas authorities, somewhere between 10,000 and 15,000 people gathered for the anti-Trump, anti-border wall rally across the street from the president’s event, where—contrary to the president’s characteristic lies—the venue could only hold 6,500 due to fire regulations.
“The only threat to our border community is Donald Trump’s lies. A border wall is a threat to our environment, our economy and everyday lives as fronterizos.”
—ACLU Border Rights Center
The competing rallies came as congressional negotiators announced that they have reached an agreement in principle to keep the government open by providing over $1.3 billion for “fencing and other physical barriers” at the southern border—but no money for Trump’s wall.
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