Protesters rally outside Albuquerque courthouse over death of transgender immigrant
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A group of about 50 to 100 activists from around the state and country gathered for a rally in Downtown Albuquerque on Monday morning to protest the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s treatment of detained gay and transgender migrants.
The protest, organized by the Transgender Law Center, Black LGBTQ+ Migrant Project, and Familia the Trans Queer Liberation Movement, marched through the streets and Civic Plaza before stopping in front of the federal courthouse in the intersection of Lomas and Fourth NW for a couple of hours. Protesters held signs calling for “Justice for Roxsana,” “Abolish ICE” and “End Trans Detention.” Albuquerque police officers positioned their vehicles to block traffic for the protest.
Roxsana Hernandez, also referred to as Roxana Hernandez in some news reports, was a transgender Honduran woman who was seeking asylum when she came to the U.S. last May. She was detained in San Diego and then transferred to the Cibola County Detention Center in New Mexico, where she fell ill due to complications from HIV. She died a couple of days later.
Umi Vera, an immigrant rights activist from Portland, Ore., working with Familia, said it was important for the protesters to come to New Mexico to honor Hernandez.
Read more: https://www.abqjournal.com/1213802/protest-against-ice-blocks-lomas-and-4th-nw.html