Hundreds fill downtown Macon streets in march against ICE

Hundreds of Middle Georgians bundled in heavy jackets and knit hats filled Rosa Parks Square in Macon Wednesday evening for a protest against recent activities by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minneapolis.

The protest was organized by the Middle Georgia chapter of Democratic Socialists of America. Organizers said its purpose was to peacefully object to the Trump administration’s actions against immigrants and migrants and the recent fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens in Minnesota by ICE agents.

“Macon is part of the nation,” said attendee David Dickey. “We cannot divorce ourselves from what’s happening in Minneapolis.”

The march mirrors similar protests throughout the country as national outcry intensifies against administration policies and practices.

Participants marched from the square to the federal courthouse on Mulberry Street. A candlelight vigil was also held for Renee Good and Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis residents shot and killed by federal agents.

Martha Anderson — wrapped in a multicolored feather boa — was one of the first marchers to arrive at the square.

“Lord, here lately, what’s happening with ICE and our own U.S. citizens being murdered in the street — I couldn’t possibly stay home,” she said.

Trump and his administration are “disassembling the constitution,” Anderson said.

She held a sign depicting the Statue of Liberty against an American flag backdrop. The iconic U.S. symbol covered her face with her hands next to text that read, “Are we great yet? Because I just feel embarrassed.”

“I’m ashamed and I’m embarrassed of how the rest of the world sees our country,” Anderson said. “We used to be the greatest in the world. We were the American Dream.”

Other marchers brought handmade signs and posters that read, “Let the trials begin,” “Hate won’t make us great,” “Love thy neighbor, ” “End the secret police” and “The only place ICE belongs is in my sweet tea.”

“People are really wanting to get out and make their voices heard,” DSA founder and Perry resident Will Burnside said. “The solution is community, and people are looking for that.”

For some Middle Georgians like 18-year-old Bonaire resident Margo Swift, the march in Macon offered one of the only opportunities in the area to protest.

“Being so young, it’s kind of hard to find the ability to speak out,” she said. “I was kind of just sick of it. It gets to a point where it’s not OK.”

Swift traveled to Macon for her first-ever protest because of its larger community presence, she said.

Another Bonaire resident, Lorenza Jacobs, came with her.

“I personally can’t ask other people to care about how Black people are being treated without actively caring about how other people are being treated,” Jacobs said.

Swift and Jacobs joined the line of marchers snaking through Cotton and Cherry streets, many of them chanting “Donald Trump has got to go” and “No ICE, no KKK, no fascist USA.”

Other community members showed up because they said they wanted a different world for their children.

“A profound sadness brought me out here,” said Kathy Roche, a Macon resident for more than 30 years.

Liam Conejo Ramos, the Minneapolis 5-year-old who recently made global headlines after being detained by ICE, reminded her of her young grandson, she said. 

Roche held a sign above her head that read, “I am a mother of three. I protest when my government is acting illegally. I am Renee. Will I be shot next?”

“It does feel like you can just be grabbed off the street because somebody thinks your skin is brown or your accent is funny,” Roche said, adding that she trusts the local sheriff’s department, but not ICE, who she believes needs more training.  

Shelly Price attended the Wednesday evening march with her husband and twin sons in an effort to show her children the significance and importance of speaking up.

“This is the world they’re coming into, and I don’t want it to be a world that murders you because you’re trying to help your neighbors,” Price said.

Several guest speakers addressed the crowd with megaphones on the steps of the courthouse before the marchers returned to the square for the candlelight vigil.

This protest is just the beginning, Burnside said.

“We don’t want to just hold a march,” he said. “We want conversations to come out of it.”

The DSA plans to host a town hall and open forum at 3 p.m. this Saturday, Jan. 31 at Centenary United Methodist Church.