Middle Georgia takes ‘Action in Art’ to speak out against deportation, detaining of immigrants

Armed with colorful chalk, Middle Georgians took to the pavement Saturday, leaving messages on downtown Macon’s Poplar Street median in solidarity with immigrants and in protest of the Trump administration’s mass deportation and detention policies.

The names of American immigrants who were deported — names like “Kilmar, “Rumeysa” and “Badar” — were written in big letters across the sidewalk.

“United We Stand,” “Peacefully resist, like a thorn in the side, in every way possible” and “Let all be free” were some of the messages left by attendees. 

Johnathan Tomberlin, a 20-year-old protester and Cordele resident, said he’s worried for his safety and that it seems like the current administration is coming for everyone.

“I’m tired of how things are in this country. I want things to change,” he said.

Tomberlin was an online student at South Georgia Tech but decided to put his education on hold. What he’s seeing in the news recently, he said, is more important.

“I think everybody’s becoming desensitized to all the bad news,” Timberland said. “But we can’t just ignore it.”

The event featured guest speakers who spoke to the community about their own experiences and reasons for mobilizing and speaking out against injustice. 

Melissa Rodriguez-McClain, executive director of Centenary Community Ministries, shared details of her visit to Georgia’s Stewart Detention Center.

“These are individuals who once thought this country was worth risking their lives over,” she said. “We’re talking farmers, painters, landscapers, our students, our service workers.”

She recalled meeting a woman who worked on a sweet potato farm in North Carolina. ICE detained the woman, despite her having the paperwork for asylum and waiting on a court date. She filed for voluntary deportation because she would rather leave the country than be in the detention center.

Andee Ardoin, a Warner Robins resident, also came to Macon to be a part of Action in Art because he has not seen residents in his own hometown speaking out.

Saturday was Ardoin’s first-ever protest, and he believes a lot of the issues come from people wanting to control others’ freedom.

“It starts with people at the margin,” Ardoin said. “It starts with people that are the most vulnerable.”

A portrait of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident deported to El Salvador whose name has been in the news recently, looked out over the artists and community members leaving their messages and images on Poplar Street. 

The depiction of Garcia was created on a portable graffiti wall by local artist Kevin “Scene” Lewis. 

“I just wanted you to see the humanity in [Garcia],” he said. “This is a father. I can only imagine being taken away from my family.”

Lewis worked on the mural live at the art demonstration.  It’s easy to paint from the comfort of his studio, he said, but he believes that  showing visible support in the community is important.

The demonstration attracted attention from passersby who had not intended to jump in on the artistic action.

Andereca White, a 31-year-old Macon native, was walking through downtown when the crowd of folks drawing, painting and playing music caught her eye.

If she had known, she said she would’ve brought her own sign.

White joined because as a person with disabilities, she can relate to what the community is speaking out against.

As a substitute teacher, White said hearing her students talk about fears of deportation and detention hurts her heart.

Crystal Kennedy, 40, is half Hispanic. She is a kindergarten teacher who teaches some students who are not native English speakers. 

“Equity not billionaires,” read the sign she held at the art demonstration.

Although she has never voted or been to a protest before Saturday, she said witnessing recent “injustices” urged her to take action. 

Unhappy with the changes she’s seeing in her classroom and with increased fear of being fired for going against the administration’s agenda, Kennedy now plans to retire from teaching after 18 years. 

Craig Hamilton spoke before the gathering on Poplar to reflect on his first protest in 1985 on President’s Day. He spoke out against the Reagan administration’s handling of the AIDS crisis. 

He is a lifelong Maconite, DC Comics illustrator and artist teaching at Cornerstone Academy of Art and Design.

“Here I am at 60 having to do all of this all over again,” Hamilton said. “This time, it’s not just AIDS, it’s not just the gay community. It’s healthcare, it’s cancer research. They’re attempting to strip our human rights away.”