The demonstration followed a march earlier in the day through Washington demanding an end to Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy.
WASHINGTON (AA) — Over 500 women were arrested at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday while protesting against President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policy.
Many were draped in foil sheets similar to those used as blankets by undocumented children being held in large chain-link cages at detention centers after they were separated from their parents by the Trump administration. Video and pictures of their conditions further stirred outrage against Trump, eventually forcing him to end the practice.
But questions remain about how the administration is going to reunite the thousands of families it tore apart. In all, about 2,300 children were removed from their parents.
Democratic Representative Pramila Jayapal was among those detained during the sit-in protest Thursday afternoon.
“I was just arrested with 500+ women and @WomensMarch to say @RealDonaldTrump’s cruel zero-tolerance policy will not continue. Not in our country. Not in our name,” she wrote on Twitter alongside a video message she posted shortly after being released from custody.
Senator Tammy Duckworth also participated in the demonstration with her newborn child, later saying on the microblogging site that she was “proud” to join the mass demonstration.
“This is personal for me,” the Democratic lawmaker said. “Trump, @DHSgov & @HHSGov need to ensure children whom they’ve separated from their families are treated fairly & they must develop & implement a plan—IMMEDIATELY—to reunite the families they’ve torn apart.”
Nearly 575 people were arrested at the Hart Senate Office Building on charges of “unlawfully demonstrating,” Capitol Police reportedly said in a statement.
The demonstration followed a march earlier in the day through Washington demanding an end to Trump’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy.
