ATLANTA — Crowds lined the street outside Atlanta’s federal immigration offices Monday afternoon, protesting President Donald Trump's plan to use emergency funding to build a border wall.
Atlanta joined cities across the country hosting the protests, many of them calling the president's national emergency declaration a fake crisis.
Mariana Alvarez, 18, and her father, Carlos Alvarez, who was born in El Salvador, were among the protesters.
[Trump border wall speech: Read the full transcript]
“Totally against our current president and his policies,” Carols Alvarez said. “I just want her to participate in the American process. This is part of being an American.”
Carol Napier told Channel 2's Lori Wilson that she had concerns.
“I came as a mother, someone who is deeply concerned about all the fear and hatred that's being spread by this particular president,” Napier said.
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Things took a tense turn when a Trump supporter showed up to exercise his rights by yelling, “Build the wall.”
The man also held a “Make America Great Again” sign.
Wilson contacted Sen. Johnny Isakson for comment about this story. His office sent a statement that said in part, "Senator Isakson recognizes the need for additional security measures and he voted for additional funds in the spending agreement that passed the senate on Feb. 14.”
Senator Isakson will carefully review additional details regarding the national emergency declared by President Trump to address the crisis at the border," the statement said.
Officials with the ACLU called the president’s emergency declaration illegal.
“(It’s) against congressional authority and against the will of the American people. And what he is doing is unconstitutional and a violation of federal law,” ACLU of Georgia legal director Sean Young said.
“This country was born out of a protest of tyranny from the top, so we thought it was a great idea on Presidents Day to send a message,” attorney and local activist Gerald Griggs told Wilson.
Isakson’s statement went on to say the most pressing need for Georgia is to help our agricultural community after hurricane season.
He is proposing a standalone bill to try to separate those funds for the state.