Hundreds of students and Ithaca residents rallied at Bernie Milton Pavilion in the Commons on Friday, to take a stand for the people killed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. They call to “stop ICE’s reign of terror,” according to an Instagram post made by the rally’s organizers.
Organized by several on and off-campus organizations, including Cornell Young Democratic Socialists of America and the Tompkins County Workers’ Center, the “ICE Out of Ithaca Rally” was part of a national shutdown to protest ICE’s actions. The shutdown, called for by Minnesota-based student organizations and other groups across the nation, aimed to draw attention to the murders and prompt changes in ICE funding.
Minnesota saw federal immigration officers fatally shoot two residents in the last month: Renee Good, who was killed in her car on Jan. 7, and Alex Pretti, who was killed while recording an ICE operation on Jan. 24. These deaths resulted in national attention and protests against ICE’s actions.
The “ICE Out of Ithaca Rally” took place from 4 to 5:30 p.m. and brought together around 300 people with signs, drums and megaphones. Amid the sub-10-degree weather, volunteers and protesters distributed hand warmers and warm beverages.
The rally was publicized via Instagram and sponsored by Cornell YDSA, Ithaca Committee for Justice in Palestine, Tompkins County Workers Center, Ithaca Democratic Socialists of America and many other Finger Lakes and Ithaca-based organizations.
During the rally, community leaders gave speeches about the need for unity and action in the face of ICE’s recent actions.
Graduate student María Bulla, one of the speakers at the rally and communications secretary for Cornell Graduate Students United, told The Sun that she wants “to make it clear to the Ithaca community that we are standing with [them and] that we don't want ICE in town or in the University.”
Cornell and Ithaca College students also spoke to The Sun, with statements centered on their overall disgust at the violence in Minneapolis and fervor to see a shift in actions by the federal government.
“Defund ICE and get rid of it entirely, defund the police, defund the government's ability to control,” Ithaca College student David Alejandro Cohen said in a statement to The Sun. “Overall, make America a much safer place for immigrants, for women, for people of color, for people in the non-binary and LGBTQ community.”
The speeches continued until 5 p.m. when the protestors began marching down Seneca Street.
Andrea Cicirello, Ph.D. candidate and financial secretary of CGSU, led the march and started chants with a megaphone, such as “hey hey, ho ho, ICE has got to go,” as they marched throughout the streets.
Many Ithaca residents stepped out onto their porches and chanted in support of the protestors as they turned down Plain Street and W. Green Street. Organized volunteers wore neon vests and helped direct traffic and protect the protesters throughout the entirety of the rally.
Ithaca resident Meredith Bourne served as a first-aid volunteer for the rally and explained how the rally volunteers were “organized by multiple different groups through [an app called] Signal.” Bourne previously lived in Minneapolis for a decade and “saw the community come together and stand up” after George Floyd was killed, adding that it was nice to see that unity again now that she is in Ithaca.
Alongside the rally, several Downtown Ithaca businesses like Petrune and South Hill Cider were closed on Friday, embracing the national economic shutdown.
The rally gathered Cornell and Ithaca College students and professors, members from the local community and people traveling from an hour away.
In a statement to The Sun, Ithaca High School student Simka Dolch summarized the rally’s objective: “We would like ICE to be defunded, ICE out of Ithaca, and ICE out of everywhere.”
Madeleine Naumoff is a member of the Class of 2028 in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She is a contributor for the News department and can be reached at mn635@cornell.edu.
