Members of the immigrant and Latino communities will be protesting a speech by President Donald Trump on a visit to Long Island on Friday.
Outside the Suffolk County Community College campus in Brentwood, where Trump will address law enforcement officials, representatives from community organizations called the speech an effort to make immigrants a scapegoat for gang activity.
Walter Barrientos, Long Island organizing director for Make the Road New York, presented a statement signed by around 30 organizations representing nearby communities where gang violence has resulted in 11 deaths in the past year.
“We are saddened and outraged to see President Trump seek to use local tragedies for political gain — and particularly to fuel his hateful anti-immigrant agenda.”
Assemblyman Phil Ramos called the speech an effort by President Trump to control a narrative that paints immigrant communities in a negative light.
Trump is expected to address drugs and gang violence at the Suffolk Police Academy in Brentwood, which has been the center of MS-13 gang violence.
The event, part of the President’s “American Heroes Week,” will not be open to the public. Law enforcement officials, including NYPD, will be in attendance.
Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco has welcomed Trump and says that he will attend the event.
