A rally and march at Northwestern University in opposition to President Donald Trump's immigration ban was one of dozens taking place at college campuses across the country Thursday.
More than 200 NU students, instructors, staff members and Evanston resident backers marched in the north suburb Thursday in support of immigrants and against proposed federal immigration restrictions.
Demonstrations were also planned on the University of Illinois Chicago and Urbana-Champaign campuses, at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and at other colleges and universities, from California to Massachusetts, a move organizers called one of solidarity.
The rally at Northwestern started on campus outside University Hall and moved down Sheridan Road where a rally was held on the steps of the Technological Institute.
The protesters carried signs with slogans that included "Ndivisible" (with a big purple "N") and "I am Iranian/I am a physicist/#IamNU," among others.
Demonstrators braved a windchill temperature that hovered around zero. And while their chants echoed those heard in recent protests around the country — like "no hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here" — the Northwestern rally focused especially on the effects that immigration restrictions might have on campus.
"Our learning is enriched by having people from all over the world here," said Ngozi Nezianya, 29, a third year graduate student in law and business, as he marched up Sheridan Road. "We are a country of immigrants, founded by immigrants. It's important we stand up for them."
Northwestern students, faculty march in Evanston against immigration banNorthwestern students and staff protest on campus against proposed immigration rules on Feb. 9, 2017.
Northwestern students and staff protest on campus against proposed immigration rules on Feb. 9, 2017.
See more videosPaymun Zargar, an NU doctoral student and a spokesman for the NU demonstration, said that the Trump administration's recent executive order restricting immigration for some people from seven predominantly Muslim nations has impacted a number of students and professors at the university.
"His (Trump's) executive order has stranded a number of students and professors abroad," Zargar said.
Fay Rosner, a Northwestern advisor and French teacher, said she marched to support the students who turn to her for help.
One student of color recently told her about being pulled aside for extra inspection before boarding an airplane — the first time that had ever happened to the student, said Rosner, 58.
Other students are immigrants or the children of immigrants and worry about what might happen to them or their families if the proposed restrictions are enforced, she said.
"When they're feeling this enormous stress in the world, it affects them," Rosner said. "They feel it in a very real way."
Immigration protest Genevieve Bookwalter / Pioneer PressHundreds of people turned out Feb. 9, 2017, on the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston for an anti-immigration ban rally that also spilled onto Sheridan Road in Evanston.
Hundreds of people turned out Feb. 9, 2017, on the campus of Northwestern University in Evanston for an anti-immigration ban rally that also spilled onto Sheridan Road in Evanston.
(Genevieve Bookwalter / Pioneer Press)President Donald Trump issued an executive order Jan. 27 that barred entry into this country for some people from seven predominantly-Muslim nations.
But parts of order are currently on hold after a federal judge in Seattle on Feb. 3 ordered a stay.
Both Northwestern and Evanston officials have promised protection for immigrants.
"We will take all the necessary steps to protect our faculty and students, particularly international students," said Ravi Shankar, director of the international office at Northwestern.
Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl touted the city's "welcoming city" status, which prohibits Evanston police from holding undocumented immigrants for immigration authorities after a stop. Exceptions include those convicted for serious crimes or already sought on an arrest warrant, according to language in a recent sanctuary ordinance the city adopted.
Police also cannot ask crime victims or witnesses about their immigration status, the ordinance reads.
Tisdahl reminded Northwestern students that while they are uniquely affected by immigration restrictions, they are in a unique situation to fight those proposals.
"Get on the phone tonight. Call your parents. Call your great-aunt Sally," Tisdahl said. "You need to pledge to me you're going to push all the cities you come from to pass welcoming city ordinances."
Rustin Golnabi, 22, is a second-year doctoral student in material science and co-organizer of Thursday's the rally. His parents immigrated from Iran and he was born in the United States, he said. He worries what might happen to them but has been encouraged by the campus response.
"At first there was a feeling of loneliness and despair and fear," Golnabi said.
Recently though, "you become hopeful because you see how much support there is out there."
gbookwalter@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @GenevieveBook
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