Hundreds Rally for Immigrants in Atlantic City
Demonstrators gather in front of State Sen,Vince Polistina's Office on Monday, Feb. 3. Photo courtesy of El Pueblo Unido
BY CLYDE HUGHES | AC JosepH Media
ATLANTIC CITY — The office Republican New Jersey State Sen. Vince Polistina became one of the rallying points on Monday after hundreds of immigrants and immigrant supporter rallied for two state bills and against President Donald Trump’s crackdown on undocumented workers.
The Un Dia Sin Immigrantes, or A Day Without Immigrants, rallied at Polistina’s office on one of Atlantic City’s main roads. Cristian Moreno-Rodriguez, the executive director of El Pueblo Unido, said immigrant workers, their family and allies walked off their jobs and shut down businesses to take part in the rally.
“Today, we showed our strength,” Moreno-Rodriguez said in a statement. “We will not stay silent while our families are torn apart, while ICE terrorizes our neighborhoods, and while detention centers profit off our pain.
“Our power is in the people, in the streets, and in our collective voice. If we stand together, no one can stop us.”
He said there has been a lack of acknowledgement that the current system is set up to exploit immigrant level only to discard them in the end.
During the late Monday morning demonstration, community members delivered a letter directly to Polistina’s office, urging him to support the Immigrant Trust Act, which is following separate tracks in the Senate and Assembly, S3672 and A4987.
The bills, according to Moreno-Rodriguez, would provide safeguards for immigrants, including data privacy protections and a clear separation between local law enforcement and federal immigration enforcement.
“For too long, immigrants have built, cooked, cleaned, and cared for this country, only to be met with persecution, exclusion, and constant fear of deportation,” the organization said. “Today, the people stood up — not just against individual politicians, but against a system designed to exploit immigrant labor while denying basic dignity and rights.”
Polistina was not in the office at the time to receive the letter at the time, telling the online publication Breaking AC he was in his Egg Harbor Township office. He said the Breaking AC that he would discuss the letter with his law enforcement partners and other stakeholders.
El Pueblo Unido said a recent Atlantic City Council resolution officially “rejected the federal government’s anti-immigrant policies” and suggested support for the Immigrant Trust Act.
“The resolution reflects the growing local movement for immigrant rights and underscores the community’s call for greater protection and dignity,” the organization said.
“Just last week, community members also attended the local Board of Education meeting to ensure the district implements state DOE guidelines that protect immigrant students.
The fight does not end today.”
In 2023, Polistina joined a bipartisan group of politiciarons and speaking out against a suggested plan to house 60,000 immigrants at the Atlantic City International Airport.
That drew ire from local immigration advocates and Moreno-Rodriguez, who quickly held organize a counter rally refusing many of the accusations made at the briefing Polistina spoke at. The immigrants, however, were never moved from New York to Atlantic City.
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