25 immigration activists arrested for protest against Sessions

Twenty-five immigration activists have been arrested for protesting outside a federal courthouse in Los Angeles during a visit by Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

The protest on Tuesday drew a crowd of over 200 people outside US Attorney's Office building on Spring Street, the US media reported.

Protesters denounced Washington's immigration policy and separation practices at the US-Mexico border and chanted "Shame on Sessions" and "reunite", while others waved signs that bore slogans such as "Stop caging families" and "Stop separating families".

"Sessions, you're not welcome in our communities and your hatred is not welcome in our communities," said Jose Montez of Children Over Politics at the rally.

Police were heard declaring an "unlawful assembly" after a line of demonstrators, among them several clergy members, linked arms across Spring Street, blocking the road to traffic. Twenty-five people were arrested after a five-minute warning to disperse. There was no clash between the two sides, KTLA5 news channel reeported.

The protest was organized by several immigrant rights groups and local Christian churches.

Later, Sessions defended the President's immigration policy, saying Donald Trump had made it clear to avoid separating families, but the authority "is going to work to prosecute all of those adults who come here unlawfully".

The Trump administration's policy of separating children from immigrant parents caught crossing the border illegally has triggered enormous political pressure and public outrage across the country and the world.

Even though the policy has ended, there remain more than 2,000 immigrant children in government-contracted shelters that were separated from their parents at the border.

--IANS

soni/