Threatening skies and reports of nearby lightning cut the program short Saturday afternoon, but not before the Hoosier Hospitality march from Holland Park to the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater drew a substantial crowd. I am terrible at crowd estimates, but this count went well above a thousand, and was likely much more.
The event, organized by Fishers Resists under the title Hoosier Hospitality, was a response to the announcement that a group named Save Heritage Indiana would hold an invitation-only rally in Fishers later that day, billed as the nation’s first “mass deportation rally.” The headliner was Gregory Bovino, the former Border Patrol commander-at-large who became the public face of the federal government’s immigration enforcement operations in cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis before retiring from the agency in March.
The Hoosier Hospitality theme was one of welcoming immigrants to the local community. Many in the crowd carried signs critical of Bovino and President Trump.
State Sen. Fady Qaddoura (D-Indianapolis) spoke to those assembled at Holland Park before the march stepped off, reminding everyone what happened in Indiana a century ago, when the Ku Klux Klan held sway over many state and local government officials — including the governor’s office and much of the General Assembly. He expressed concern that history could be repeating itself now.
There were a handful of counter-demonstrators at Holland Park and along the march route. Some unkind comments were exchanged, but each side exercised its First Amendment rights and the march proceeded without incident.
Once the marchers gathered at the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater, the program consisted of speeches by a variety of local officials, including a Hindu Carmel city councilor and a Jewish Rabbi, along with songs. The recurring message: we are all descended from immigrants.
Fishers resident Alyssa Roberts explained why she chose to be part of the event. “We’re here because we believe in the promise of America — welcoming immigrants and supporting all, and not supporting a mindset or legislation that is against welcoming people the way that they deserve to be,” she said.
Meanwhile, after announcing in advance that its rally would be held in Fishers, Save Heritage Indiana reportedly moved the event to Greenfield on the day it was to take place, with no other details available as of this writing.
