Nearly 100 people of all ages braved stifling heat, speeding cars, and finally a soaking rain shower at the corner of Dover Street and Route 50 on behalf of Daniel Fuentes Espinal, the Easton pastor arrested by ICE earlier this week.
They held homemade placards — some political, others scriptural, a few downright profane — and chanted slogans as passing cars beeped their approval as a news chopper hovered above.
The winner for best dressed was a woman in full Lady Liberty regalia. Best sign: ICE: Insufferable Cowardly Extremists.
The protesters were happy to talk to The Spy, but few wanted to give their names for self-evident reasons.
One woman decried the bureaucratic process of naturalization as odious and prohibitively expensive for most immigrants, who nonetheless play a critical role in providing services to Talbot like construction, painting, landscaping, and agricultural work.
“This is straight out of the fascist playbook,” said another gentleman, among several men and women in clerical garb. “Arrest the leaders to intimidate and disenfranchise their followers.”
A third woman said “Trump pledged to deport the worst of the worst. This is the polar opposite of that promise. This is not good governance.”
Meanwhile, the 54-year-old Fuentes Espinal was transferred to a detention center in Louisiana northwest of New Orleans, a family member stated publicly, adding that he was initially deprived of his daily medicine, but is receiving it there.
Following the arrest, ICE issued a statement saying, “Fuentes entered the United States on a six-month visa and never left in 24 years. It is a federal crime to overstay the authorized period of time granted under a visitor’s visa.”
Posting on Instagram, the Maryland Legislative Latino Caucus “condemns the unjust detention of Pastor Espinal and reaffirms its commitment to defending immigrant communities. We call for his immediate release and demand immigration enforcement focus on real threats not devoted community leaders. Maryland must stand for safety, dignity, and humanity.”
Maryland Representatives Sarah Elfreth and Glenn Ivey, along with Senator Chris Van Hollen, condemned the arrest, calling Pastor Fuentes Espinal a “beloved pillar” of Easton and accusing the Trump administration of “indiscriminately profiling and targeting individuals based on their skin color.”
