Residents Face Off At Immigration Rallies In Montgomery County

ROCKVILLE, MD — Tensions flared in Rockville Friday morning as hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets to hold dueling rallies on immigration. The demonstrations were organized in response to Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich's "Promoting Community Trust" executive order and a string of rape cases involving undocumented immigrants.

Help Save Maryland, a local grassroots group, organized one of the rallies — which called on residents to gather outside the Executive Office Building in Rockville and demand that elected officials rescind the executive order on immigration.

Signed into law by Elrich in July, "The Promoting Community Trust Executive Order" seeks to eliminate any collaboration between Montgomery County Police and federal immigration authorities.

In recent months, at least half a dozen undocumented immigrants have been arrested on suspicion of rape in Montgomery County, court records reveal. Some are accused of raping underage girls. The county is facing scrutiny over these rape cases, with conservatives arguing that the region's more lenient immigration policies are to blame for the alleged assaults.

Residents — mainly conservatives — came out in droves to protest the executive order and hear from prominent local and national right-wing advocates and media personalities. Among them was Sebastian Gorka, a radio host and former White House staffer in the Trump administration.

"It's about ... one thing only: power. Power over you. Power over every American," Gorka said to a sea of supporters, many of them wearing MAGA gear, waiving American flags, and holding signs that called on officials to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Under Elrich's executive order, Montgomery County Police officers aren't allowed to ask residents about their immigration status and work with ICE — the agency behind multiple nationwide sweeps to deport undocumented immigrants.

Several organizations, including Help Save Maryland and the Montgomery County Federation of Republican Women, both at Friday's rally, assert that the county is prioritizing the protection of undocumented immigrants over the safety of residents.

The county executive has refuted those claims.

Elrich said that police will work with federal agencies when immigrants are charged with major crimes and that the executive order isn't a departure from past policies, but a continuation "of the prior administration."

The Democrat has recently butted heads with ICE and his opposition over the release of a Salvadoran man. On Aug. 11, Rodrigo Castro Montejo, 25, of Orlando, Florida, was arrested and charged with the second-degree rape and second-degree assault of a woman at a hotel in Montgomery County, according to multiple media outlets. A day later, ICE filed a detainer with the Montgomery County Detention Center. Montejo met bail and was released. ICE accuses the county of violating its immigration policy.

"If they really cared about minorities, if they really cared about women, if they really cared about children, they wouldn't let illegal alien rapists onto the street," Gorka said Friday.

In an interview with Patch, Elrich said those attending Help Save Maryland's rally are "hiding behind these crimes" in order to advance an agenda.

"This has very little to do with concern about releasing people, and has everything to do with who these people are," Elrich said.

Across the street, less than 200 feet away, were residents, immigration activists, county council members, and religious leaders who came out to support Elrich's executive order and combat what they call hateful rhetoric spread by the right.

"We are here today to say 'no' to all the systems and structures of oppression. To say 'no' to racism. To say 'no' to xenophobia. To say 'no' to homophobia. To say 'no' to Islamophobia and anti-Semitism," said the Rev. Abhi Janamanchi of Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church in Bethesda.

"But we are also here to say 'yes' ... to listen to the call of love and answer to the call of love with the yes of our lives," he continued. "We are here ... to stand in solidarity with our county leadership who have courage in their convictions."

Standing on the side of the street with supporters, Elrich said he was "glad that people came to protest the protest."

"What I didn't want was that side of the street to be the face of Montgomery County," said Elrich, in reference to his opposition.

One of the other speakers on the right, WMAL's Larry O'Connor, called out Elrich on his policies and the residents who support him. He said Democrats want to make this fight about President Donald Trump and his family separation policies at the U.S. border.

"This is about one single concept. We want our police officers to be able to do their jobs," O'Connor said.

While dozens of Elrich's outspoken critics attended the rally, only a handful of them wanted to talk to the media about their views. The residents said they feared retribution from their employers and neighbors.

One woman, who declined to be interviewed, called the executive order and the string of rapes "disgusting." She also carried a bouquet of white flowers — one for each young girl who police say was raped by undocumented immigrants in recent months.

While Elrich's supporters condemn the accused rapists, many say residents should not lump undocumented immigrants together and put them in a box.

"We're trying to tie one social issue with another, which is a lot of what this other side is doing. They're trying to tie in one what's going on with the women that are being sexually assaulted, raped, and tying it to the undocumented immigrants that are there," Luz Chavez, a youth organizer for United We Stand and a DACA recipient, said.

Cindy Monge, a youth organizer with United We Stand, said activists and supporters of the executive order can fight the criminalization of immigration through education.

"I think there needs to be more education overall because — come on, the fact that people are fleeing these countries are not because, you know, I woke up and said, 'You know what? I don't want to live in Guatemala anymore. Screw this. Screw the big house I have. Screw the good life I have.' No, it doesn't happen like that," said Monge.