SALISBURY —Nearly 100 people gathered in downtown Salisbury on Friday night to protest the Trump administration’s plans to enact mass deportations and sweeping changes to immigration laws.

Chants of “immigrants are welcome here,” and “no borders, no nations, stop the deportations,” could be heard at Bell Tower Green and on West Innes Street, with the protests coming in response to President Donald Trump’s executive orders and actions looking to ramp up deportations, end birthright citizenship for some and pause refugee resettlement, among other planned immigration and border law changes.

Daisy Garcia-Vasquez, one of the primary organizers of the protest, said that the event was originally organized as a direct response to the fear that many people of color were feeling because of the rhetoric surrounding the changes. She said that the group held a protest in Lexington first, and when that was well-attended, they decided to host one in Salisbury as well because of the large Hispanic and Black populations. According to the U.S. Census, Black and Hispanic people make up approximately half of the city’s population.

“I just wanted to show the people that we’re here and that we want to raise our voices for the people that can’t really speak out,” said Garcia-Vasquez.

Garcia-Vasquez asked attendees to wear white and bring along flags, with the organizers providing American flags to anyone who wanted one. The organizers set up rules to keep the protests orderly and on topic, including no insulting political figures and making sure not to leave any trash behind.

“I’m happy to see our people supporting each other and I’m happy to see our city together and doing this safely,” said Salisbury Mayor Tamara Sheffield, who did not participate in the protest but did stop by to speak with the organizers and local officials who participated.

The Salisbury protest is one of many around the nation, including one that brought thousands to Raleigh.

The nation-wide protests have been rallied against Trump’s policy proposals during his first month in office, with Salisbury’s event aiming particularly at his orders widening the deportation criteria from former President Joe Biden’s policy. Trump’s policy targets everyone in the country illegally. Another of Trump’s orders looks to work with state and local governments to allow their law enforcement officers to enforce immigration laws. The Department of Homeland Security has already authorized multiple other federal law enforcement agencies to arrest people who had entered the country illegally.

The Friday protest had received a permit from the Salisbury Police Department that allowed them to protest on the sidewalks surrounding the Bell Tower Green.