Stop the Hate: Anti-Trump Protestors descend upon RNC

As the Republican National Convention kicked off Monday afternoon, a diverse group of protestors from throughout the country stepped off on a march from Public Square, around Prospect Avenue and back toward the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland. Demonstrators against the presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump called for immigration and police reform, along with an end to anti-Muslim rhetoric. They chanted for nearly two hours: “The people united will never be defeated.” “Dump Trump, sexist, racist, anti-gay.” “Shut down the RNC. Stop the hate." Rows of bike patrol officers pedaled along with the march to make sure they were safe and keep them away from the convention center. We talked to two protestors who traveled across the country to let their voices be heard.

Shanisha Hunter of New York City came to Cleveland with a group wielding signs that read: “I ain’t voting until #blacklivesmatter.” She tells us why she marched.

• Trump is a good person, but we’re just against his morals and what he stands for. Our lives really do matter.
• I stand for all justice and peace, all lives matter. I want peace and love.
• Hopefully, either Trump gets our point across to the whole United States of America that black lives really do matter, or we could get together and get Trump out of office.
• It’s important to stand all together. If we are going to divided, it’s going to cause more problems in the whole world, period.

Immigrant rights activist the Rev. Jose Landaverde of the Diocese of Quincy in Chicago is dedicated to making a change. Along with 50 people, he embarked on a 27-day, 360-mile foot march from the Windy City to Cleveland to deliver his message to Trump of stopping anti-immigrant and anti-minority rhetoric. He tells us about his journey.

• We want to send a message to the Republican convention that we want none of the political hate and racism against our communities.
• [We] also want to raise consciousness about immigrant reform. We don't want no more deportations, no more separation of families, we don't want no more speeches that terrorize our communities.
• Donald Trump is creating a big problem around the country. All the speeches that Trump has created caused a lot of the hate in the United States. What’s happening in France, what’s happening in Louisiana, what’s happening in Orlando, the homophobia against the gays and lesbian community, against immigrants — he is a speaking terrorizer.
• We are marching for speech and social change and to transform people like Donald Trump and the Republican delegates.