Members of the RGV College Republicans gather across from the Rio Grande Valley Young Democratic Socialists of America rally Thursday at the Quad on the Edinburg campus. Ethan Maldonado/THE RIDER
A rally originally scheduled to protest the inauguration of Donald Trump drew two crowds: one opposing and one supporting the U.S. president.
The Rio Grande Valley Young Democratic Socialists of America (RGV YDSA) held the rally Thursday at the Quad on the Edinburg campus.
Shary Rojas, secretary of RGV YDSA and political science junior, said being under his presidency twice has shown her how Trump is “a threat to [her] livelihood.”
“As a Latina, you are already fighting misogyny at home,” Rojas said. “Because Latinos are already traditionalists, that will only continue to prevail. Even though he has said so many negative things about Latinos, Latinos will still put him on a pedestal.”
Alex Uscanga, a mass communication junior and chairman of RGV College Republicans, said he is glad about Trump’s first orders in office.
“I think [Trump] has made some great actions, so far,” Uscanga said. “He has delivered on his promises. When [Trump] said he was going to shut the border down, he’s already doing it … delivering within the first few days.”
One of the misconceptions Rojas and Uscanga said they wanted to clear is that they are not protesting in opposition to each other.
“We’re not as divisive as people think,” Rojas said. “We are trying to educate the people on what socialism means now. There’s so much history on socialism, communism, marxism. There are so many philosophies and history around it. And so, we want them to know that this organization is trying to create community. We believe that is what we need the most right now.”
Uscanga said protests should not be hostile.
“It’s just a counter-protest,” he said. “[The RGV YSDA] is protesting against President Trump and we’re supporting President Trump. It should be an expression of ideas. I support their right to protest, even though they did not vote for the candidate that I voted for. We want to make sure there is a group out there that shares the same ideas as a lot of hidden conservatives have and that we’ll be on campus now.”
Biology sophomore Victoria Halquist was a bystander at the rally and said she hopes everyone is willing to be civil.
“There is no need for violence,” Halquist said. “We’re all young adults, mature young adults. Hopefully, we can all stand together, talk as one and communicate about what we believe in. At the end of the day, it’s really just believing in what you believe and what matters the most to you.”
