EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Dozens of community advocates and leaders in El Paso took part in the nationwide Women’s March ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, Jan. 20.

The El Paso People’s Rally, as it was also being called, was meant to advocate for an array of issues and for people to express their opposition to Trump’s promises of sweeping policy changes, organizers and participants said.

Locally, the march and rally took place in Downtown El Paso, culminating with speakers at San Jacinto Plaza.

“Today, we are coming together to exemplify our resistance to what lies ahead,” said U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, told the crowd.

“Unfortunately in El Paso, we know too well what the Trump administration is capable of,” Escobar said.

Escobar warned that the public-policy decisions of the incoming Trump administration could severely affect the El Paso community and urged people to be prepared.

“Everyone in this country has certain civil, human, and constitutional rights. And we have to know them, understand them, and make sure that we utilize them to protect ourselves and the people we care about,” Escobar said.

Several other community leaders also took the stage to touch on different topics, including Women’s health rights, immigrant and worker’s rights, LGBTQ rights, veteran rights and voter rights to name a few.

El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego said that El Paso will be ready for the changes to come but will also stand firm by its values.

“In El Paso, we do things very differently than the new administration. And so we’re trying to make adjustments. We know that the (incoming) administration is going in a direction that is very different from us. I mean, we want our borders protected, everything that people misunderstand, but we also want to be dignified,” Samaniego said.

Samaniego recounted his time as county judge during Trump’s final year of his first term. He said that the promises Trump made during his presidential campaign didn’t all translate to action the first time around, and said it remains to be seen what will happen now.

People in attendance expressed their concerns ahead of the potential sweeping changes to come.

“I came out here today to show my support for those who are opposing policies of the Trump administration that we feel will be detrimental to our community, to our country, and to the whole world,” El Pasoan Charles Maddox said.

“So we’re letting people know that we are not giving up. We’re going to continue fighting. We’re going to continue engaging. We’re going to be active. We’re going to continue fighting for people’s rights. We’re going to continue registering voters,” said El Pasoan Diana Duron, a member of the Eastside Democratic Committee.

El Paso County Republican Party Chairman Jorge Gonzalez said local Republicans are excited to see Trump retake the presidential office and institute his proposed policies, which they believe will help restore normalcy and order.

“Trump won by a landslide. I mean, it was a very, very strong message to precisely those people that are protesting that (they) are on the wrong side,” Gonzalez said.

“I am an immigrant, so you are protesting for me. They’re wrong because I am a legal immigrant. They’re protesting because they want illegality. So (if) they want illegal immigrants to come in (here), they are wrong. I am a veteran, if they are protesting on my behalf, they are wrong because I have my rights and I’ve been attended by the VA,” Gonzalez said.

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