On Tuesday we reported that, “Protesters crashed DHS Secretary Kirstjen Neilsen‘s dinner in Washington to let her know how they feel about Trump separating children from their families at the border and drove her out of the restaurant.â€
On Friday morning the protesters were back.  They went to Nielsen’s home in Virginia and blasted at top volume an audio recording of children wailing and crying after having been taken away from their parents by U.S. authorities at the U.S.-Mexico border.  The child separation policy was approved by President Donald Trump but implemented by the Department of Homeland Security which Nielsen is in charge of.
Philip Lewis recorded the event and posted it on Twitter this morning:
“Protestors are outside of DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s Alexandria townhouse, playing audio of the detained children. She appears to be still be home.â€
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Protestors are outside of DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s Alexandria townhouse, playing audio of the detained children. She appears to be still be home. pic.twitter.com/akIcxOcM3q
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) June 22, 2018
The event included dozens of protesters who hoped that Secretary Nielsen was still at home because when asked earlier in the week about the recordings of separated children crying for their parents, Nielsen said she had not heard them.
So it made total sense for the protesters to take it upon themselves to rectify the situation and provide the DHS Secretary the opportunity for her to hear the recordings of children crying with her own ears. Â
The demonstrators were heard chanting, “No justice, no sleep,†and “free the kids.†Neighbors reportedly looked out of  their windows but there were no reports of them calling the police. Secret Service agents stood guard in front of Nielsen’s home but there were no clashes with protesters.
Several people were seen marching in front of the townhouse with signs showing a picture of Nielsen’s face along with the caption, “child snatcher.â€
Tuesday’s protest at the Washington restaurant was organized by a group called Metro D.C. Democratic Socialists of America. During that event they also chanted messages for Nielsen, such as “shame, shame!” and “if kids don’t eat in peace, you don’t eat in peace.” Other chanters were heard yelling to the DHS Secretary that “no human being is illegal.” It is assumed that today’s protest was organized by the same group, but this has not been confirmed.
Although Nielsen drafted and had the president sign an executive order ending the child separation policy on Wednesday, they have done nothing to reunite separated children with their parents. And based on the latest media reports, they have no plan or intention of reuniting these children.
All Americans with a conscience and who care about other human beings should join in these protests against the cruel and inhumane policies and programs of Donald Trump and Kirstjen Nielsen.
I am a lifelong Democrat with a passion for social justice and progressive issues. I have degrees in writing, economics and law from the University of Iowa.
