On this corner, the town of Grand Junction is divided.

The intersection of North and 12th St. has recently become a popular place for people protesting ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and immigrant deportations.

For the past few Saturdays, from 10a.m. to 3p.m., groups of protestors could be seen flying signs and flags on the corners outside of the Ralph Stocker Stadium and Houston Hall.

Protesters have been playing music and dancing to pass the time. Passing cars sound their horns to show their support and some fly Mexican flags out the window.

Not everyone supports the cause at hand. Revved engines and disagreeing shouts are not uncommon during the protest’s scheduled hours on Feb. 15, and some cars burnt out their tires to purposefully leave protesters in a cloud of smoke.

At one point, a girl leaned out her window with her thumbs pointed down while at the same time, another car drove past full of people cheering.

​Junior criminal justice major Rebecca Mendoza has attended three out of the three protests so far, and plans to keep going if the issue she is protesting continues.

She admitted that it has been somewhat stressful to maintain attendance while keeping up with schoolwork, but she wants to speak up for the people who could not be there.

When asked what inspired her to regularly attend these protest gatherings, she explained that the mass deportation had affected her personally.

​“I was really affected by people’s attitudes on campus. Yeah, 100%,” Mendoza explained. “Just because you aren’t personally affected by mass deportation doesn’t mean it’s not important. Everyone should be aware of the situation going on and all of the families being ripped apart”

She recalled having seen tables set up on campus recently with a whiteboard that asked if students supported the mass deportations.

“They were harassing the students that put ‘no’ on the whiteboard. I quote, they said these people don’t belong here, we need to get rid of them. As a Hispanic, and a person of color, it made me feel like I wasn’t safe.”

​Kristina Galvan, who is a Grand Junction local,  hair stylist and mother, played a huge part in organizing these protest events, and says that she plans on continuing to do this until a change is made.

Galvan claims that she is there to protest family separation, mass deportation, and to ensure that the protest remains peaceful and everyone involved is safe.

“All that on campus makes the students of color feel unsafe where they should feel safe,” said Mendoza. She also mentioned that she is concerned about immigrant college students on campus during this time of mass deportation.

​“There’s a lot of DACA [Deferred Action fpr Childhood Arrivals] recipients that are at that school seeing this hatred,” she explained, referring to CMU students, “I want college students to know they have a community standing behind them. Those that feel a sense of insecurity, unwelcome or unwanted, they have a community standing for them. And they can reach out to any of us.”

​A lot of work and consideration has gone into the protests. Galvan personally requested a police presence nearby in case the protest ever got too heated.

Galvan also explained that they make sure to have these events recorded in case of any incidents, as well as people present who know first aid.

So far, the protestors have had things thrown at them, been yelled at, and had one situation where a man got out of his car in frustration that luckily did not result in any violence.

She aims to ensure the protests are respectful, and at one point insisted that someone carrying a sign with a derogatory phrase about President Donald Trump would replace their sign in order to keep the protest positive and peaceful.

​“It’s important to get involved,” said Jamie Porta, a 2001 graduate of Mesa State who currently serves as the secretary-treasurer of the Western Colorado Trades and Labor Assembly. “If the target is on our immigrant community today, where is it going to go next?”

​During the protest, a woman passed around small pin buttons that said “El Milagro.” In Spanish, this means “miracle”.

The woman did not want to share her identity, but she wanted to put forth he message of what she believed in: that miracles do happen, and that she hopes everyone remains safe during these times.