SAN ANTONIO – Demonstrators of varying ages, colors and abilities gathered outside of the John H. Wood Federal Courthouse Monday morning for a single cause - to stand against Senate Bill 4, which was signed into law by Governor Gregg Abbott.
As rallies went on outside of the courthouse, the first day of hearings in the lawsuit challenging the law was held indoors.
"We called on communities across the state to resist Senate Bill 4, which is war against Texas families," Jose Garza, executive director for the Workers Defense Project, said.
Groups from across Texas began setting up for the demonstration well before the protest's 8:30 a.m. start time. Once the rally began, the crowd heard from group leaders, civil liberties activists and city leaders.
Hundreds of people marched from the courthouse to the Grand Hyatt hotel for scheduled performances and speakers. The hotel is two blocks away from the demonstration.
After the performances, the crowd marched back to the federal courthouse to continue the rally where several other speakers, including Mayor Ron Nirenberg, took the mic.
League of United Latin American Citizens filed the first motion to stop SB 4 on June 5 on behalf of the city of El Cenizo and Maverick County. Since then, San Antonio, Dallas, Houston and Austin have joined a lawsuit fighting the legislation, as has the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Texas.
The groups are seeking a preliminary injunction against the law until a decision is made in court.
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