People march downtown to protest inauguration, mass deportation plans

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) -- A group of people gathered at Balboa Park Monday afternoon on the day of President Donald Trump's inauguration and marched downtown in protest of his mass deportation plans, joining several other movements planned across the country.

Monday's march started around 2 p.m. on Inauguration Day, which is also Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday in honor of the late civil rights leader.

Participants gathered at Balboa Drive and Juniper Road in Balboa Park and headed downtown toward the Hall of Justice.

According to the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the organizers behind the march, the protest was meant to signify support of protecting the rights of immigrants, women, workers and the LGBTQ+ community.

An Instagram video posted before the day of the march compiled statements from people saying they would attend the event and their reasons for doing so.

"From Palestine to the Philippines, stop the U.S. war machines," the group could be heard in an Instagram story posted to the organizer's profile, chanting through the streets as they marched downtown.

The event came as Trump stated he would strengthen security at the southern border with Mexico as soon as day one of his presidency and crack down on illegal immigration.

Some of his strategies include proposing an effort to end automatic citizenship for anyone born in America as well as ending the use of CBP One, an app used by a million migrants to gain entry into the country.

According to the Associated Press, migrants who had appointments to enter the U.S. using the CBP One app saw them canceled just minutes after he was sworn in as president.