At New York anti-Trump rally, protesters express anger, fear

A man in traditional Mexican apparel takes part in an anti-Donald Trump, pro-immigration protest in the Manhattan borough of New York December 10, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

NEW YORK - Hundreds of activists rallied on Thursday in front of Donald Trump's hotel in midtown New York City to condemn the Republican 2016 presidential candidate's call to bar Muslims temporarily from entering the United States.

Chanting "Dump Trump" and "refugees welcome," the protesters castigated Trump's comments.

"We are not asking for any favors," Linda Sarsour of the Arab American Association of New York told the crowd. "We are asking for the basic respect and dignity that we all deserve here in the United States of America."

Trump's statement, which has drawn widespread criticism both at home and abroad, came in response to the deadly shootings in San Bernardino, California, last week, in which a married Muslim couple described as "radicalized" by authorities killed 14 people. On Thursday, Trump canceled a planned trip to Israel amid the uproar.

Some protesters said Trump's comments, while more explicit, were not that far removed from statements by other politicians calling for restrictions on Syrian refugees who want to settle in the United States.

Others warned that Trump's divisive remarks were only intensifying a wave of Islamophobia.