This weekend, protesters in Taylor made it clear they aren't running out of steam anytime soon.
It's been one year since the first march on the T. Don Hutto Family Residential Facility. The immigrant detention center houses 500 men, women and children waiting asylum or deportation, and has been controversial since it opened last year.
On Sunday, busloads of church groups and human rights activists from as far as Dallas, San Antonio and Odessa came together with one purpose.
"We are fighting for the human rights and civil rights of innocent children that are in prison," Jaime Martinez of Cesar Chavez March for Justice said.
Martinez and others came by bus from San Antonio and assembled at Heritage Square in downtown Taylor.
"It's the injustice of it," Mary Jane Martinez, a member of Texans Against Incarcerated Youth, said.
"We feel there are more humane ways to keep children and families in detention," Taylor resident Beth Rex said.
Protesters marched from downtown to T. Don Hutto, toting signs and chanting the whole way. They're obviously being seen and heard, but can their unified voices make a difference?
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T. Don Hutto protest
Advocacy groups have been protesting the controversial detention center for immigrant families for a year.
 
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"If it made a difference over 40 years ago, then it can make a difference now," 13-year-old Granger resident Jamie Holt said.
"There have been changes over the past year we have been coming out here. The barbed wire has come down, there's a playground. So, we want more," protester Ann Staley said.
Protesters ultimately want the center to close. Many said they feel it's a black eye for Taylor as a community and Texas as a state. But in the meantime, activists want to make sure the children inside have the rights they deserve.
The protest wasn't all about being heard. Dozens of Christmas presents were collected from around the state specifically for the children being detained there.
"All of these gifts represent the unity of the communities in Texas that want to see these kids go free," Carol Uranga of the League of United Latin American Citizens said.
After withstanding hours of chanting, T. Don Hutto guards announced that a few representatives would be allowed to come inside to give the toys to the children. The announcement was met with cheers from the crowd.
"We're going to donate those toys to the children so they have something to celebrate this Christmas," Holt said.
Despite the negative nature of the protest, this freedom march spread a message more suited to the season - peace, love, and joy.
Once it got dark, the group held a candlelight vigil outside the facility.
News 8 attempted to contact Corrections Corporation of America, the private company that operates T. Don Hutto on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In the past, CCA has maintained that everyone at the facility is treated with dignity and respect.
