For the last 530 days, Alan Dornan has left his home in Wethersfield, Connecticut, with a sign in hand to walk for undocumented immigrants and their families. Last week, the 79-year-old took his activism a step further with an act of civil disobedience that resulted in his arrest by officers with the Department of Homeland Security outside a federal courthouse in Hartford.

Dornan, who is always in physical pain from scoliosis and spinal stenosis — a narrowing of the spaces within the spine that places pressure on the nerves and causes muscle weakness and pain, told Boston.com on Tuesday that the arrest isn’t deterring him from further acts of protest or civil disobedience.


“I know that I’m doing the right thing,” he said. “I’m pretty much a happy person right now — that state was reinforced in me last week. And I will keep on going. … I will stay active for as long as I’m able to stay active — and I’m at peace.”

Over the last year and a half, the Wethersfield man, who is turning 80 on Sunday, said through his activism he’s gained a better understanding of the history of the United States and his place in it.

“What I know now is that when I was a boy, I was the beneficiary of white, male, American preference,” Dornan said. “Because I happened to be born a white, male, American boy, I had a wonderful life. … And now I’m walking because I believe that everybody — regardless of their race, their color, their creed, their sexual orientation — everybody deserves the opportunity to have the same wonderful life that I had. And that’s why I’m walking.”

Dornan said he and a longtime friend, 81-year-old Dennis Sullivan, decided to plan an act of nonviolent civil disobedience last week at the courthouse at 450 Main St. in Hartford in response to the news that migrant children being held in immigration detention were living in unsanitary conditions with inadequate food, water, and medical care.


“When the story of the young children at the border broke last week, I knew that I had to do something more,” Dornan said. “What I was doing was not enough. It was just a horrific situation.”

The friends posted about their intention to block the entrance of the federal building, which houses an Immigration and Customs Enforcement court, on Facebook.

On Thursday, Dornan said about 60 people showed up to support them, holding a rally for about 45 minutes, complete with chants and signs.

Then Dornan, Sullivan, and another man sat down and blocked the entrance to the building.

The moment held another significance for the 79-year-old, falling on the 21st anniversary of his son Aaron’s death in a car accident.

“The actual recorded moment of his death was 11:17 a.m. so we sat down at the doorway to the federal building at 11:17 a.m. to protest the inhumane treatment of children,” Dornan said.

He estimated that they were allowed to sit there for about half an hour before officers with the Department of Homeland Security came out and said they would be arrested if they didn’t move away from the doors.

The three men stayed where they were, while the rest of the protesters moved away, and were arrested.

Dennis Sullivan and Al Dornan being taken into custody by Homeland Security Officers. pic.twitter.com/fNEUlv2YhG — Alan-PROTECT THE CHILDREN-Dornan (@ad81109) June 28, 2019

“I’m sure he’ll be proud of me,” Dornan said of his son. “I’m sure that if he were here today, he would have been with me.”

The officers were “very polite” while arresting them, he said.


“They were very courteous, deferential,” the 79-year-old said. “Dennis is over 80 years old and I’m almost 80, so I think that helped them be careful with us.”

They were held for about an hour and a half, he estimated, and were issued citations, which come with a fine of $280, for blocking the entrance to a federal building.

“We will request a court date — we will refuse to pay the fine,” Dornan said. “Because having a court date will give the opportunity to make a statement and also invite friends to come to the courthouse again to make a public statement — a public display of protest concerning the treatment of children.”

A request for comment on the arrests from the Department of Homeland Security was not immediately returned.

Dornan said he has “no regrets” about getting arrested or about the walking he has done to raise awareness about the treatment of undocumented immigrants and migrants, even though he said it has further damaged his back.

He said he can no longer walk any significant distances and is bent over. He’s had to stop walking the 2.2 miles each day he planned — instead he walks to the corner of his street where he sits and holds his sign for passing cars that reads: I WALK for DREAMers and all IMMIGRANTS.

“I’m glad I did it, I’m glad I’m doing it, and I’ll continue to do it for as long as I’m able to mentally and physically continue to go on,” Dornan said.