Newly elected Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib joined a coalition of labor, environmental and community groups in front of Cobo Center to protest GM’s planned plant closures as people arrived for the Detroit auto show's annual Charity Preview.

About 300 protesters marched as Charity Preview partygoers entered Cobo Center. The protesters chanted, "GM got bailed out, we got sold out," and "Whose Jobs? Our jobs!" and "Justice for Poletown," referring to the residents who were relocated in the early 1980s so GM could build the Detroit-Hamtramck plant there.

Tlaib grabbed a bullhorn and told the crowd she's tired of corporate benefits for the rich and that, "human decency needs to happen." She said that GM CEO Mary Barra makes "millions of dollars each year" and yet, "they're taking jobs away from us."

Tlaib, whose father worked on the Ford assembly line at Flat Rock, said, "We not only bailed them out, we gave them a whole community," in reference to the federal government bailout during GM and Chrysler's 2009 bankruptcy filings. She was also referring to GM displacing the residents of Poletown.

More:Gov. Whitmer vows to fight GM to save UAW jobs at Detroit-Hamtramck

More:Automakers face a series of protests at the Detroit Auto Show

Tlaib reassured the crowd, "You've got a new Congress. Let's march on, while they sip champagne" in the Charity Preview.

Tlaib recently made international news when she called for President Donald Trump's impeachment and used a profanity in doing so. The protest Friday was peaceful but loud.

Column:Rashida Tlaib represents more than single remark

One protester, Jennifer Hart, has worked for GM’s Oshawa plant for almost 17 years. She said she doesn’t know what she’s going to do when the plant closes.

“I think it brings more awareness to the public and to corporate greed,” she said of the protest.

For its part, GM said it would not address any specific comments made at the protests and issued this statement early Friday afternoon: "We respect everyone’s right to demonstrate and express their points of view. Our focus remains on the employees and the impacted communities. We have job opportunities for virtually every hourly employee at the impacted plants — anyone who wants a job will have a job."

GM faces harsh backlash following its announcement Nov. 26 that it would idle Detroit-Hamtramck, Lordstown Assembly in Ohio and Oshawa Assembly in Ontario by the end of 2019. It said it would also close transmission plants, one in Warren and one near Baltimore. In all, about 6,500 hourly jobs are in danger.

GM has a 2,700 openings at plants in Flint; Spring Hill, Tennessee; and Arlington, Texas, where affected workers could transfer. About 1,100 have applied and close to 700 hourly workers have been placed in those other jobs.

UAW workers said they're grateful for Democrat Whitmer's support.

"It's fantastic," said a UAW member who asked to not be named. "It's nice for the union to have a voice again."

Contact Jamie L. LaReau: 313-222-2149 or jlareau@freepress.com