Protests against U.S. President Donald Trump鈥檚 decision to suspend his country鈥檚 refugee program and erupted across the world on Saturday, including a large demonstration near the U.S. Consulate in downtown Toronto.

鈥淲e have thousands of people gathered today against Islamophobia, white supremacy and deportations, in mourning about the deaths in Quebec City, and in opposition to Islamophobic and racist laws here in Canada and the United States,鈥� Syed Hussan, an organiser with grassroots activist organization , told CP24 on Saturday afternoon.

鈥淭his tragedy in Quebec City shows that there is Islamophobia and racism here,鈥� Hussan said. 鈥淲e need to uproot it here, starting at the federal level in policy, but also in our communities, in challenging Islamophobia and racism -- wherever we see it, we need to shut it down.鈥�

Hundreds of protestors shut down parts of University Ave. as they marched to the nearby Federal Court of Canada.

鈥淲e want to connect what鈥檚 happening in the United States to鈥� federal immigration laws,鈥� Hussan said.

The was held concurrently with similar demonstrations in 13 other Canadian cities, such as Montreal, Vancouver and Ottawa, as well as in international cities like Jakarta, and Paris.

Walied Khogali is a community activist and one of the organizers of Saturday鈥檚 protest in Toronto.

鈥淲hat happened in the United States will happen here in Canada,鈥� Khogali told CTV Your Morning on Tuesday. 鈥淭here is anti-immigrant sentiment out there.鈥�

While Trump鈥檚 policies and the tragedy in Quebec City have sparked public outcry, Khogali says that they point to deeper societal issues.

鈥淚t鈥檚 important that we come together in moments of crisis, but we continue the work against Islamophobia in the long-term,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 suspect that there might be tragedies in the future, and we need to make sure we do whatever it takes to prevent that from happening.鈥�

The U.S. travel and refugee bans were temporarily in a move that Trump derided on Twitter as "ridiculous."

With files from CP24