Immigration raids fuel protests and fear in Los Angeles

A LA city street is crowded with people, seen from above. A line of dozens of uniformed officers is thin and black across the street, holding back hundreds of people with signs and flags. — Hundreds of protesters gather to demand an immediate end to ICE workplace raids in Los Angeles, on June 8, 2025. | Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images

Mass protests in Los Angeles began last week after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted raids throughout the city, targeting places like Home Depots, car washes, and the garment district.

Demonstrations grew in response to the federal agents’ presence and actions, leading to clashes with police. In response, President Donald Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops to the city over the weekend and about 700 Marines by midweek.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom swiftly denounced Trump’s orders, and filed an emergency lawsuit to block the president’s “brazen abuse of power.” LA Mayor Karen Bass declared a local emergency, and enacted an indefinite curfew in downtown Los Angeles. Both officials claim this is the administration’s broader attempt to escalate the situation on the ground and to intimidate the city’s undocumented population.

Solidarity protests have spread to more than a dozen US cities, including New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Atlanta, with more arrests nationwide.

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