A big — and expanding — protest erupted outside downtown Los Angeles on Sunday in response to President Trump’s immigration crackdown and emphasis on deportation.
The demonstration, which was organized and publicized on social media, took place at the Placita Olvera on Olvera Street near Downtown Los Angeles. Olvera Street is home to a historical Mexican market.
In his immigration crackdown, Trump targets legal channels.
By 10:30 a.m., the protest had hundreds of participants and was expanding in size.
Many of the protesters carried signs criticizing Trump’s immigration policies.
“The real criminal is in the White House,” one sign stated. Another stated: “Jesus said ‘Love Thy Neighbor,’ not deport them.”
The Los Angeles Police Department has ordered several traffic closures in the vicinity, including Spring traffic between Temple and First Streets. The LAPD described the demonstration as “non-permitted” in a post on X.
Since his first day back in office, Trump has issued a flurry of executive orders, increasing the military presence at the US-Mexico border and reducing previously imposed restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In the early days of his second administration, Trump’s White House boasted on social media about its immigration arrest numbers, which approached 1,000 per day.
Under Trump’s new instructions, ICE can now target migrants in sensitive sites such as schools and churches for arrest and deportation.
“This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and apprehend criminal aliens—including murderers and rapists—who have illegally entered our country,” a statement from the US Department of Homeland Security says. “Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to evade prosecution. The Trump administration will not bind the hands of our heroic law enforcement officers, but rather trusts them to exercise common sense.”
Schools in the Los Angeles region have been handing out “Know Your Rights” cards, which inform children about their legal rights if approached by an ICE official.