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Obama’s appearance in Anaheim today draws protesters

Demonstrators outside Angel Stadium included those protesting President Obama's deportation policies.
(Louis Sahagun / Los Angeles Times)
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Screaming through loudspeakers and waving placards, a few dozen opponents of the Obama administration gathered near the main entrance to Angel Stadium in Anaheim on Saturday, exhorting passersby to “hold Obama accountable.”

The demonstration, which proceeded President Obama’s noontime commencement address before more than 10,000 people attending UC Irvine’s 2014 graduation ceremony, was evenly divided between extremists on both sides of the political spectrum.

Protesters clad in black clothing with only their eyes exposed, chanted, “No border. No nation. No more deportation.”

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Labor and Latino groups have long criticized Obama as the “deporter in chief” for his administration’s aggressive enforcement of immigration laws.

Under the watchful eye of Anaheim police, others in the crowd gathered at the corner of Gene Autry Way and State College Boulevard and waved large American flags and banners that warned, “Don’t Tread on Me.”

A spokesman for the people clad in black, who would only identify himself as Amaru, listed his concerns:

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“We’re against deportation, the prison industrial complex, drones perpetuating the police state and killing people in other countries, the illegal taking of Tongva ancestral lands, racism and many other things.”

Those on the far right were gaining responses from passing motorists with a sign that said, “Honk to impeach.”

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