‘Protest is patriotic.’ ‘No Kings’ demonstrations across L.A. against ICE sweeps, Trump presidency
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Tens of thousands of demonstrators fanned out across Southern California on Saturday for “No Kings Day” protests against President Trump, depicting the president as an aspiring monarch who violates democratic norms as he has clashed with California leaders over his deployment of the military to clamp down on at times violent protests sparked by immigration raids.
The images — signs referencing the nation’s 1776 founding, crossed-out crowns; American, Mexican, Guatemalan and El Salvadoran flags; and the words “protest is patriotic” — stood in stark contrast to displays in Washington, D.C., where Trump’s birthday coincided with a day of carefully orchestrated concerts and exhibitions celebrating the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday before an up to $45-million parade with tanks and soldiers in fatigues.
Thousands of people visited the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to see the rare spectacle of military hardware and soldiers filing down American streets.
“All of our rights are being violated,” said Michelle Verne, 56, who marched in downtown Los Angeles with roughly 30,000 others. She held a laminated copy of the Constitution that was shredded at the bottom. “We’ve had other administrations deport people, but not like this,” she said, referencing this month’s immigration enforcement that has swept up families at homes and in workplaces.
“We love our country, that’s obvious,” Verne said. “We’re fighting for our rights.”
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Dozens of protests in Southern California
More than 2,000 protests were scheduled nationally, and dozens in Southern California, with the largest downtown. In Los Angeles County, marches were planned in Woodland Hills, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Whittier, Thousand Oaks, South Bay and scores of other neighborhoods.
Some social media posts and photos showed Saturday’s crowds in a festive mood. In downtown L.A., state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo danced with protesters at Plaza Olvera.
Thousands lined Torrance Boulevard for roughly a mile from Hawthorne Boulevard past Maple Avenue, where raids have felt personal after a 9-year-old Torrance Elementary School student and his father were deported to Honduras after being detained during an immigration hearing last month.
“When I saw that fourth-grade boy taken from his family, it gave me chills thinking of how scared he was,” said Laurie Pisano, a retired school librarian from Rancho Palos Verdes. “Democracy is important, and that’s not what’s happening.”
In Pasadena, thousands crowded the intersection of Colorado Boulevard and Lake Avenue, leading police to shut down Lake as the number of participants surged.
There was also a smattering of pro-Trump counter-activists who said they supported the president’s mission to carry out “the largest domestic deportation operation” in U.S. history. After nine days of immigration raids, several hundred immigrants have so far been detained around Los Angeles — a small fraction of the more than 11 million in the U.S.
The Trump administration has painted its actions as a matter of safety and law and order, pointing to several individuals with violent criminal histories that it has netted. Opponents of the sweeps say many immigrants whose only legal violations are their immigration statuses are being swept up. They note that the actions have created a widespread sense of fear even among citizens, visa holders and permanent residents, many of whom are part of mixed-status families.
In Huntington Beach, a Republican stronghold, opposing crowds of pro- and anti-Trump protesters faced off on opposite corners of the intersection at Main and Pacific Coast Highway, shouting epithets. “Make America Great Again” and “Trump 2024” signs were widely present. “Support your local ICE raid,” read a sign held up by a teenage boy, which also used an epithet to describe how people should treat “foreign friends.”
In West Hollywood Park, rainbow flags were commonplace as activists spoke out against many of the president’s policies, including his push against transgender teens playing on school sports teams that match their gender identity.
“He portrays us as un-American, as people who hate this country just because we come out against him,” said Magdalena Jamieson, 29, of West Hollywood. “In reality, we are standing up against the ways he breaks the rules and harms people. His anti-LGBTQ+ policies, his anti-DEI policies, his extreme way he’s treating immigrants and then using the military here.”
Many of those who came out across the region said they were there to support undocumented immigrants who were afraid to be present. In multiple interviews, individuals also described protesting as a democratic duty.
“How else are we going to express ourselves publicly in our society that something is wrong? The minute we are afraid to be ourselves outside, that’s when tyranny takes over,” said Jonathan Santiago, a 31-year-old Burbank resident demonstrating in downtown Los Angeles.
Standoff with military, police
By mid-afternoon Saturday, a crowd of a few hundred protesters had surrounded the federal building downtown, where dozens of U.S. Marines stood guard at the entrance, clutching guns and shields. The crowd chanted: “shame,” “leave L.A.” and “we don’t want you.”
At 4:13 p.m., the LAPD posted to X that it had declared dispersal orders on the streets directly surrounding the building: Los Angeles Street between Aliso and Temple streets and Alameda Street south of Aliso Street and north of Temple Street.
“People in the crowd are throwing rocks, bricks, bottles and other objects,” the post said. “Less lethal has been approved. Less lethal may cause discomfort and pain. It is advised that all persons leave the area.”
Around that time, police on horseback charged into a crowd, ordering protesters to leave. They shot what appeared to be rubber bullets and waved batons at the scattering crowd. Within minutes, police had cleared the area in front of the federal building and moved people away from federal troops.
Violet Martinez, 23, said he was by the federal building when officers on horses charged into the crowd. “They put on their gas masks then began firing tear gas,” Martinez said. He said some people got trampled by horses and others were hit with rubber bullets. “There was no reason to do that,” Martinez said.
Nine days of protests
The Los Angeles protests that started on June 6 after news spread of potential immigration raids southeast of downtown have quickly expanded to the Civic Center and pockets of other areas such as Santa Ana. Incidents over the days have included a brief blocking of the 101 Freeway, viral images of a Waymo vehicle on fire and incidents of vandalism and theft at businesses downtown, including in Little Tokyo.
Overall, there have been roughly 500 arrests.
Driving around in hopes of witnessing agents jumping out of trucks and detaining immigrants has become a grim pastime and form of protest for some Angelenos.
At a Saturday morning news conference, Mayor Karen Bass made a plea for peaceful protests, warning that “the eyes of the world” were on Los Angeles.
“Please, please, do not give the administration an excuse to intervene,” she said. Bass said an 8 p.m. curfew would remain in effect Saturday night and implored protesters to stay away from violence and vandalism.
“Don’t even try,” she warned.
The mayor emphasized there had been no cooperation between the Los Angeles Police Department and the federal government, leaving local leaders guessing where federal troops would crop up Saturday among the thousands of California National Guard troops and hundreds of U.S. Marines authorized by Trump.
“We are functioning based on rumors that we hear. ... I’m still waiting to hear if the president will take my call,” she added. Police officers, she said, had been deployed “strategically” and would continue to operate under a unified command with the California Highway Patrol, the Sheriff’s Department and Los Angeles Fire Department.
Tensions between California leaders and Trump have been high since shortly after the protests broke out.
A federal judge this week said the White House had to hand National Guard control back to Gov. Gavin Newsom. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals quickly put a pause on that order. A hearing on the matter is scheduled Tuesday. Trump has also suggested Newsom should be arrested for his response to protests.
In another incident, the FBI handcuffed and briefly detained California Sen. Alex Padilla after he attempted to ask a question of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during a news conference this week in Los Angeles.
For Bass, a high-profile Democrat who has avoided public conflicts with other elected officials, the days of tiptoeing around Trump are over. The tumultuous events of the past week have also given her an opportunity for a reset after the Palisades fire.
On Saturday, the Senate Democratic caucus joined Padilla in urging President Trump to remove National Guardsmen and U.S. Marines from Los Angeles, writing in a letter that the deployment amounts to “an alarming abuse of executive authority.”
The deployment “continues to inflame the situation on the ground, and undermines the constitutional balance of power between the federal government and the states,” the letter read. “We urge you to immediately withdraw all military personnel that have been deployed to Los Angeles unless their presence is explicitly requested by the Governor and local leaders.”
An official with Padilla’s office said the letter amounted to “a significant push as the Senator finds ways to unite Democrats in the fight against Donald Trump’s overreach and abuse of power.”
Trump has defended the federal government’s actions.
“If I didn’t send the military into Los Angeles, that city would be burning to the ground right now. We saved L.A.,” the president posted on his Truth Social account Friday. Local law enforcement and politicians have disputed that depiction.
Speaking to reporters Thursday at the White House, Trump briefly addressed the “No Kings Day” events.
“I don’t feel like a king, I have to go through hell to get stuff approved,” he said, referencing the fact that he has had to negotiate with members of his party to accomplish legislative priorities. “No, no, we’re not a king, we’re not a king at all, thank you very much.”
Washington Bureau Chief Michael Wilner contributed from Washington, D.C., staff writers Dakota Smith and Karla Marie Sanford from Los Angeles, James Rainey from Pasadena and Sean Greene from Thousand Oaks.
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