Daniel Miller, Ben Poston
Sun, February 2, 2025
Los Angeles Times
Thousands of protesters gathered Sunday in downtown Los Angeles to demonstrate for immigration rights, blocking lanes on the 101 Freeway at times.
Thousands of protesters gathered Sunday in downtown Los Angeles to demonstrate for immigration rights, blocking lanes on the 101 Freeway at times.
(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Thousands of demonstrators rallied in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday and shut down a section of the 101 Freeway to protest President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration and his aggressive deportation policies.
Draped in Mexican and Salvadoran flags, demonstrators gathered near City Hall shortly before noon, blocking traffic at Spring and Temple streets, amid honking horns and solidarity messages from passing motorists. Protesters blasted a mix of traditional and contemporary Mexican music from a loudspeaker, and some danced in the road in traditional feathered headdresses.
Thousands of demonstrators rallied in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday and shut down a section of the 101 Freeway to protest President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration and his aggressive deportation policies.
Draped in Mexican and Salvadoran flags, demonstrators gathered near City Hall shortly before noon, blocking traffic at Spring and Temple streets, amid honking horns and solidarity messages from passing motorists. Protesters blasted a mix of traditional and contemporary Mexican music from a loudspeaker, and some danced in the road in traditional feathered headdresses.
Protesters rally on the Alameda overpass of the 101 Freeway against President Trump's deportation policies on Sunday. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Trump has declared a crisis at the southern border and released a flurry of executive orders aimed at revamping the country's immigration system and promising to deport millions of undocumented people. Protesters told The Times that it was those actions that prompted them to rally downtown.
By 1 p.m., the number of protesters ballooned to several thousand, with some carrying signs that said, “MAGA — Mexicans always get across”; "Don't bite the hand that feeds you," referring to the state's agricultural workers; and “I drink my horchata warm because f— I.C.E,” a reference to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
Nailah Esparza, 18, said that it was her first protest and that she learned about it about a week ago from TikTok videos. She held a sign in Spanish that read, “No more I.C.E. raids, no more fear, we want justice and a better world.”
“It was actually something that was very important, so we decided to show support, because of the youth,” said Esparza, who is Mexican American. “We’re very passionate about what we’re here for.”
Thousands of protesters gathered Sunday in downtown Los Angeles to demonstrate for immigration rights. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Another protester, who identified himself only as Rey out of privacy concerns, brought a sign that read, “Trump eat caca! Beware the Nazis.” He said he protested Trump's immigration policies during his first term as president.
“We thought we were done with his administration,” said Rey, who is Mexican American. “And now we have to do this again.”
The demonstration was largely peaceful, with some enterprising street vendors taking advantage of the moment to sell bacon-wrapped hot dogs, ice cream, churros, beer and even shots of Patron tequila.
But things appeared to ratchet up when the driver of a silver Mustang began doing doughnuts in a usually busy intersection near City Hall. Soon after, a few police cars arrived as dozens of protesters walked onto the nearby 101 Freeway, while hundreds more crowded overpasses, waving flags and holding signs.
But police — whose presence was minimal — did not converge on the demonstrators, even as throngs made their way onto the freeway. A section of the freeway near the 110 Freeway interchange was shut down around noon and remained closed shortly after 4 p.m., officials said.
Los Angeles police spokesman Tony Im said there had been no arrests or injuries on city streets related to the protests. Im said the department was “staffed adequately” to handle the protests but declined to elaborate on staffing details.
Protesters gather Sunday on 101 Freeway overpasses while others block freeway traffic. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
A short time after the freeway takeover began, the acrid smell of burning tires hung in the air as trucks and motorcycles did noisy burnouts on an overpass, drawing cheers and cameras amid the noisy din of car horns, police sirens and helicopters overhead.
Promising the largest deportation effort in U.S. history, Trump, in his first days in office, declared a national emergency at the southern border, deploying troops there.
His executive orders sharply limit legal pathways for entering the U.S., bolster enforcement efforts to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border, and promote aggressive sweeps to round up and deport people living in the United States illegally. Some of the orders have been challenged in court, and advocates said others could be soon.
There are an estimated 11 million to 15 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., including more than 2 million in California.
They include people who crossed the border illegally, people who overstayed their visas and people who have requested asylum. It does not include people who entered the country under various temporary humanitarian programs, or who have obtained temporary protected status, which gives people the right to live and work in the U.S. temporarily because of disasters or strife in their home countries.
Times staff reporters Jessica Garrison and Rebecca Plevin contributed to this report.
Dozens of protesters march along the 101 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday while others watch from above. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Marchers protesting planned deportations block major freeway in Los Angeles
Associated Press
Updated Sun, February 2, 2025
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Thousands of people protesting mass deportations planned by President Donald Trump marched in Southern California on Sunday, including in downtown Los Angeles where demonstrators blocked a major freeway for several hours.
Protesters gathered in the morning on LA's historic Olvera Street, which dates to Spanish and Mexican rule, before marching to City Hall. They called for immigration reform and carried banners with slogans like “Nobody is illegal.”
By the afternoon, marchers had blocked all lanes of U.S. 101, causing traffic to back up in both directions and on surface streets. The demonstrators sat down in lanes, while a cordon of California Highway Patrol officers stood by. It took more than five hours for the freeway to fully reopen, CHP Lt. Matt Gutierrez said Sunday evening.
The CHP and the Los Angeles Police Department said there were no reports of arrests.
To the east, hundreds of people protested in the city of Riverside. Passing motorists honked and yelled out in support of demonstrators waving flags at an intersection, the Southern California News Group reported.
And in San Diego, hundreds rallied near the city's convention center on Sunday.
In Texas, demonstrators gathered in downtown Dallas on Sunday in a pair of protests against recent arrests by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Dallas police told The Associated Press that approximately 1,600 people gathered between the two rallies.
Marchers carried Mexican and American flags and speakers expressed outrage about the rhetoric from Trump and his administration's moves to increase deportations.
Signs held by the protesters included one that read “Immigrants Make America Great.”
Protest Against Trump’s Deportation Policies Blocks Traffic in Downtown L.A. Ahead of Grammys
J. Kim Murphy
Sun, February 2, 2025
VARIETY
Thousands of protesters gathered Sunday in downtown Los Angeles to protest President Trump’s aggressive policies against undocumented immigrants and promise of mass deportations, causing traffic gridlock in the hours ahead of the Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena.
The protest began in the morning and grew in number through the afternoon, per the Los Angeles Times, with protesters sporting Mexican and Salvadoran flags and signs reading slogans like, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you,” referring to California’s agricultural industry and its reliance on undocumented immigrants. At one point, a group of protesters marched onto the 101 Freeway, putting traffic to a stop on one of the city’s main commuting roadways.
The afternoon has sparked concerns about punctuality for some Grammy attendees, with one rep mentioning that the blocked roads in downtown L.A. could cause late red carpet arrivals. The ceremony itself begins at 5 p.m.; no delays for the show are being forecast at this time.
Notably, there is no indication that the protest is targeting the Grammys specifically. Awards shows have drawn activist movements, as a pro-Palestine gathering formed directly outside the Grammys last year. But Sunday’s protest against the Trump administration is just one of several that’s come together across the U.S. in the past week, including demonstrations in Chicago and St. Louis.
In his first weeks in office, President Trump has declared a national emergency at the southern border, deploying troops to the area and signing executive orders that allow for more extreme sweeps conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump has also ordered a detention facility in Guantanamo Bay to house migrants that have been detained.
Anti-ICE Protestors Shut Down Los Angeles 101 Freeway Over Trump-Ordered Deportations | Video
Thousands of protesters gathered Sunday in downtown Los Angeles to protest President Trump’s aggressive policies against undocumented immigrants and promise of mass deportations, causing traffic gridlock in the hours ahead of the Grammy Awards at Crypto.com Arena.
The protest began in the morning and grew in number through the afternoon, per the Los Angeles Times, with protesters sporting Mexican and Salvadoran flags and signs reading slogans like, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you,” referring to California’s agricultural industry and its reliance on undocumented immigrants. At one point, a group of protesters marched onto the 101 Freeway, putting traffic to a stop on one of the city’s main commuting roadways.
The afternoon has sparked concerns about punctuality for some Grammy attendees, with one rep mentioning that the blocked roads in downtown L.A. could cause late red carpet arrivals. The ceremony itself begins at 5 p.m.; no delays for the show are being forecast at this time.
Notably, there is no indication that the protest is targeting the Grammys specifically. Awards shows have drawn activist movements, as a pro-Palestine gathering formed directly outside the Grammys last year. But Sunday’s protest against the Trump administration is just one of several that’s come together across the U.S. in the past week, including demonstrations in Chicago and St. Louis.
In his first weeks in office, President Trump has declared a national emergency at the southern border, deploying troops to the area and signing executive orders that allow for more extreme sweeps conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump has also ordered a detention facility in Guantanamo Bay to house migrants that have been detained.
Anti-ICE Protestors Shut Down Los Angeles 101 Freeway Over Trump-Ordered Deportations | Video
Stephanie Kaloi
Sun, February 2, 2025
THE WRAP
Anti-ICE protestors shut down both directions of the 101 Freeway in Los Angeles on Sunday as part of an organized response to President Trump’s deportations of undocumented immigrants in the United States. The protest began at Placita Olvera on Olvera Street, and had grown to thousands by midday.
The protestors first walked onto the southbound lanes of the 101 and blocked both lanes of traffic by 12:30 p.m., KTLA reported. Minutes later, LAPD issued a traffic advisory on X, writing: “Spring St, Main St, Los Angeles St as well as Arcadia and the 101 Freeway both North and South are under major gridlock in the DTLA area.”
Both lanes of traffic briefly reopened an hour later only to be shut down again by the group. At 4 p.m. PST LAPD again issued a traffic advisory. “Demonstrators have exited the 101 freeway. Aliso and Main St have lanes blocked with vehicles and people standing on the roadway. Demonstrators are forming at the steps of City Hall as well,” the police wrote on X.
Trump used his first day in office to sign several executive orders meant to severely restrict the flow of immigration into the United States. One order was meant to end birthright citizenship in the U.S.; in a second, Trump put a pause on the admission of refugees into the country.
Officials from ICE began to arrest undocumented immigrants within days.
Anti-ICE protestors shut down both directions of the 101 Freeway in Los Angeles on Sunday as part of an organized response to President Trump’s deportations of undocumented immigrants in the United States. The protest began at Placita Olvera on Olvera Street, and had grown to thousands by midday.
The protestors first walked onto the southbound lanes of the 101 and blocked both lanes of traffic by 12:30 p.m., KTLA reported. Minutes later, LAPD issued a traffic advisory on X, writing: “Spring St, Main St, Los Angeles St as well as Arcadia and the 101 Freeway both North and South are under major gridlock in the DTLA area.”
Both lanes of traffic briefly reopened an hour later only to be shut down again by the group. At 4 p.m. PST LAPD again issued a traffic advisory. “Demonstrators have exited the 101 freeway. Aliso and Main St have lanes blocked with vehicles and people standing on the roadway. Demonstrators are forming at the steps of City Hall as well,” the police wrote on X.
Trump used his first day in office to sign several executive orders meant to severely restrict the flow of immigration into the United States. One order was meant to end birthright citizenship in the U.S.; in a second, Trump put a pause on the admission of refugees into the country.
Officials from ICE began to arrest undocumented immigrants within days.
AP DEMO FOTOS
17 / 17
Law enforcement personnel stage on the 110 freeway during a protest calling for immigration reform Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, in Los Angeles.
(AP Photo/Eric Thayer)
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