Protests over Trump's immigration raids spread across the US
Protests against hardline immigration tactics spread across the US Wednesday after days of rallies in Los Angeles, as California geared for a legal battle over President Trump’s military deployment. More than 1,000 demonstrators marched peacefully in America’s second-largest city for a sixth straight day.
Issued on: 12/06/2025 -
By: FRANCE 24
Protests over hardline immigration tactics ignited across the United States Wednesday after days of demonstrations in Los Angeles, as California prepared for a legal showdown with the White House over Donald Trump's deployment of the military.
Over 1,000 people massed in America's second biggest city for a sixth day of protests, with the crowd peaceful as they marched through the streets.
A second night of curfew was expected as city leaders try to get a handle on the after-dark vandalism and looting that scarred a few city blocks in the 500-square-mile (1,300 square kilometres) metropolis.
"I would say for the most part everything is hunky dory right here at Ground Zero," protester Lynn Sturgis, 66, a retired school teacher, told AFP.
"Our city is not at all on fire, it's not burning down, as our terrible leader is trying to tell you."
The mostly peaceful protests ignited over a sudden escalation in efforts to apprehend migrants who were in the country illegally.
Pockets of violence – including the burning of self-driving taxis and hurling stones at police – were nothing the 8,500 officers of the Los Angeles Police Department had not dealt with before.
Trump won the election last year partly on promises to combat what he claims is an "invasion" by undocumented migrants.
He is now seizing the opportunity to make political capital, ordering the California National Guard to deploy despite Governor Gavin Newsom's objections, the first time a US president has taken such action in decades.
"We're going to have a safe country," he told reporters on his way into a theater performance.
"We're not going to have what would have happened in Los Angeles. Remember, if I wasn't there ... Los Angeles would have been burning to the ground."
Around 1,000 of the 4,700 troops Trump deployed were actively guarding facilities and working alongside ICE agents, said Scott Sherman, Deputy Commanding General Army North, who is leading operations.
The rest – including 700 active duty Marines – were mustering or undergoing training to deal with civil disturbances, he said.
The Pentagon has said the deployment will cost taxpayers $134 million.
Governor Newsom, a Democrat, has charged that Trump is seeking to escalate the confrontation for political gain.
His lawyers were expected in court on Thursday to demand a temporary restraining order that would prevent troops from accompanying immigration officers as they arrest migrants.
Administration lawyers called the application a "crass political stunt".
Newsom said the unprecedented militarisation would creep beyond his state's borders.
"Democracy is under assault right before our eyes," he said Tuesday. "California may be first, but it clearly won't end here."
Nationwide protests growing
Despite Trump's threats to deploy the National Guard to other Democratic-run states over the objections of governors, protesters appear undeterred.
Demonstrations were reported in St Louis, Raleigh, Manhattan, Indianapolis and Denver.
In San Antonio, hundreds marched and chanted near city hall, reports said, where Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has deployed the state's National Guard.
A nationwide "No Kings" movement was expected on Saturday, when Trump will attend a highly unusual military parade in the US capital.
The parade, featuring warplanes and tanks, has been organised to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the US Army but also happens to be the day of Trump's 79th birthday.
'Inflamed' situation
The Trump administration is painting the protests as a violent threat to the nation, requiring military force to support regular immigration agents and police.
But Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the crisis had been manufactured in Washington.
"A week ago, everything was peaceful in the city of Los Angeles," she told reporters.
"Things began to be difficult on Friday when raids took place ... that is the cause of the problems.
"This was provoked by the White House."
Arrests by masked and armed men continued Wednesday.
A pastor in the LA suburb of Downey said five armed men driving out-of-state cars grabbed a Spanish-speaking man in the church's parking lot.
When she challenged the men and asked for their badge numbers and names, they refused.
"They did point their rifle at me and said, 'You need to get back,'" Lopez told broadcaster KTLA.
Footage seen by AFP shows what appears to be federal agents ramming a car in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles.
Some kind of smoke device is deployed and masked men with assault weapons order a man from the car, leaving what witnesses said was his wife and children badly shaken.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Protests against hardline immigration tactics spread across the US Wednesday after days of rallies in Los Angeles, as California geared for a legal battle over President Trump’s military deployment. More than 1,000 demonstrators marched peacefully in America’s second-largest city for a sixth straight day.
Issued on: 12/06/2025 -
By: FRANCE 24
Protests over hardline immigration tactics ignited across the United States Wednesday after days of demonstrations in Los Angeles, as California prepared for a legal showdown with the White House over Donald Trump's deployment of the military.
Over 1,000 people massed in America's second biggest city for a sixth day of protests, with the crowd peaceful as they marched through the streets.
A second night of curfew was expected as city leaders try to get a handle on the after-dark vandalism and looting that scarred a few city blocks in the 500-square-mile (1,300 square kilometres) metropolis.
"I would say for the most part everything is hunky dory right here at Ground Zero," protester Lynn Sturgis, 66, a retired school teacher, told AFP.
"Our city is not at all on fire, it's not burning down, as our terrible leader is trying to tell you."
Read more Marines in LA: Trump chooses strategy of escalation against anti-ICE protests
The mostly peaceful protests ignited over a sudden escalation in efforts to apprehend migrants who were in the country illegally.
Pockets of violence – including the burning of self-driving taxis and hurling stones at police – were nothing the 8,500 officers of the Los Angeles Police Department had not dealt with before.
Trump won the election last year partly on promises to combat what he claims is an "invasion" by undocumented migrants.
He is now seizing the opportunity to make political capital, ordering the California National Guard to deploy despite Governor Gavin Newsom's objections, the first time a US president has taken such action in decades.
"We're going to have a safe country," he told reporters on his way into a theater performance.
"We're not going to have what would have happened in Los Angeles. Remember, if I wasn't there ... Los Angeles would have been burning to the ground."
Around 1,000 of the 4,700 troops Trump deployed were actively guarding facilities and working alongside ICE agents, said Scott Sherman, Deputy Commanding General Army North, who is leading operations.
The rest – including 700 active duty Marines – were mustering or undergoing training to deal with civil disturbances, he said.
The Pentagon has said the deployment will cost taxpayers $134 million.
Governor Newsom, a Democrat, has charged that Trump is seeking to escalate the confrontation for political gain.
His lawyers were expected in court on Thursday to demand a temporary restraining order that would prevent troops from accompanying immigration officers as they arrest migrants.
Administration lawyers called the application a "crass political stunt".
Newsom said the unprecedented militarisation would creep beyond his state's borders.
"Democracy is under assault right before our eyes," he said Tuesday. "California may be first, but it clearly won't end here."
Read more
Nationwide protests growing
Despite Trump's threats to deploy the National Guard to other Democratic-run states over the objections of governors, protesters appear undeterred.
Demonstrations were reported in St Louis, Raleigh, Manhattan, Indianapolis and Denver.
In San Antonio, hundreds marched and chanted near city hall, reports said, where Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott has deployed the state's National Guard.
A nationwide "No Kings" movement was expected on Saturday, when Trump will attend a highly unusual military parade in the US capital.
The parade, featuring warplanes and tanks, has been organised to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the US Army but also happens to be the day of Trump's 79th birthday.
01:22© France 24
'Inflamed' situation
The Trump administration is painting the protests as a violent threat to the nation, requiring military force to support regular immigration agents and police.
But Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the crisis had been manufactured in Washington.
"A week ago, everything was peaceful in the city of Los Angeles," she told reporters.
"Things began to be difficult on Friday when raids took place ... that is the cause of the problems.
"This was provoked by the White House."
Arrests by masked and armed men continued Wednesday.
A pastor in the LA suburb of Downey said five armed men driving out-of-state cars grabbed a Spanish-speaking man in the church's parking lot.
When she challenged the men and asked for their badge numbers and names, they refused.
"They did point their rifle at me and said, 'You need to get back,'" Lopez told broadcaster KTLA.
Footage seen by AFP shows what appears to be federal agents ramming a car in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles.
Some kind of smoke device is deployed and masked men with assault weapons order a man from the car, leaving what witnesses said was his wife and children badly shaken.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
According to the Los Angeles police department, nearly 400 arrests and detentions have been made since Saturday, majority of whom were failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement.
Trisha Majumder
Updated on: 12 June 2025
OUTLOOK INDIA
Immigration protests in Los Angeles Photo: Ethan Swope/AP
The protests against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown in Los Angeles have now spread across the United States of America, with thousands of people in cities including Dallas and Austin in Texas, and Chicago and New York, rallied and more arrests were made.
Several mayors from across the Los Angeles region have come together on Wednesday to demand that the Trump administration stop the stepped-up immigration raids that have spread fear across their cities and sparked protests across the US.
According to the Los Angeles police department, nearly 400 arrests and detentions have been made since Saturday, majority of whom were failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement.
Pentagon On Cost Of National Guard Deployment
Trump has activated more than 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines over the objections of city and state leaders, though the Marines have not yet been spotted in Los Angeles and Guard troops have had limited engagement with protesters. They were originally deployed to protect federal buildings.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed on Tuesday that the use of troops inside the US will continue to expand.
The Pentagon said deploying the National Guard and Marines costs $134 million.
Hegseth said, “I think we’re entering another phase, especially under President Trump with his focus on the homeland, where the National Guard and Reserves become a critical component of how we secure that homeland,” during hearing before the House Appropriations defense subcommittee.
Immigration protests in Los Angeles Photo: Ethan Swope/AP
The protests against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown in Los Angeles have now spread across the United States of America, with thousands of people in cities including Dallas and Austin in Texas, and Chicago and New York, rallied and more arrests were made.
Several mayors from across the Los Angeles region have come together on Wednesday to demand that the Trump administration stop the stepped-up immigration raids that have spread fear across their cities and sparked protests across the US.
According to the Los Angeles police department, nearly 400 arrests and detentions have been made since Saturday, majority of whom were failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement.
Pentagon On Cost Of National Guard Deployment
Trump has activated more than 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines over the objections of city and state leaders, though the Marines have not yet been spotted in Los Angeles and Guard troops have had limited engagement with protesters. They were originally deployed to protect federal buildings.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed on Tuesday that the use of troops inside the US will continue to expand.
The Pentagon said deploying the National Guard and Marines costs $134 million.
Hegseth said, “I think we’re entering another phase, especially under President Trump with his focus on the homeland, where the National Guard and Reserves become a critical component of how we secure that homeland,” during hearing before the House Appropriations defense subcommittee.
Protests Spread Across US
In New York City, police said they took 86 people into custody during protests in lower Manhattan that lasted into Wednesday morning. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch told Associated Press that the majority of demonstrators were peaceful.
A 66-year-old woman in Chicago was injured when she was struck by a car during downtown protests Tuesday evening, police reportedly said. Video showed a car speeding down a street where people were protesting.
In Texas, where police in Austin used chemical irritants to disperse several hundred demonstrators Monday, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s office said Texas National Guard troops were “on standby" in areas where demonstrations are planned.
Guard members were sent to San Antonio, but Police Chief William McManus said he had not been told how many troops were deployed or their role ahead of planned protests Wednesday night and Saturday. Officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety said the Texas National Guard was present at a protest downtown.
Also Read | LA Protests Enter the Fifth Day as Trump and Newsom Target Each Other
LA Mayors' Plea
The LA-area mayors and city council members urged Trump to stop using armed military troops alongside immigration agents.
“I’m asking you, please listen to me, stop terrorizing our residents,” said Brenda Olmos, vice mayor of Paramount, who said she was hit by rubber bullets over the weekend. “You need to stop these raids.”
Speaking alongside the other mayors at a news conference, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the raids spread fear at the behest of the White House. The city’s nightly curfew will remain in effect as long as necessary. It covers a 1-square-mile (2.5-square-kilometer) section of downtown where the protests have been concentrated in the city that encompasses roughly 500 square miles (1,295 square kilometers).
“If there are raids that continue, if there are soldiers marching up and down our streets, I would imagine that the curfew will continue,” Bass said.
The administration has cited the protests in its decision to deploy the military.
California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has asked a federal court to put an emergency stop to the military helping immigration agents in the nation’s second-largest city. This week, guardsmen began standing protectively around agents as they carry out arrests. A judge set a hearing for Thursday.
The Trump administration called the lawsuit a “crass political stunt endangering American lives" in its official response on Wednesday.
Also Read | Trump Says ‘Protestors At Army Parade Will Be Met With Very Big Force’
Trump Open To Using Insurrection Act
Trump left open the possibility of invoking the Insurrection Act, which authorises the president to deploy military forces inside the US to suppress rebellion or domestic violence or to enforce the law in certain situations. It's one of the most extreme emergency powers available to a US president.
“If there’s an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We’ll see,” he said from the Oval Office.
Later, the president called protesters “animals” and “a foreign enemy” in a speech at Fort Bragg ostensibly to recognize the 250th anniversary of the US Army.
Trump has described Los Angeles in dire terms that Bass and Newsom say are nowhere close to the truth.
How Did The Protests Start?
The protests began Friday after federal immigration raids arrested dozens of workers in Los Angeles. Protesters blocked a major freeway and set cars on fire over the weekend, and police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades.
Thousands of people have peacefully rallied outside City Hall and hundreds more protested outside a federal complex that includes a detention center where some immigrants are being held following workplace raids.
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