Over the weekend, activists clashed with local law enforcement during dramatic protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles and surrounding areas. Labor leader David Huerta was detained while documenting and protesting a workplace raid in downtown LA’s garment district. Video of the arrest shows him being violently knocked to the ground, his head resting on the curb.
Huerta was released from custody on Monday on a $50,000 bond. His arrest — and the backlash that followed — has become a flashpoint in the ongoing protests.
“I’m here in solidarity with all immigrants in support of their rights and our rights in the state of California,” Armon Kasmai, a San Francisco Unified School District teacher, said. “We were watching the news and wanted to come out and make sure that we’re out in full force and part of the numbers making a stand.”
The atmosphere was militant and tense. Marchers were energized — as if this were the moment many had long been waiting for. Jackie Gain said it reminded her of the 2020 protests after George Floyd’s murder.
“Everyone’s just uniting to fight back. It’s what we need,” said Gain, who has lived in the city for a decade. “Fighting for all the people that have been sent away, people that are, you know, fearful of being sent away. Fighting for human rights.”
Supervisor Jackie Fielder, who was at Sunday night’s protest, defended efforts to challenge ICE. She noted that more than a dozen people, including a 3-year-old child, were arrested at the ICE office in San Francisco on June 4 after appearing for check-in appointments.
“I want to thank all of the people that are protesting from LA to here in SF, because when the government turns on its own people, it’s up to the people to put the government in check,” Fielder said. “ICE is not promoting public safety. It’s promoting violence and racism. As a sanctuary city, San Francisco will not stand for it.”
