The country’s two biggest cities are nearing a boiling point Sunday over the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s aggressive tactics targeting people in communities and courthouses in New York and Los Angeles.
Tensions between the public and ICE agents reached a fever pitch in Lower Manhattan on Saturday as protesters confronted federal officers who have been cuffing immigrants and shuttling them away into unmarked cars from immigration hearings at 26 Federal Plaza.
Saturday’s protest saw demonstrators attempting to block ICE vehicles from leaving the facility, bringing the NYPD to the scene, and leading to isolated clashes with protesters.
Videos circulating online show cops wrestling with those looking to defend those detained by ICE, with pepper spray even being deployed that not only injured activists but also at least one officer.
The June 7 demonstrations in New York, however, were not as furious as they were in Los Angeles. Hundreds of people took to the streets in fury over ICE raids in the Paramount neighborhood that saw agents seemingly abducting people without provocation.
The large gathering led to heavily armed ICE agents using non-lethal methods such as flash-bang grenades to attempt to quell the crowd. While the Los Angeles Police Department officially stated the situation is under control and that the protest was nonviolent, President Trump nonetheless moved to deploy the California National Guard.
In response, Trump announced in a memo on Saturday that he would deploy 2,000 National Guard troops for 60 days or “at the discretion” of the Secretary of Defense. The memo does not specify when or where the troops would be deployed.
“In light of these incidents and credible threats of continued violence, by the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby call into federal service members and units of the National Guard under 10 U.S.C. 12406 to temporarily protect ICE and other United States government personnel who are performing federal functions,” the memo states.
Trump’s effort to nationalize the National Guard was one he did not take four years ago during the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection on the US Capitol.
In the wake of the unrest on both coasts, NYC mayoral candidate and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo blasted ICE tactics as cruel.
“The recent ICE crackdowns in Los Angeles and New York City are a deeply troubling escalation in immigration enforcement tactics that undermine community trust and the principles of due process,” Cuomo said. “I believe in upholding the rule of law and maintaining secure borders, but these operations—marked by military-style raids, the use of flash-bang grenades, and the detention of individuals, including those attempting to document the events—cross a line into cruelty and unnecessary fear mongering.”
Labor leader arrested
According to ABC 7 Los Angeles, police arrested local union leader David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union California (SEIU), following a “scuffle involving federal agents,” the news outlet reported.
A press release from SEIU California said that Huerta was at a raid to “observe and document” law enforcement activity before he was arrested.
New York’s Congress Member and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn) said on Saturday that Huerta’s arrest is “unacceptable” and called for all charges to be dropped.
The Trump administration has repeatedly broken the law while deporting American citizens, including children, without the due process protections guaranteed by the Constitution,” Jeffries said. “Across the country, the American people are exercising their First Amendment right to lawfully and peacefully demonstrate against these actions.”
He also described Trump as a “wannabe dictator” in the federal government.
“This is the United States of America, and we will not be intimidated by a wannabe dictator in the executive branch,” the House representative said. “House Democrats will stand with David Huerta for as long as it takes until the charges are dropped, and the rogue federal actions that have been unleashed will be completely investigated and exposed.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York added Huerta’s arrest shows a “disturbing pattern” of detaining Americans for exercising free speech.
“The Trump administration’s disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech and protest is not only sickening, it’s a blatant abuse of power and a stain on our democracy,” the senator said. “David Huerta should be released immediately.”
‘We must stand up to hate’
Meanwhile, current City Council Speaker and mayoral candidate Adrienne Adams took to X to condemn yet another reported ICE detainment of a school student.
“Trump’s ICE has detained another NYC public school student while at a routine immigration hearing. Taking children away from their families and education spreads fear, undermines public safety, and hurts our city.
This high schooler should be with his classmates and family,” Adams wrote.
Fellow candidate and current New York Comptroller Brad Lander previously joined some families at their hearings and reacted to more arrests inside 26 Federal Plaza.
“Yesterday, I was on hand at federal immigration court to support and assist families whose cases were dismissed, leaving them vulnerable to arrests by ICE. Those I met expressed a deep fear of the exact cruelty and violence that many experienced at Federal Plaza today. We must stand up to hate & protect NYC’s immigrant communities from @realdonaldtrump’s xenophobic agenda,” Lander wrote on X.
