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Federal immigration sweeps across that began Friday in Los Angeles have prompted anger, protest and resistance from onlookers and immigrant rights groups that have braced for this type of action for months.

Over the weekend, tensions continued to rise between state and local authorities and Trump administration officials, who said they were calling up the National Guard in response to what the White House said were "violent mobs" attacking "ICE Officers and Federal Law Enforcement Agents carrying out basic deportation operations in Los Angeles."

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sunday afternoon formally asked that President Donald Trump rescind the deployment, which he had ordered Saturday.

"We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved," Newsom said on social media. "This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed."

At an evening news conference, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said she supported Newsom's request, adding that she had tried to dissuade the Trump administration from sending in soldiers.

"The last thing this city needs is civil unrest that is provoked," she said.

Newsom earlier called the plan to take over deployment from the state "purposefully inflammatory," adding that it "will only escalate tensions," and that he'd been in "close coordination with the city and county, and there is currently no unmet need."

Trump said the move was needed on social media, turning the governor's name into an insult: "If Governor Gavin Newscum, of California, and Mayor Karen Bass, of Los Angeles, can’t do their jobs, which everyone knows they can’t, then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!”

By Sunday morning, hundreds of National Guard members were on duty in downtown L.A., where two protests — one permitted and one not permitted — converged near the federal detention center. The growing protest made for a rowdy and tense scene, punctuated by the sound of flash bangs and tear gas.

Shortly before 3 p.m. Sunday, the Los Angeles Police Department declared the assembly unlawful and authorized the use of less-than-lethal munitions. By about 5 p.m., the department had ordered people to stay away from the Civic Center downtown.

A group of protesters who walked onto the 101 Freeway also temporarily forced traffic in both directions to stop.

About 8:30 p.m. Sunday, LAPD Capt. Raul Jovel said the department had arrested 10 people, and that the California Highway Patrol arrested 17 people on the 101 Freeway. Chief Jim McDonnell said the department would use video and other evidence to hold as many other people as possible accountable for violence. Three officers had minor injuries Sunday, Jovel said.

U.S. National Guard are deployed outside the federal prison in downtown Los Angeles, Sunday, June 8, 2025, following a immigration raid protest the night before. Jae Hong / AP )

Outside City Hall for a planned demonstration, Eli Lockwood of Hacienda Heights told LAist she was there to protest what she said were “disgusting attacks on our communities.”

“We have to stand united against the attacks on the immigrant community because an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us,” she said.

A protester displays a poster as tear gas is used in the Metropolitan Detention Center of downtown Los Angeles on June 8, 2025. Eric Thayer/AP / FR171986 AP )

A larger crowd assembled outside the Metropolitan Detention Center, near where Alameda Street crosses over the 101 Freeway. Images showed National Guard troops clashing with some of the protesters.

As of 2:30 p.m., at least 100 federal officers wearing patches designating them as ICE or FBI — and carrying rifles and less-than-lethal weapons — were advancing on the crowd of about 500 people.

At least one person was taken to the ground and appeared to be detained as police officers moved in to disperse the crowd before police announced that the use of less-than-lethal munitions had been authorized. The LAPD also said on X that officers had reported people in the crowd "throwing concrete, bottles and other object," prompting arrests.

Television news footage showed that several Waymo self-driving cars were vandalized, including at least two that were set on fire near Olvera Street, sending thick plumes of black smoke into the air.

Anna Benedict of Echo Park told LAist earlier in the day that the demonstration had been largely peaceful.

“I mean, everybody here wants to be peaceful,” she said. “We've been standing here for quite a while, and no one is menacing the National Guard. Everybody is just standing up for their own freedom.”

The scene in downtown L.A. on Sunday afternoon. Liz Baker / NPR )

Two starkly contrasting pictures of conditions in the L.A. area continued to be offered by Trump and his allies, compared with local and state officials.

While Fox News and other conservative media used captions like "L.A. Riots" and the term "rioters" was trending on X, closer to home, authorities described isolated skirmishes and urged calm. Some national outlets seem to think Paramount, where there was some violence reported, was located within the city of Los Angeles.

U.S. Rep. Nanette Barragán, whose district includes Paramount, told LAist on Sunday morning that she'd been in close contact with the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, which patrols the area.

"We don't need additional assistance," she said. "We have everything under control... the Sheriff's [Department] in Paramount got everything under control yesterday and LAPD has cleared out downtown last night without the help of National Guard."

The Sheriff's Department told LAist that two deputies had been injured Saturday, treated at a hospital and released. It also said people threw bottles and set off fireworks; some were detained.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other local and state leaders have urged protesters to remain peaceful, saying there is no place for violence or attacks on police as people exercise their First Amendment rights.

Barragán said her constituents are upset: "People are angry. ... They're concerned. There's a lot of anxiety about immigration enforcement."

The effect " is terrorizing the community, and now you send the National Guard, you know, against their own people, and that is of course going to escalate the situation, and we're trying to deescalate. And I think this administration knows what they're doing. They're trying to have a distraction."

What led up to Trump's action

An anti-ICE protester challenges deputies in Paramount on Saturday. Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images )

The conflict in Paramount, a city of about 56,000 residents south of downtown L.A., attracted national attention after protests near a Home Depot extended into Saturday. Those protests appear to have begun when ICE agents were spotted in the area.

As the situation there was still developing, L.A. County Sheriff's Department officials said in a statement that "as the situation escalated, the crowd of protesters became increasingly agitated, throwing objects and exhibiting violent behavior toward federal agents and deputy sheriffs."

At that point, the department said it requested additional resources "countywide." The statement did not reference the National Guard.

"We will protect your right to peacefully protest," Sheriff Robert Luna said in an interview included in the statement, "but we will not tolerate violence or destruction of property."

The Sheriff's Department also clarified that they were not participating in any immigration enforcement actions, saying: "When federal authorities come under attack and request assistance, we will support them and provide aid. However, this does not mean that we are assisting with their immigration actions or operations; rather, our objective is to protect them from any violent attacks. Any assault on federal or local law enforcement is unacceptable."

In Los Angeles by contrast, LAPD officials released a statement at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday calling the day's protests in the city "peaceful" and commending "all those who exercised their First Amendment rights responsibly," adding that the department "appreciates the cooperation of organizers, participants and community partners who helped ensure public safety throughout the day."

Later in the evening, LAPD officers ordered protesters in downtown L.A. to disperse and closed Alameda between Los Angeles Street and 2nd Street to both pedestrians and vehicles.

The scene late Saturday in downtown Los Angeles near the central jail. Jordan Rynning / LAist )

What we know about the arrests

Initially, ICE officials said 44 people were arrested in the raids, although some news reports placed the number at more than 120 by late Saturday.

"ICE officers and agents alongside partner law enforcement agencies, executed four federal search warrants at three locations in central Los Angeles," ICE spokesperson Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe said in a statement.

Confrontations between what appeared to be ICE officers and people in the streets of downtown L.A. could be seen in video aired on local television and shared on social media.

At times, uniformed agents or officers could be seen physically moving people who appeared to be blocking the officers and their vehicles.

Reports shared via the social media platform X said ICE was seen in the Garment District area of L.A. Another video showed federal agents in the parking lot of a Home Depot in Westlake, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, known as CHIRLA, said her organization estimated there were at least 45 detentions.

Among them was Service Employees International Union California President David Huerta, according to union authorities. They said Huerta had been injured and was receiving medical attention while in custody.

“What happened to me is not about me; this is about something much bigger," Huerta said in a statement released by the union. "This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that’s happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice.”

Several immigrant rights leaders and activists, along with some city elected officials, attended a large rally Friday evening to share their reactions to the federal operations and call for a stop to them. Later, more than 300 people marched a few blocks toward the federal detention center.

Protesters march after federal immigration authorities conducted an operation on Friday, June 6, 2025, in Los Angeles. Jae C. Hong / AP )

Reaction from city officials

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement Friday afternoon condemning the raids.

"As a mayor of a proud city of immigrants, who contribute to our city in so many ways, I am deeply angered by what has taken place," Bass said. "These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city.

"My office is in close coordination with immigrant rights community organizations," the mayor continued. "We will not stand for this."

All 15 members of the City Council released a joint statement that echoed some of the same points the Bass made.

"We condemn this in no uncertain terms: Los Angeles was built by immigrants and it thrives because of immigrants," the statement read. "We will not abide by fear tactics to support extreme political agendas that aim to stoke fear and spread discord in our city.

"To every immigrant living in our city: We see you, we stand with you, and we will fight for you," the statement continued. "Los Angeles will continue to be a place that values and dignifies every human being, no matter who they are or where they come from.”

Listen • 0:46 Listen: Immigration sweeps in LA Agents were met with anger and resistance from onlookers and immigrant rights groups that have braced for this type of action for months.

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said his department was not involved in the raids.

“While the LAPD will continue to have a visible presence in all our communities to ensure public safety, we will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations, nor will the LAPD try to determine an individual’s immigration status,” he said.

After the sweeps, photographers captured several protesters being detained by officers. Addressing a crowd at a rally, L.A. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez pushed back against previous statements by the Trump administration that ICE would focus their efforts on dangerous criminals.

"It's never, ever, ever been the case," Hernandez said. "Because when they come for one of us, they come for all of us. And we have to remember that."

Dozens of immigration activists gathered in downtown Los Angeles to protest a series of federal immigration operations Friday, June 6, that resulted in several detentions. Frank Stoltze / LAist )

Councilmember Ysabel Jurado noted the timing of the ICE operations, stressing that they happened at a time when families and students are celebrating graduations and the LGBTQ+ community is celebrating Pride Month.

"What kind of government plans this during our most sacred moments of joy?" Jurado asked. "The footage speaks for itself. This is cruelty disguised as policy."

Since Trump was elected, immigrant rights groups in Southern California have been on edge. Trump has promised “mass deportations” of unauthorized immigrants. There have been protests that have shut down freeways and high school walkouts by students protesting the administration.

“Los Angeles immigrant communities and allies have been preparing,” Andres Kwon of the American Civil Liberties Union told LAist in February.

The ACLU is part of the L.A. Rapid Response Network, a group of immigrant rights, legal and faith-based groups that has a hotline for people to report ICE activity and to seek help after a raid.

CHIRLA and other groups have hosted workshops that teach undocumented immigrants how to assert their constitutional rights, as well as how to prepare for worst-case scenarios. They’ve been telling people they don’t have to allow a federal agent into their home without a warrant and don’t have to reveal their immigration status.

The Los Angeles Unified School District began distributing “red cards,” also known as “Know Your Rights” cards, to help people assert their rights and defend themselves if they encounter federal immigration agents.

The effort came as the Trump administration announced it would allow ICE to conduct arrests in sensitive areas such as schools and churches, dismantling policies dating back to 2011 .

Before L.A., ICE conducted high-profile enforcement actions in Chicago and Boston. Last week, an ICE raid on a restaurant in San Diego’s South Park neighborhood resulted in multiple arrests. While the raid was taking place, crowds gathered outside the restaurant where many people protested the action, filming the officers on their cellphones and surrounding their vehicles.

Detentions under Biden

Removals of immigrants by ICE and Customs and Border Patrol in the L.A. area were on the rise before Trump came into office. But the Washington Post reported earlier this year that ICE had struggled to boost arrest numbers despite an infusion of resources.

ICE/CBP removals in the L.A. Area of Operations, which includes much of Southern California, increased by more than 180% between the 2022 and 2024 fiscal years, according to ICE data. More than 3,551 people were removed in fiscal 2024, which ended Sept. 30.

Detentions also rose, according to the data.

While national detentions remained fairly constant over the past four years, L.A.-area detentions increased by 155% from 2022 to 2024, when 3,857 people were detained.

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Chris Newman, legal director and general counsel for the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said earlier this year.

While in office, former President Joe Biden was under increasing political pressure to address illegal immigration.

“The Biden administration was focused on recent arrivals and people with criminal history,” Newman said.

From 2023 to 2024, the L.A. area had significant increases in detentions (432% increase from 217 to 1,154) and removals (547% increase from 223 to 1,443) of people who had not been convicted of crimes.

How we're reporting on this

Jordan Rynning contributed to this report. Josie Huang, who hosts Weekend Edition on LAist 89.3, is conducting interviews. Dañiel Martinez and Jared Bennett are making calls to the public officials and monitoring news conferences. Frank Stoltze reported from the field on Friday. Fiona Ng, Jason Wells and Megan Garvey have contributed reporting and writing, as well as editing. Dana Littlefield edited the original version of this article, which initially published Friday.

This is a developing story. We fact check everything and rely only on information from credible sources (think fire, police, government officials and reporters on the ground). Sometimes, however, we make mistakes or initial reports turn out to be wrong. In all cases, we strive to bring you the most accurate information in real time and will update this story as new information becomes available.