AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Protests ignited in Los Angeles over recent immigration enforcement raids, prompting President Donald Trump to deploy National Guard troops and Marines in response.
The wave of demonstrations has since spread across the country, with events planned throughout the weekend.
From Seattle to Austin and Washington, D.C., demonstrators have chanted slogans and carried signs opposing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, causing traffic disruptions through downtown areas and outside federal offices.
While the majority of the protests remained peaceful, some incidents escalated into clashes with law enforcement, leading to arrests and the use of chemical irritants to disperse crowds.
Advocates are anticipating even larger protests in the coming days, including “No Kings” events scheduled for Saturday to coincide with President Trump’s planned military parade in Washington, D.C.
The Trump administration has reiterated its commitment to continue raids and deportations despite the escalating protests.
“ICE will continue to enforce the law,” stated Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in a social media post on Tuesday.
In Austin, tensions flared as four police officers were injured during a protest that drew hundreds.
The crowd moved between the state Capitol and a federal building housing an ICE office.
In anticipation of the protest, state officials had closed the Capitol to the public an hour early.
Austin police deployed pepper spray balls, while state police resorted to tear gas when demonstrators began trying to deface the federal building with spray paint.
The situation intensified as demonstrators began throwing rocks and bottles at a police barricade.
According to Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis, three officers suffered injuries from large rocks, and another officer was injured during an arrest.
A total of eight individuals were arrested by Austin police, with several more apprehended by state police.
Davis emphasized the department’s stance on peaceful protest: “We support peaceful protest.
When that protest turns violent, when it turns to throwing rocks and bottles …. That will not be tolerated.
Arrests will be made.”
Meanwhile, Dallas experienced its own upheaval during a protest that attracted hundreds to a city bridge.
The rally lasted several hours before police declared it an “unlawful assembly,” warning participants to disperse or face potential arrest.
Initially, Dallas police communicated through social media that they would not interfere with lawful and peaceful assemblies, but they later moved in to clear the area after reports of objects being thrown from the crowd.
The police utilized pepper spray and smoke to disperse the crowd, resulting in at least one arrest.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott commented on the protests, stating, “Peaceful protesting is legal.
But once you cross the line, you will be arrested.”
Seattle saw about 50 individuals gather outside the immigration court in downtown on Tuesday, where they chanted with drums and displayed signs such as “Free Them All; Abolish ICE” and “No to Deportations.”
Initially peaceful, the protest took a turn when participants placed scooters in front of the building entrances prior to police arrival.
Mathieu Chabaud, a member of Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Washington, expressed solidarity with protesters in Los Angeles and opposition to ICE’s local presence.
Legal advocates who typically attend immigration court hearings as observers were prohibited from entering the building when they arrived, and security personnel turned away members of the media.
In Santa Ana, adjacent to Los Angeles, the morning after the protests saw armored vehicles positioned to block roads leading into the Civic Center, where numerous city and county agencies, along with federal immigration officers, have their offices.
Cleanup efforts revealed shattered bottles and scattered shards of glass on the streets, remnants of the previous day’s unrest.
Vandals had tagged buildings near the area with graffiti slogans against ICE and defaced mentions of President Trump.
Authorities put crews to work, painting over graffiti in an effort to restore order.
Boston hosted its own demonstrate on Monday, where hundreds gathered at City Hall Plaza to protest the detention of union leader David Huerta during the raids in Los Angeles.
Protesters carried signs proclaiming solidarity with their counterparts in Los Angeles, with messages like “Massachusetts stands with our neighbors in Los Angeles” and “Protect our immigrant neighbors.”
The crowd shouted slogans, including “Come for one, come for all” in support of Huerta, who was released later that evening on a $50,000 bond.
“An immigrant doesn’t stand between an American worker and a good job, a billionaire does,” proclaimed Chrissy Lynch, President of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO.
In Washington D.C., several unions convened on Monday, organizing a protest against the raids while advocating for Huerta’s release.
Demonstrators marched past the Department of Justice building, where U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington state also joined the rally.
“There is a need to end mass ICE raids that are unfairly targeting innocent individuals,” Jayapal asserted.
As protests continue to unfold, demonstrators assert their constitutional right to voice opposition peacefully as they confront a backdrop of heightened tensions and law enforcement responses.
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