Hundreds of protesters flooded the 101 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday morning, causing major traffic delays as they voiced their opposition to President Donald Trump’s aggressive crackdown on illegal immigration. The protest, which began around 9 a.m. near Olvera Street, quickly grew in size, disrupting traffic and creating chaos in one of the busiest urban centers in the United States.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and California Highway Patrol (CHP) worked throughout the morning to manage the protest, with the CHP issuing warnings for drivers to avoid downtown Los Angeles. “Please avoid the 101 freeway in DTLA between I-110 and Mission Rd., as we work to remove a protest from the freeway,” CHP wrote on social media. “Accessing state highways or roads to protest is unlawful and extremely dangerous because it puts protesters, motorists, and first responders at great risk of injury.”
As the protestors blocked both directions of the busy freeway, many waved Mexican flags, carried signs, and chanted against the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
The protest, which wasn’t permitted, became increasingly intense, with videos circulating on social media showing demonstrators vandalizing cars and spray-painting graffiti on freeway walls.
The protest and its tactics quickly caught the attention of conservative influencers, who criticized the demonstrators. “They shut down freeways and stop traffic in one of the most congested cities in the U.S. to try to convince us not to deport them,” Libs of TikTok wrote on X (formerly Twitter) in response to the incident. “This isn’t gonna end well. Get ICE on scene ASAP.”
The protests come as the Trump administration intensifies its immigration enforcement efforts. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced on Friday that deportation flights had already begun, sharing images of illegal immigrants boarding military aircraft as part of the operation. “President Trump is sending a strong and clear message to the entire world: if you illegally enter the United States of America, you will face severe consequences,” Leavitt wrote on X.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported that it had arrested more than 7,400 illegal immigrants over a nine-day period, as part of an aggressive nationwide crackdown. The agency also revealed that nearly 6,000 ICE detainers had been placed on individuals.
The brazen nature of these protests highlights a troubling trend: illegal immigrants and their supporters, in advocating for one crime (entering and staying in the U.S. illegally), are now engaging in more—illegally blocking public roads and causing widespread disruption. This escalating defiance of the law further fuels concerns about the impact of lax immigration policies. In many instances, immigrants who have entered the U.S. unlawfully seem emboldened by a system that coddles them, especially in sanctuary cities and states.
The sense of entitlement displayed by those blocking highways in broad daylight suggests that they no longer feel the need to obey basic laws, much less respect the safety and rights of American citizens. For many Americans, this apparent disregard for the law and for the safety of others underscores the growing frustration with the status quo and is viewed as a direct challenge to the principles and values that the nation was built upon. The protests, intended to advocate for immigration reform, instead risk reinforcing perceptions of criminals with no regard for law and order, and will likely only increase public support for Trump’s mass deportations.
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First of all, People here illegally have no rights to protest. Second of all, we don’t care what you feel, if you are here illegally, go back where you came from. You broke our immigration laws by coming in. Our country of immigrants came here legally.
They aren’t pro immigration. They’re pro illegal invasion.
Too bad ICE didn’t have a few large busses handy. They were making it easier to round up.
We’re not asking you to apologize for who you are. We are asking you to leave our country if you are here illegally. Simple as that. Your country does not allow us to purchase homes, get in the country without insurance if you’re driving, have access to any government aid. Why should you get this at my expense. It took me 10 years to get here legally. DO THE SAME YOURSELF THEN YOU DON’T NEED TO APOLOGIZE FOR WHO YOU ARE!!!!
ARREST EVERYONE INVOLVED THAT YOU CAN AND CHECK THEIR STATUS TO BE HERE!!! CHARGE EVERYONE WITH VANDALISM, PROMOTING A RIOT, BLOCKING TRAFFIC, ETC.!!!!! HAVE ICE AND THE BORDER GUARD COME GET THEM!!!
This was a good opportunity to fill the busses with illegals and arrest those who Aid and Abet known criminals.
Why didn’t your headline reflect the truth that was in the lede? It should have been: Pro-Illegal Immigration Protesters Vandalize & Block Traffic In LA
No body is asking you to apologize for who you are. The only thing that is being asked is that you come to the USA Legally, through the proper entry ports and apply entry as a foreigner or for citizenship if you plan to stay here. Easy stuff. You got conned if you fell for the message that it was OK to enter the USA illegally by swimming the Rio Grande, hiking through deserts, or other means. All we are trying to do is control immigration, which is figuring out who the criminals are, stopped illegal drugs from entering, and keeping gangs like MS13 out. If you are a decent person, welcome to the USA.
I don’t care if they don’t apologize for who they are. If you want to stay, do it legally. It seems like a simple solution to me. But now, if they’re illegals, protesting on a freeway is illegal, so now they are twice criminals. Kick ’em out. I’d say get water cannons out there to wash them off the freeway, but not enough water for fires, so I guess that’s out.
I think the headline, to be accurate, should read, “Pro-ILLEGAL Immigration Protesters Vandalize and Block Traffic in LA.” They still have us using their terminology. We still say “gender” instead of “sex” (only two sexes–not 164 genders). We still say “Pro-Choice,” instead of “People who want to take the lives of unborn babies.” They had us saying “migrants” instead of “Illegal aliens” for awhile. Thankfully that has reversed somewhat. Those are only a few examples. There are many more.
We will never win this cultural civil war we are in if we continue to let them control the language.
A good article to read which describes this even better is: https://thefederalist.com/2018/05/01/lefts-war-words-manipulates-mind/
Great article however. Thank you!
8 US Code 1325
(a)Improper time or place; avoidance of examination or inspection; misrepresentation and concealment of facts
Any alien who (1) enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers, or (2) eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers, or (3) attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact, shall, for the first commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both, and, for a subsequent commission of any such offense, be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both.
No need to apologize for who you are. It is where you are that is inexcusable. Homan and ICE missed a chance to get a few plane fulls in one group. Get them and their foreign flags out of our country. They are here to takeover our country not to assimilate in to it.