Big Take: The Small Towns Addicted to ICE
Like a growing number of US communities, Torrance County, New Mexico, is convinced its financial survival depends on locking immigrants up. A lucrative ICE contract keeps a private detention facility open that local politicians say the area needs. On today's Big Take podcast, Bloomberg reporters Rachel Adams-Heard and Fola Akinnibi examine how these private facilities are becoming key to the US government's immigration crackdown – and the financial incentives making it harder for small communities to quit them.
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Washington Post
36 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Immigration authorities extend activity in Los Angeles area amid street protests
LOS ANGELES — U.S. immigration authorities extended activity in Los Angeles area on Saturday in the wake of protests at an federal detention facility and a police response that included tear gas, flash-bangs and the arrest of a union leader. Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in the city of Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street, some jeering at authorities while recording the events on smartphones. 'ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,' a woman announced through a megaphone. 'You are not welcome here.' One hand-held sign said, 'No Human Being is Illegal.' The boulevard was closed to traffic as U.S. Border Patrol circulated through the area. ICE representatives did not respond immediately to email inquiries about weekend enforcement activities. Arrests by immigration authorities in Los Angeles come as President Donald Trump and his administration push to fulfill promises to carry out mass deportations across the country. On Friday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested more than 40 people as they executed search warrants at multiple locations, including outside a clothing warehouse where a tense scene unfolded as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to 'sow terror' in the nation's second-largest city. In a statement on Saturday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city's response to protests. 'Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,' Lyons said in a statement. 'Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation's immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.' Protesters gathered Friday evening outside a federal detention center in Los Angeles where lawyers said those arrested had been taken, chanting 'set them free, let them stay!' Other protesters held signs that said 'ICE out of LA!' and led chants and shouted from megaphones. Some scrawled graffiti on the building facade. Federal agents executed search warrants at three locations, including a warehouse in the fashion district of Los Angeles, after a judge found there was probable cause the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney's Office. Advocates for immigrant rights say people were detained Friday by immigration authorities outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop.
Los Angeles Times
38 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Chaos erupts at Paramount Home Depot as protesters confront immigration agents
An hourslong standoff between protesters and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents erupted Saturday morning at a Home Depot in Paramount, as federal officials warned of further immigration raids to come in Los Angeles. The confrontation near a Home Depot at 6400 Alondra Boulevard escalated into a fiery and tumultuous clash. At least one person was injured, ABC-7 reported. Chants of 'Fuera ICE' — ICE, get out —could be heard as flash-bang grenades lit up the scene; it was unclear who deployed the weapons. A Times reporter watched one protester gather a bag of trash and light it on fire in the middle of Alondra Boulevard, half a block away from where immigration agents were gathered. The scene followed raids across Los Angeles on Friday that led to the arrests of 44 people on suspicion of immigration violations, and another on suspicion of obstructing justice. 'Federal law enforcement operations are proceeding as planned this weekend in Los Angeles County,' U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli said on X as the standoff unfolded. 'I urge the public to refrain from interfering with these lawful actions. Anyone who obstructs federal agents will face arrest and prosecution.' In Paramount, a city that is 82% Latino, protesters gathered along Alondra Boulevard after reports that immigration officers were targeting people at a Home Depot, where day laborers commonly gather in search of work. A group of protesters stationed themselves near the Alondra exit of the 710 freeway, as a second gathered at the Home Depot. 'ICE has brought their terror tactics and masked agents to #Paramount this morning — in my district,' wrote U.S. Rep Nanette D. Barragán, whose district includes Paramount, in a post on X. 'This is unacceptable. We will demand answers and accountability. For those out there - please stay safe, protest peacefully, and KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.' By Saturday afternoon, bright orange shopping carts from Home Depot and a blue recycling bin were scattered across the boulevard. The air was acrid with smoke. Helicopter footage from the scene showed law enforcement vehicles blocking access as they closed the road. Border Patrol agents stood lined up. As a white bus with U.S. Marshals Service markings approached the scene, protesters stood in front of the vehicle in an attempt to stop it. Protesters burned an American flag, and others began lining the boulevard with large cement bricks. Federal officials struck an ominous tone. 'Multiple arrests have already been made for obstructing our operations,' FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said on X. 'More are coming. We are pouring through the videos for more perpetrators. You bring chaos, and we'll bring handcuffs.'
USA Today
40 minutes ago
- USA Today
Immigration enforcement in Los Angeles sparks clash between federal agents, protesters
Immigration enforcement in Los Angeles sparks clash between federal agents, protesters The Immigration and Customs Enforcement action was part of Trump's tougher policy to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants, which has fueled opposition in immigrant enclaves. Show Caption Hide Caption ICE raids protest turns violent as demonstrators clash with police Violence erupted after hundreds of demonstrators rallied to protest ICE raids in the city. Los Angeles police in riot gear confronted concrete-hurling protesters opposed to federal immigration enforcement. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested 118 undocumented immigrants during the week, including five alleged gang members. Federal immigration agents, helmeted police in riot gear and concrete-hurling protesters clashed in a violent melee in Los Angeles, as local officials said they wouldn't help federal authorities pursue President Donald Trump's tougher enforcement against undocumented immigrants. Some protesters hurled large chunks of broken concrete at officers, slashed tires and defaced buildings, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Police declared an unlawful assembly and responded by firing tear gas, pepper spray and flash-bang concussion rounds toward the crowd. The clash marked one of the most serious confrontations yet between agents carrying out Trump's directives on mass arrests and deportations, and local officials who oppose the stricter enforcement measures. The Department of Homeland Security said 118 undocumented immigrants were arrested during the week in Los Angeles, including five alleged gang members and others with criminal records for smuggling, drug trafficking and assault. Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said agents were outnumbered June 6 for hours as more than 1,000 rioters surrounded the federal building. 'What took place in Los Angeles yesterday was appalling,' Lyons said in a statement June 7. Lyons, who vowed to continue the enforcement action, accused Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass of taking 'the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement.' Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said city policy since 1979 has barred officers from initiating police action based solely on trying to determine a person's immigration status. He said the department 'will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations.' 'I'm aware that these activities cause anxiety for many Angelenos, so I want to make it clear: the LAPD is not involved in civil immigration enforcement,' McDonnell said in a statement. Bass said she was 'deeply angered' about the enforcement actions and that she would coordinate with immigrant-rights organizations. 'These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city,' Bass said in a statement. 'We will not stand for this.' "We will," FBI Director Kash Patel replied on social media June 7. One of the skirmishes involved the arrest of a union leader, David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union of California, who was injured and detained by ICE at one site. The union said Huerta was arrested "while exercising his First Amendment right to observe and document law enforcement activity." "We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice,' Huerta said in a post on social media. 'This is injustice." U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli accused Huerta of deliberately obstructing federal agents at a worksite. Huerta will be arraigned in federal court June 9, Essayli said. 'Let me be clear: I don't care who you are – if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted,' Essayli said in a post on social media. 'No one has the right to assault, obstruct, or interfere with federal authorities carrying out their duties.' Federal authorities said they would continue their enforcement actions despite the protests in Los Angeles and across the country. ICE announced June 6 that nearly 1,500 undocumented immigrants were arrested in Massachusetts during a monthlong Operation Patriot.
