Latest news with #ICEcrackdown
Skift
2 days ago
- Skift
Los Angeles Immigration Protests Spur Some Travelers to Change Plans
International tourists viewing the headlines from Los Angeles and other big U.S. cities may decide to skip the hassle and vacation elsewhere. The U.S. keeps giving tourists reasons to not visit. Most of Los Angeles feels normal, but after days of protests over an ICE crackdown — and with curfews, arrests, and military deployments downtown — some tourists are starting to rethink their plans. "Clients are concerned with flying and driving to the cruise ports in the L.A. area and have changed plans for cruising for the summer," said travel agent Debbie Allen at "Many have altered their plans to travel to Alaska (Seattle) and East Coast ports rather than L.A." Asia Lantz, a travel advisor based in Phoenix at said a lot of his international clients typically fly out of LAX, but they are opting for Phoenix instead. "It's not full-on panic, but there's definitely more concern about the overall vibe in bigger cities right now," Lantz said. "People are asking more questions than usual about airport logistics, layovers and whether it's even worth routing through certain places." In addition to Los Angeles, protests against the Trump administration's mass deportation policy have broken out in San Francisco, Oakland, and Santa Ana, California; Austin, San Antonio, Dallas and Houston, Texas; New York; Boston; Chicago; Atlanta; Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. As of Wednesday, 700 U.S. Marines were undergoing training in the area, according to CNN. "I've had clients reconsider layovers or shift plans to alternative destinations not because they're afraid of protests, but because they don't want their vacation to be overshadowed by unpredictability or tension," Lantz said. "That said, most of my travelers trust that I'll flag any real risks and help them make informed decisions." Five other travel advisors said Los Angeles tourism was unaffected by the protests, which are centered in the downtown area and away from most — but not all — of the city's tourism sights. "There's no softening to speak of," said Eric Marino, president of All-Travel and vice chairman of the American Society of Travel Advisors National Board of Directors. "It's a non-issue and I would say a non-story." Waymo Paused LA Operations In other developments, Waymo halted the operations of its self-driving cars in parts of LA after protesters set several on fire, the Washington Post reported. And the Mexico national soccer team, slated to play a match in the city on Saturday against the Dominican Republic, canceled its plans to stay in a hotel in downtown LA, and decided on another hotel instead, according to the Associated Press. Mayor Karen Bass instituted an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew downtown in a one-square-mile area. Airbnb decline to comment on the impact to its business of the Los Angeles or wider protests, and Expedia and Priceline didn't immediately comment. Visit California referred us to the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board, which didn't reply to a request for comment. One travel industry source said Wednesday he just visited LA with his family on vacation, spent a day in downtown LA, and didn't learn about the protests until they returned to the hotel. "We did a walking food tour, in the afternoon, and then a concert at the Hollywood Bowl at night with zero issues and then went back to the hotel to learn 'mobs have set the city on fire.''
ABC News
5 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Trump-ordered National Guard troops arrive in LA amid immigration raid protests
About 300 National Guard troops have arrived in Los Angeles on orders from President Donald Trump, staging outside a federal complex that remained largely quiet and without major protests following two days of clashes with immigration authorities. The deployment marked the first time in six decades that a state's national guard was activated without a request from its governor, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. On Sunday morning local time, some of the troops were stationed outside the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown LA, dressed in tactical gear and holding long guns in front of armoured vehicles. Footage showed at least a half dozen military-style vehicles and riot shields at the building on Sunday, with federal law enforcement firing gas canisters to disperse demonstrators protesting against the ICE crackdown. A small number of protesters gathered at the scene, along with Republican Maxine Waters, a Democrat, who demanded entry to the facility. The arrival of the National Guard followed two days of protests that began on Friday in downtown LA before spreading on Saturday to Paramount, a heavily Latino area south-east of the city, and neighbouring Compton. As federal agents set up a staging area on Saturday near a Home Depot in Paramount, demonstrators sought to block Border Patrol vehicles, with some hurling rocks and chunks of cement. In response, agents in riot gear unleashed tear gas, flash-bang explosives and pepper balls. Tensions were high after a series of sweeps by immigration authorities the previous day, as the week-long tally of immigrant arrests in the city climbed past 100. A prominent union leader was arrested while protesting and accused of impeding law enforcement. The deployment of the National Guard came over the objections of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who accused Mr Trump of a "complete overreaction" designed to create a spectacle of force. In a directive on Saturday, Mr Trump invoked a legal provision allowing him to deploy federal service members when there is "a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States". Mr Newsom called Mr Trump on Friday night and they spoke for about 40 minutes, according to the governor's office. It was not clear whether they spoke on Saturday or Sunday. There was some confusion surrounding the exact timing of the guard's arrival. Shortly before midnight local time, Mr Trump congratulated the National Guard on a "job well done". But less than an hour later, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said troops had yet to arrive in the city. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Sunday that the purpose of the deployment was to "provide security for operations and to make sure that there are peaceful protests". The troops included members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, according to a social media post from the Department of Defense. In a signal of the administration's aggressive approach, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also threatened to deploy active-duty Marines "if violence continues" in the region. Republicans and Democrats traded barbs on Sunday in the wake of the president's National Guard deployment. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said the order by Mr Trump reflected "a president moving this country rapidly into authoritarianism" and "usurping the powers of the United States Congress". House Speaker Mike Johnson, a staunch Trump ally, endorsed the president's move, doubling down on Republicans' criticisms of California Democrats. "Gavin Newsom has shown an inability or an unwillingness to do what is necessary, so the president stepped in," Mr Johnson said. Democratic senator Cory Booker condemned Mr Trump for deploying troops without California's approval, warning it would only escalate tensions. On NBC's Meet the Press he accused Mr Trump of hypocrisy, and noted the president's inaction on January 6, 2021 when thousands of his supporters raided the US Capitol and his subsequent pardons for those arrested. The protests against the raids have become the latest focal point in a national debate over immigration, protest rights, and the use of federal force in domestic affairs. It also has fuelled discussion on the boundaries of presidential power and the public's right to dissent. AP/Reuters
