BY JOE ARCE AND COREY CRABLE
Protesters clashed with police and National Guardsmen as the protests against ICE operations continued this week in Los Angeles.
On June 9, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he would deploy hundreds of U.S. Marines to the site of the action in downtown L.A. This followed his deployment of National Guardsmen despite California Gov. Gavin Newsom telling the White House that he didn’t request any assistance. The protests began on June 6, when ICE officers began executing immigration raids at several locations throughout the city.
The escalating action occurs just days before a military parade honoring Trump is scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, more protests have been planned in major U.S. cities on that same day, including Kansas City, which has seen regular weekend protests since Trump took office in January.
Concerned Kansas Citians shared their opinions on the raids, the protests, and where they might lead next.
“President Trump, without the authority of the governor in California, went over his head and just made his own decision. Why didn’t he do it (to help) Latinos? And why didn’t he do it on January 6, four years ago?” asked local resident David Chavez.
Chavez said he’s seen Hispanics who voted for Trump express concern over the raids and protests, but that he’s proud of those Hispanics who have spoken out against the administration.
“I’m proud to see our community stand up, and I think our voices are going to need to be heard a lot more from everybody soon, because this is not going to get any better,” he said. “And you know, we’re the second biggest minority. We have 65 million Hispanics here in this country. We need to flex our muscles and start to stand up and not be pushed around like we are.”
Chavez also noted the role that technology and social media have played in the L.A. protests, adding that he views them as mostly helpful.
“I saw this day coming and it seemed it took a long time for our Latino communities to wake up and start addressing some of these issues, and California answered the call,” Chavez said. “Social media, there’s a lot of good things and bad things about it, but one good thing is that it’s documenting everything.”
Chavez said it is apparent to him that Trump and his supporters want to see the protests get violent.
“I’m concerned because I know this administration doesn’t care, and I know that they’re looking for a fight. They want that fight,” he said. “They want the television cameras because it’s good for his base to say, ‘Look, look at all these Mexicans that are all up in arms and defending the way he frames it. You’re ripping kids away from their parents. You see it.’” The way he sees it, Chavez added, the Trump administration has no guard rails to help keep it in line and accountable, and that Trump’s power seems limitless.
“And the Republican Congress, they just really don’t do anything about Trump,” Chavez said. “It seems like he’s starting a war with American people starting out in California.”
Chavez said he hopes that the checks and balances on the executive branch will be restored soon.
“We’ll see how all this plays out for the midterms, because my hope is that we’re going to start to see a big change,” he said. “And maybe we can move back to normalcy and have Democrats take over the House and Senate, and that will kind of neutralize Trump a little bit.”
Sandra Olivas posted on her Facebook page, “My eyes can’t believe what I am seeing. The right to protest, to speak out, to demand justice is being twisted into something dangerous by those in power. And now, the National Guard is being deployed against people who are using their voices to call for dignity, fairness, and basic human rights for immigrants. Protesting injustice is not a threat! It is a RIGHT! Instead of listening, leaders are using force. My heart breaks watching this unfold not just for the protesters, but for what this says about who we are becoming as a country. When did advocating for immigrant families become a crime? When did we stop seeing each other as human? Justice isn’t justice if it’s only for some.”
Local resident, Edgar Galicia, said he believes the country’s wealthy elites simply want to get rid of Hispanics because they feel their way of life is being threatened.
“We as Mexicans, we as Latinos are the biggest force against that system. We are a disruptor to the system of financial slavery, and they want to get rid of us because we are the only community that manages its own wealth by not using their banks, that produces its own wealth by importing all of our products, that generates richness and wealth, selling to each other, building our own communities and backing up small businesses everywhere,” he said. “We are the only community recreating the corner store and making it viable again against their corporations that squeeze the money out of our communities. And so they want to get rid of us.”
Galicia, like Chavez, made mention of the Hispanics who voted for Trump, saying that they now feel fearful because of the administration’s policies and actions on immigration.
“Trump says that this is what the people voted him in for. He told the people he was going to do this, and the people gave him carte blanche to do this. That’s his feeling. That is a sad reality, and I’m appalled by knowing that so many Latinos voted for him,” Galicia said. “I’m totally hurt, but guess what? All of these people who voted for him are hurting right now. They’re afraid right now. They are concerned right now because they see the results of what they did.”
Galicia said that the federal government’s response to the protests in L.A. is just the beginning for an administration building a culture of intimidation and fear.
“They’re doing it through apprehension, they’re doing it through witch hunting, they’re doing it through increasing the cost of importing our goods, and they’re doing it through fear, terrorism,” Galacia said. “Everybody’s suffering. It’s our own U.S. government that’s attacking our communities.”
________________________________________________________________________________
I’ve been sharing a lot about ICE deportations lately, and I want to take a moment to explain why, not because it’s a trend or a headline, but because it’s personal. I do not support deportation. I never will, because behind every statistic is a family being torn apart.
My paternal grandparents were immigrants. Their journey, their struggle, and their hope helped build the foundation for my biological father and his siblings and I’m forever thankful.
But it was my stepdad — the man who raised me, guided me, and showed me a different kind of life who truly opened my heart to what this fight means. Through him, I found a deeper sense of identity. He’s been there for me through every high and every low. I fight for him, because that’s my family.
I fight for all my family, for my friends and right now, I fight for my brother-in-law — who was recently deported in Louisiana over something as simple as not having a driver’s license. One moment he was here, the next he was gone. That’s not justice. That’s broken policy.
We are not just “cases” or “statistics,” we are people. We are families. We are communities.
This isn’t just politics. It’s our lives, it’s our people and I won’t stay silent while families and communities are ripped apart. I will always stand for Hispanic rights, immigrant rights — because if we don’t stand for each other, who will?
I stand for love, justice, and dignity — for all of us.
From Rebecca, KCK
