Family of Los Angeles worker detained by ICE demands justice
Families of people detained in ICE raids in Los Angeles are demanding justice for their loved ones.
Southern Californians traveling to Los Angeles may see marches and rallies along Wilshire Boulevard on Thursday, December 18th.
It is part of International Migrants Day, perhaps the most important day in the past five years, said Oscar Zarate, director of external affairs at the Humane Migrant Rights Coalition. CHIRLA is also participating in Thursday’s rally.
Participants will gather at the intersection of Vermont Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles’ Koreatown, and the march will proceed through MacArthur Park to a nearby Home Depot. According to organizers, the location of the march and rally has a purpose: “It will cross the streets of Los Angeles in areas that have been heavily impacted by recent ICE raids.”
Part of the importance behind the move is to tell local residents “not to be afraid,” countering what Zarate said was part of the Trump administration’s goal to use fear to force people to choose voluntary deportation.
“Selecting those locations is our way of saying, ‘No, these spaces are ours. We’re going to take them back,'” Zarate said. “And people shouldn’t be scared or be too scared to leave their homes.”
The case comes amid a months-long and sometimes very public crackdown by the federal government on people without legal status in the United States, including communities in Los Angeles and Southern California. Protests against a federal raid in Los Angeles in June prompted notable reactions. President Trump sent the California National Guard and Marines to the city, a move condemned by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other officials.
Sebastian Silva, deputy communications director for SEIU United Service Workers West, said the march and rally serve as a “loud reminder” that “there is no Los Angeles without immigrants.”
Silva said immigrants have made up the “fabric” of Los Angeles from its founding to the present day and “drive the economy.”
“This is an opportunity for us to say, ‘We don’t just want to be here. We don’t just demand safety and security, we demand to live free from fear and attack, we have rights, and we deserve recognition for all the hard work we put into creating the LA we know and love and the LA that continues to welcome immigrants,'” Silva said.
What is the theme for International Migrants Day 2025?
The theme of this year’s International Day of Migrants is “My Amazing Story: Culture and Development”. According to the United Nations, the theme “focuses on how human mobility fosters growth, enriches societies, and helps communities connect, adapt and support each other.”
Paris Barraza is a reporter covering Los Angeles and Southern California for the USA TODAY Network. please contact her pbarraza@usatodayco.com.
