L.A. Summer Riots and Protests

By Evan McFarland

Throughout June 2025, there were widespread riots in Los Angeles over the Trump Administration’s mass deportation policy. The riots prompted an aggressive police reaction from the Trump administration.

When Trump took office in Jan. 2025, he set a goal to arrest 3,000 immigrants every day. The heightened deportation efforts have led to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) taking drastic measures to arrest immigrants. On June 6, 2025, ICE launched military-like raids on immigrant communities in Los Angeles. At least 44 people were detained, and, according to several media outlets, held in the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building overnight without food, water, or beds. ICE, however, disputed these claims.

Word of these raids quickly spread on social media, and on the afternoon of June 6, a crowd of protesters began to form around the federal building. They blocked the entrances and exits of the building and demanded the release of the detainees. Some spray-painted anti-ICE messages on the building.

The crowd remained outside the building for an extended period of time, despite dispersal orders from the LAPD. To enforce the orders, riot troopers were sent to the scene, where they made several arrests, including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President David Huerta. They were successful in dispersing the crowds.

The next morning, after news of another ICE raid circulated, demonstrations began again. Both the raids and demonstrations would continue throughout the month of June. The demonstrations ranged from nonviolent protests to all-out riots. Many were completely peaceful anti-ICE protests, such as ones organized by the SEIU and the American Civil Liberties Union. However, many were not. Buildings were vandalized, stores were looted, bottles, rocks, and fireworks were thrown at ICE officials, and images of cars burning at the riots were widely circulated online. 

The suppression of these gatherings was incredibly violent for both peaceful and non-peaceful assemblies. Every day, riot police, the LAPD, and the National Guard, sent in by President Trump, deployed tear gas to disperse crowds. Protesters were pepper-sprayed. In addition to these tactics, more militaristic action was taken against the protestors. The demonstrators and several innocent passersby were hit with flashbang grenades and foam bullets. These methods of suppression, described by civil rights attorney Dan Stormer as “the most horrific use of non-lethal weaponry I’ve ever seen,” could cost the city of Los Angeles up to $100M in injury settlements.

The harsh response to the protests has sparked concern over the Trump administration’s repression of freedom of assembly, as well as the increasing militarization of law enforcement.