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Protesters against the Trump administration's immigration policies march through downtown LA on Feb. 3, 2025. | Photo courtesy of March And Rally Los Angeles/Facebook
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Upwards of 1,000 protesters demonstrated in Los Angeles and Santa Ana on Monday to voice opposition to President Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportations and a nationwide crackdown on illegal immigration.
The largest number of demonstrators were in downtown Los Angeles, where police detained an estimated 200 people and arrested one person for allegedly possessing a firearm, according to published reports.
After initially gathering at LA City Hall, protesters marched along First and Spring streets to an intersection near Crypto.com Arena. There they waved flags and chanted before heading back northward, joined by hundreds more protesters and motorists who joined the demonstration that processed through the downtown.
The Los Angeles Police Department declared unlawful assembly about 4:45 p.m. Monday after officers said people in the group threw bottles and rocks at them, according to published reports.
The majority of demonstrators acted peacefully, as police permitted the crowd to process through streets.
Katherine Sanchez, an 18-year-old senior at Burbank High School attended the protest outside City Hall with family members. She held a sign that read, “Ur racism won’t end our strength.”
Sanchez, who heard about the demonstration on TikTok, told the Los Angeles Times she thought the public display of solidarity was “heartwarming.”
By early afternoon, approximately 1,000 protesters assembled at the Hollywood Freeway’s Spring and Main street overpasses. Police, however, were on alert to prevent them from attempting to walk onto the highway, as many did on Sunday, when protests against Trump’s immigration agenda began, the Times reported.
The protests Monday were part of coordinated actions nationwide called “A Day Without Immigrants.”
In downtown Santa Ana, hundreds of protesters gathered at Sasscer Park and across the street at the Ronald Reagan federal courthouse.
About 150 people assembled at Fifth and Ross streets to voice opposition to Trump’s policies and his campaign promise to deport thousands of people who live in the U.S. without legal permission.
Demonstrators were also present on Fourth Street, Orange County’s historic Latino corridor.
OC protest organizers Tonali Un and Carla Valencia told the Times they chose the location for the protest because it was near the federal buildings for courts and immigration services.
“I think people are finally opening their eyes,” Un said.
“A lot of people I talk to now regret” voting for Trump, she said. “People are finally realizing they have to do their research.”
Un said many Latino Trump supporters she has spoken with did not believe he would crack down on immigration or follow through with many of his campaign pledges.
A protest also took place Monday in North Hollywood, according to published reports.
In Perris, a protest was declared an unlawful assembly after nine hours, resulting in six arrests, according the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday.
Individuals throwing rocks and bottles at deputies led to the declaration, sheriff’s officials said in a statement. That claim was disputed by some who said the dispersal orders were issued when the protest was still peaceful, according to published reports.
Protesters assembled at several Perris Boulevard intersections starting at 9 a.m. Monday. Authorities estimated the crowd to be as many as 500 people. Riverside County deputies and California Highway Patrol officers were monitoring protests throughout the day.
The protests were peaceful until 6 p.m., when the sheriff’s department reported that some in the crowd were throwing item, according to the statement.
Video posted online later showed law enforcement personnel appearing to shoot “less lethal” projectiles in the direction of demonstrators a few minutes after a deputy’s announcement to disperse.
Sheriff’s officials said deputies and CHP officers were able to clear protesters from the area without any reported injuries.
Six people were arrested, four for obstruction and two for assault with a deadly weapon, according to the sheriff’s department.
Protests against Trump’s immigration policies began Sunday in Los Angeles. Demonstrators gathered on Olvera Street in downtown LA in what police said was a nonpermitted demonstration. The crowd grew to several thousand as it headed to City Hall. Many protesters walked onto the Hollywood Freeway near the Alameda Street exit.
Thousands of protesters blocked freeway traffic and clashed with law enforcement before leaving the area Sunday evening. Video from the scene showed vocal demonstrators occupying both sides of the freeway shortly after noon, many waving U.S. and Mexican flags and holding signs critical of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.
The LAPD, which had earlier called the demonstration peaceful, reported that Spring Street, Main Street, Los Angeles Street, Arcadia Street and the Santa Monica (10) Freeway were experiencing major gridlock by Sunday afternoon.
The freeway was fully reopened on Sunday night.
Video posted online later showed several members of the crowd spraying graffiti on freeway walls and appearing to vandalize at least one car stopped in the center of the throng.
Since his Jan. 20 inauguration, Trump has followed through on his campaign pledge to increase deportations, with ICE conducting raids in major cities. Trump made immigration a focal point of his campaign and promised mass deportations to expel people in the country illegally, particularly those charged with or convicted of crimes.
