Hundreds of L.A. students join immigration protests; buildings vandalized, rocks thrown, LAPD says

Mass demonstrations against President Trump’s crackdown on immigration continued for a third day in downtown Los Angeles, with hundreds of students walking out of class Tuesday to join the march and one adult protester arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism.

The protests began in the morning and continued to grow throughout the afternoon, with crowds bearing flags from Mexico and other Latin American countries and waving anti-Trump banners. A man participating in the demonstration was arrested on suspicion of vandalizing several buildings and a Waymo, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Students join in the Los Angeles protests. L.A. Unified reported attendance was 66% Monday compared with 93% for the year as a whole.

(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

A dispersal order was issued and an unlawful assembly declared around Los Angeles City Hall at 3:36 p.m., following reports of students throwing rocks and bottles at officers, according to the LAPD.

“Anyone who remains in violation of this order will be arrested,” Police Cmdr. Lillian Carranza said in a statement. “Officers and supervisors on the scene will ensure those who violate the law are cited or booked.”

Slogans including “F— Trump,” “F— ICE” and a Spanish phrase that roughly translates to “F— Border Patrol/ICE” were spray-painted on City Hall and surrounding buildings.

The Italian American Museum of Los Angeles reported having been vandalized during the marches.

“The vandalism includes spray painted ‘Viva La Raza,’ ‘F— Ice’ and ‘F— Trump’ all across the building,” a spokesperson for the museum said in a statement. “Sadly, this is not the first time the museum has faced march-related vandalism and the repairs are often very costly for the museum which is a non-profit organization.”

The protests began Sunday with thousands rallying downtown and shutting down a section of the 101 Freeway.

The marches continued Monday, when many students skipped class and businesses shut down as part of a national protest called “A day without immigrants.” The Los Angeles Unified School District’s attendance was 66% Monday compared with 93% for the year as a whole, according to the district.

Nicole Fefferman, an educator with the UCLA Labor Center, was teaching a class at Garfield High School on Tuesday when a large group of students walked off campus and joined with hundreds of students from other LAUSD campuses, including Marshall High School and the Miguel Contreras Learning Complex, to make their voices heard at the protests, she said.

Garfield students also covered the walls of their campus with chalk messages such as “Immigrants make America great again,” “Mexicans make the world go round,” “I’m doing this for my father” and “Brown n proud.”

Nathan, a senior at Garfield, told the Boyle Heights Beat that he was participating in Tuesday’s protests to speak up for the Latino community and show the nation that Latinos matter.

“We’re often overlooked or judged unfairly, but in reality, we help build this country in so many ways through hard work, culture and dedication,” he told the news site. “I hope that these walkouts show the country that we are powerful and that the U.S. needs us. If we step away, even for a short time, people will see the impact we have.”

Since assuming office, Trump has vowed to carry out the largest deportation effort in U.S. history and declared a national emergency at the southern border, deploying troops there.

He has issued executive orders limiting legal pathways for entering the United States, bolstering efforts to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border, and promoting sweeps to round up and deport people who are not authorized to be in the United States. Some of the orders have been challenged in court.

There are an estimated 11 million to 15 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., including more than 2 million in California.