Los Angeles immigrant advocates hold "day of protest," boycotts after immigration raids at Home Depot, MacArthur Park
Local organizations across the Los Angeles area held a series of boycotts and a "day of action" on Tuesday to protest the immigration raids that have taken place in the region.
A coalition of organizations, including CHIRLA, SEIU 721, UTLA and CARCEN-LA, says the federal enforcement is escalating, and they plan "stop the Trump terror through non-violent resistance such as rallying, car caravans, and marching."
They asked residents to participate in a 24-hour boycott, to attend rallies in MacArthur Park and downtown LA and support local businesses and street vendors.
The organizations also called for an employee walkout from multiple businesses. Around midnight, several fast food workers walked out of their jobs to join the cause.
Rallies took place across LA County on Tuesday, lasting well into evening hours.
Amalinalli Ramirez, a former McDonald's employee, said she was supporting other workers during the strike to oppose the tactics federal agents are using during operations. She claims that agents are targeting certain communities, which instills fear in workers.
This comes after immigration enforcement operations have ramped up in Southern California, including several in the MacArthur Park area. Last week, federal agents were seen detaining people near a Home Depot and putting them in the back of a yellow Penske box truck in the Westlake District.
The coalition of organizations is asking people to continue avoiding shopping at stores like Home Depot, Target, Walmart and several other well-known businesses, which have been targeted during the raids.
A spokesperson for CHIRLA said they are asking people to boycott those specific corporations because they believe "they can do more to speak out against the ICE raids." The spokesperson added that "it is no coincidence that a lot of the high-profile raids are taking place near those businesses."
Felipe Caceres, the Western Region Chair for the SEIU International Latino Caucus, claims the businesses have the ability to do more to ensure their space is safe.
"We aren't notified that these activities are going to happen, and we aren't involved in the operations," a spokesperson for Home Depot said in a statement to CBS Los Angeles. "We're required to follow all federal and local rules and regulations in every market where we operate."
CBS Los Angeles has reached out to these stores for a comment on the situation and is waiting for a response.
Organizers claim LA is being attacked by militarized ICE operations, saying that additional federal funding "funneling unprecedented funds into the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)" will only make matters worse.
