Activist groups gather in Raleigh in solidarity with Los Angeles ICE protests

Protesters in Raleigh gathered in Moore Square on Monday afternoon to display solidarity with ongoing protests in Los Angeles and in response to the arrest of labor union leader David Huerta.

The Raleigh protest, which was organized by North Carolina’s state chapter of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), amassed a crowd of over 100. Members of the Union of Southern Service Workers, North Carolina Association of Educators and immigrant rights group Siembra NC were also in attendance.

“If the Trump administration can take an American citizen (and) union leader exercising their First Amendment rights to bear witness to the growing tyranny of this administration, put them in the hospital and then throw them in jail, that can happen to anybody,” Jeremy Sprinkle, communications director of the North Carolina AFL-CIO, told The News & Observer.

Huerta, who was born and raised in Los Angeles County, serves as the president of the Service Employees International Union California and the president of SEIU-United Service Workers West.

Police say that the arrest was made because Huerta interfered with federal officers, multiple news outlets reported. SEIU California says he was peacefully observing officers of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Video of his arrest shows Huerta standing with his hands on his hips, then being pushed to the ground by officers. He was injured by the fall and was admitted to the Los Angeles General Medical Center. He has since been discharged and was being held in ICE custody, the Sacramento Bee reported.

“No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action,” Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, in response to Huerta’s detention.

The crowd in Raleigh participated in chants led by organizers from Siembra and the service workers’ union.

“Free David! End ICE! Right now!” protesters shouted.

Bertha Bradley, an organizer with the service workers’ union who goes by Mama Cookie, said that she has met Huerta several times.

“He’s been fighting for workers his whole life,” Bradley said. “That just goes to show his power. When you got power in this country, they don’t like that.”

Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party, said she thinks that increased ICE raids are simply a “smoke and mirrors” tactic from Republicans to overshadow GOP-proposed funding cuts for programs like Medicaid and SNAP, formerly known as food stamps.

“People need to see our party standing up for immigrant rights across the country, and I also think we need to show solidarity with our labor movement and labor leaders,” Clayton said.

“What’s happening in Los Angeles is definitely just the tip of the iceberg,” said Ellen Canavean, a retired occupational therapist from Cary and a member of the advocacy group Raging Grannies. “ICE is out of control.”

Los Angeles protests

The protests come as the Trump administration continues to push for increased ICE enforcement.

In the Los Angeles protests, which began on Friday, thousands of demonstrators have gathered in the streets to push back against several ICE raids that occurred Friday morning, including raids in a Home Depot parking lot and in Los Angeles’ fashion district.

Some protesters have damaged property, burning cars, throwing rocks at police and their cars, and vandalizing property.

Despite Newsom’s opposition, the Republican president activated 2,000 of California’s National Guard officers and deployed them to the city. This is the first time that a president has deployed a state’s National Guard without a call from the governor since Lyndon B. Johnson discharged officers into Selma, Alabama, ahead of the historic, peaceful civil rights march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

CBS reported on Monday afternoon that 700 Marines could also possibly deploy in Los Angeles.

Trump’s activation of the National Guard has sparked a clash between Newsom and Trump. California’s attorney general announced Monday morning that the state is suing the Trump administration.

ICE detention in North Carolina

Through Trump’s first 100 days in office, ICE had already arrested 66,463 immigrants who were in the country without legal authorization.

An estimated 325,000 unauthorized immigrants live in North Carolina, according to a 2022 Pew Research Center estimate.

Nikki Marín Baena, co-director of Siembra, said ICE has yet to start raids in workplaces in North Carolina, instead detaining immigrants at probation appointments and during traffic stops. Still, Marín Baena said Siembra is training workplaces across the state to understand they have the right to ask federal agents for a judicial warrant before they search a private area.

“We also just know that a North Carolina that is safer for immigrant workers will be safer for all workers,” Marín Baena said. “And so that’s what we’re organizing towards.”

The protest is just one of many scheduled for this week, including a demonstration Tuesday to oppose two immigration bills under consideration in the state legislature, and one Saturday organized under the name No Kings.

Trump is set to visit North Carolina’s Fort Bragg on Tuesday to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Army.

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