<
https://prospect.org/justice/cries-defiance-songs-joy-los-angeles-ice-protests-immigration-raids/>
"LOS ANGELES—By happy coincidence, the city is currently bathed in purple. The
jacaranda trees seem to bloom later and later every year, and right now they
are dropping their violet flowers across streets and sidewalks. This served as
an unintentional tribute to David Huerta, president of the California chapter
of the purple-and-yellow-clad SEIU union, who as of Monday morning was detained
in the bowels of the downtown Edward Roybal Federal Building for a third
straight day.
In response, thousands of Angelenos flocked to Gloria Molina Grand Park to
sing, dance, chant, and demand Huerta’s release. By mid-afternoon, they got
it—along with a federal conspiracy charge that the Department of Homeland
Security was in such haste to produce that they redacted the name of the
special agent supplying claims in an affidavit, only to reveal that name
halfway down the page. (It was Ryan Ribner.)
The crowd in Grand Park, and at a handful of downtown hotspots on Monday, mixed
intense anger at Huerta’s detention, the immigration raids he was protesting
when he was injured and arrested, and the presence of National Guard troops at
the Roybal Federal Building, with determination, pride and even joy. You could
see mini-reunions break out in the crowd, people reconnecting to join in common
purpose. (I had a couple of these moments myself.) Los Angeles has thus far
emerged from four days of protest with a clear set of goals: driving ICE, the
National Guard, and apparently now the Marines from the city and county. And
there’s a sense of this as a beginning, a cross between an organizing kickoff
and a backyard barbeque, complete with the ubiquitous bacon-wrapped hot dog
carts, manned by migrants as well.
The spasms of defiance, impressive though they may be, are scattered.
Practically the entirety of the city is going about its business, blissfully
unaware of what’s mainly taking place within a five-block radius. Even from
block to block you could encounter nothing, followed by a combination of cries
of “¡Chinga la migra!” (“Fuck the border patrol!”) and Tejano music. And while
lingering images of burnt-out self-driving Waymo cars continue to play out on
television and social media, the mood and spirit on Monday was overwhelmingly
peaceful. The tensest standoff was led by clergy.
Trump’s escalation of federal forces may yet produce the violence he so eagerly
seeks. But it’s just as important to note that these federal forces are not
really doing anything, confined to the perimeter of the federal building and
nowhere else. It’s unclear what Marines will do other than line up behind them.
The front lines are manned by LAPD, armed with flash-bang grenades and
less-lethal munitions and a gallery of other weaponry.
The idea that anyone must be deployed to defend heavily armed officers from
“increased threats,” as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth squawked Monday night,
could not be more ludicrous, unless you identify threats as teenagers holding
signs."
Via Joyce Donahue, who wrote "This gives me hope."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
