No Kings Day Protests in Los Angeles

June 21, 2025

There was a big turnout in downtown Los Angeles for the “No Kings” protest on June 14th,2025. I felt a need to be there as if something historic was taking place and to let Trump know that there is power in masses of people. There were thousands of people gathering up at the LA City Hall where the speeches took place before the march. One of the first speakers was an African American woman who made clear what the objective of the protest was: “What would I have done during the Holocaust? What would I have done during slavery? The time is now to stop fascism!”

The overall spontaneous rallying cry for the crowd was “Free L.A.”… from under the boot of Trump’s rule. L.A. is a forerunner to the ongoing fight against authoritarianism nationwide reflected in the ongoing fight against the recent invasion by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

After the speeches I was swept up in a sea of people. We marched through downtown where I saw one Latina, a Marine in uniform who had broken ranks with her fellow Marines. She was standing on the sidewalk with a protest sign that said “This Isn’t The ‘Freedom’ I Fought for, Remember Your Oath.” Oath is a reference to defending the U.S.Constitution which states that due-process applies to non-citizens as well as citizens. This one Marine got recognition and applause from the passing protesters. Due process has been negated by the deportation of immigrants without their day in court..
There are those within American society who still have a sense of their own humanity to fight for the weak and vulnerable. I think the estimated number of participants in the march in L.A. was between 20,000and 30,000. The National Guard, LAPD and the Marines were at the march on stand-by but unwilling to tackle a massive peaceful protest. They waited wait until the crowd had thinned out before they struck with tear gas and rubber bullets to arrest 38 stragglers. What got my attention was that there was a large number of whites, young and old standing with Black and immigrant labor at this event. One speaker put it this way to remind us of what Hitler was able to do in Nazi Germany: “If they come for you in the morning, they will come for me in the night.” Never forget how fascism can divide, to enslave the many and to empower the few.

Hopefully this protest was only the beginning of massive protests to help uproot Trump’s authoritarian rule. . “They want our labor, but they don’t respect our humanity” stated one Latino laborer about the immigration raids on private homes,hospitals and places where day laborers stand. Immigrant workers represent 5% of California’s economic output. Trump’s ICE agents’ gestapo tactics to arrest, detain and deport Latinx workers was met with the “No Kings” day of protest nationwide which reached into the millions and overshadowed Trump’s 250th Army Anniversary parade which coincided with his birthday. The military parade was a waste of time and $45 billion in taxpayer money while several hundred thousand federal workers’ jobs are being cut by the “Department of Government Efficiency” DOGE to decrease the deficit.

What the corporate giants like Trump have forgotten is that workers created all the wealth that the bourgeoisie enjoys. Trump’s attempt to replace workers with Artificial Intelligence can explain why many attacked the Waymo, driverless (A.I.) cars that were burned during the protest against ICE.The alienation of the immigrant worker can be seen in their attempt to succeed with broken English and a look that reflects being white. But as one Mexican worker told me,, “regardless of how white I might look, I have the look of the cactus in my face.” This reflects the cultural shock of his journey to reach American soil and not be fully accepted but always be seen as a outsider regardless of financial success. The hope of assimilation has led many in the Latinx community to vote for Trump but it is never a given regardless of job status or education. The ICE raids have brought many back to the reality of American injustice which doesn’t ask whites for their green cards. It is a one sided justice for people of color regardless of how much you attempt to separate yourself from your being.

We must embrace”self” as a movement. That is why I think American citizens who are of Mexican descent, wave the flag of Mexico in defiance. Identity brings power to change American culture of acceptance. That image of “success” for many immigrant workers is to work two or three jobs so that your children can get a college degree for a better life. In many cases, this is a pipe dream. Those children are the ones out fighting in the streets today for their parents to be freed from federal detention and free to work under humane conditions without fear of arrest.

The American dream has become a nightmare for the Latinx worker. Labor once again is being used to pay into a system where weapons of war are put above human needs such as Medicaid assistance for the poor who will be asked to work to receive benefits in the future. These medicaid cuts are projected to lead to the death of 16000 per year who won’t be able to afford necessary tests and medication. As American workers, we get the boot and become the scapegoat: .cut labor, deport labor, lockup labor.

Immigrant labor is a big part of the “melting pot” of American labor and can be seen as part of any successful organized labor movement within America today,We are one movement.