Clashes between protesters and government forces have intensified in Los Angeles as at least 2,000 National Guard troops arrived over the weekend to counter demonstrations against President Donald Trump‘s immigration enforcement policies.
Sites in Downtown Los Angeles, including the Metropolitan Detention Center and sections of the 101 Freeway, became focal points for confrontations on Friday. Trump ordered troops into the city without the consent of California Governor Gavin Newsom, an action not seen in Los Angeles since 1965.
Why It Matters
The deployment of the National Guard, ordered over objections from state and city officials, is a major federal intervention in local governance. It has prompted debates over state sovereignty, the limits of presidential authority, and the impact of aggressive enforcement actions on local communities.
What To Know
As National Guard personnel fanned out across federal facilities and law enforcement declared Downtown Los Angeles an unlawful assembly zone, violence broke out between authorities and demonstrators. Protesters faced crowd-control measures including tear gas, flash-bangs, and pepper balls.
Major confrontations occurred around the Metropolitan Detention Center, where National Guard troops and Homeland Security officers gathered on Sunday, prompting hundreds of protesters to converge.
By 10:30 a.m. PT, around 300 Guard members had been deployed in three locations across greater Los Angeles, including the Civic Center area.
Protests also blocked the 101 Freeway in Downtown, disrupting major transportation corridors and leading to the shutdown of southbound lanes as demonstrators threw objects at vehicles and built barricades.
Demonstrations began Friday, June 6, following a series of federal immigration raids targeting workplaces, notably an apparel manufacturer in Los Angeles’ Fashion District.
Initial protests were concentrated near the Los Angeles Federal Building and the Metropolitan Detention Center.
On Saturday, June 7, confrontations spread to nearby areas like Paramount and Compton, with protesters clashing with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and federal agents.
By Sunday, June 8, National Guard troops had established a visible presence along critical Downtown sites. Authorities used chemical agents and designated certain blocks of the city as unlawful assembly zones as evening approached.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday night: “If Governor Gavin Newscum, of California, and Mayor Karen Bass, of Los Angeles, can’t do their jobs, which everyone knows they can’t, then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!”
California Governor Gavin Newsom on X, formerly Twitter, following the National Guard announcement: “The federal government is moving to take over the California National Guard and deploy 2,000 soldiers. That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions. L.A. authorities are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment’s notice. We are in close coordination with the city and county, and there is currently no unmet need.”
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said: “The situation has become disgusting. Our officers have been targeted with Molotov cocktails.”
What Happens Next
State officials have called for the withdrawal of federal troops, and Newsom has floated the idea of a legal challenge to the deployment.
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