Los Angeles protests against Trump's immigration policies enter 4th day

LOS ANGELES - Protests against President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration continued for a fourth straight day in downtown Los Angeles Wednesday, with demonstrators blocking streets and interfering with traffic.

Several hundred people rallied near City Hall on Wednesday, prompting the Los Angeles Police Department to issue a traffic advisory for the area of Spring Street, First Street and Broadway.

That came one day after high school students staged a walkout and march through downtown Los Angeles. Some of the students gathered on the Main Street overpass of the Hollywood (101) Freeway and eventually rallied near Olvera Street then marched toward City Hall.

Police reported that the demonstration was peaceful, although students were marching in traffic lanes.

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On Monday, an hours-long rally, march and protest in downtown Los Angeles was for the most part peaceful, but turned unruly in the early evening after police declared an unlawful assembly and tried to move the crowd away from the freeway. Roughly 200 people were detained by police.

Shortly after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, the LAPD issued a dispersal order for protesters outside City Hall, directing protesters to move west through Grand Park or be subject to arrest.

Around 6 p.m. Tuesday, LAPD officers announced they had arrested a man on suspicion of felony vandalism against several buildings and a Waymo vehicle while participating in the demonstration, the Los Angeles Times reported.

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According to The Times, Garfield students on Tuesday covered the walls of their campus with chalk messages such as "Immigrants make America great again," "Mexicans make the world go round," "I'm doing this for my father" and "Brown n proud."

Since taking office on Jan. 20, Trump has acted on his campaign promise to increase deportations, with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducting raids in major cities. Immigration was a major focal point of his campaign, with Trump vowing to conduct mass deportations, expelling people in the country illegally — particularly those charged or convicted of crimes. He vowed to deploy the military as part of that effort.

In an interview last month, Trump called illegal immigration "an invasion of our country," and vowed to carry out his deportation plans regardless of cost.

"It's not a question of a price tag," Trump told NBC News shortly after his election. "It's not — really, we have no choice. When people have killed and murdered, when drug lords have destroyed countries, and now they're going to go back to those countries because they're not staying here. There is no price tag."

Trump insisted that voters — including Latinos — support his call for legal immigration only.

"They want to have borders," Trump said. "And they like people coming in, but they have to come in with love for the country. They have to come in legally."

According to Reuters, despite Trump's strong stance on immigration and deportations, his first presidential administration saw fewer people deported than during the term of his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama. More people were deported under President Joe Biden in 2024 than during any single year of Trump's first presidency, Reuters reported.