Where People Are Protesting Against Immigration Raids

From small daytime gatherings to marches with thousands of people, protests condemning immigration enforcement operations have spread steadily across the United States. More are expected in the coming days.

Some of the demonstrations were organized by local residents after being surprised by sudden immigration raids; others are part of planned efforts by organizations like the Service Employees International Union, the Party for Socialism and Liberation and the 50501 Movement, a progressive political group.

While the protests have been mostly calm, there have been several instances of violence and unrest. In Los Angeles, a few cars have been set on fire and some people have thrown rocks and bottles at law enforcement.

Here are where some of the protests have happened.

Atlanta

On Tuesday evening, a crowd of over 1,000 demonstrators gathered in the heavily Hispanic and Asian American enclave of Buford Highway in metropolitan Atlanta. The group dwindled quickly after police ordered people to disperse. Shortly afterward, law enforcement deployed chemical irritants and charged the remaining crowd with riot shields. A total of six people were arrested in the protests, according to the Brookhaven Police Department.

Fireworks exploding beside law enforcement in riot gear.

Austin

A crowd of several hundred people gathered at the State Capitol grounds on Monday evening. After some refused to disperse at 8 p.m., the official end time of the march, the Austin Police Department blocked marchers and fired tear gas canisters into the crowd, according to the Texas Tribune.

A line of people wearing sunglasses and holding signs walking with the capitol dome in the background. — Credit…Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Chicago

Thousands of people marched through downtown Chicago on Tuesday to protest the immigration raids. They were joined by demonstrators calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. In the evening, dozens of protesters faced off with police outside a federal building downtown. Seventeen people at the protests were arrested, according to a Chicago Police Department spokesman.

A woman with her hair pulled back speaks into a megaphone, facing a line of law enforcement wearing helmets and face guards. She is flanked by a large group of people. — Credit…Jamie Kelter Davis for The New York Times

A shirtless man wearing jeans sits in the back of a large white truck labeled Chicago Police in red. The truck is surrounded by police officers. — Credit…Jamie Kelter Davis for The New York Times

Dallas

A march drew a crowd of several hundred to downtown Dallas on Monday. Around 9:40 p.m., the police declared the march an unlawful assembly. Protesters were cleared out by midnight and one person was arrested, according to The Dallas Morning News.

Los Angeles

Police officers on foot and on horseback fired flash bangs and foam bullets to disperse protesters downtown shortly before an overnight curfew imposed by Mayor Karen Bass went into effect for a second night on Wednesday.

President Trump has deployed National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines to quell the protests in the city, which began last Friday. More than 380 arrests have been made since Friday, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

A large crowd of people holding signs and Mexican flags lines a freeway. — Credit…Philip Cheung for The New York Times

People in National Guard uniforms stand in front of a building. — Credit…Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

Police officers fire tear gas as people wearing masks on the street. — Credit…Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

New York City

Since last week, a fluctuating number of protesters have coalesced outside the federal immigration headquarters in Lower Manhattan each day, leading to sporadic but volatile clashes with police officers. At least 115 demonstrators have been arrested since last week, including 22 who tried to block vans carrying migrants from the building’s garage on Saturday and 86 people on Tuesday evening.

Credit…Victor J. Blue for The New York Times

Omaha

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained about 70 people during an immigration raid on a meatpacking plant on Tuesday, according to CNN. In response, community members protested outside the plant and remained throughout the day.

A group of law enforcement officers stand around a tree, next to a white bus. — Credit…Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald, via Associated Press

A woman hangs out the back window of a black SUV, waving a Mexican flag. The car is driving past a line of people on the sidewalk holding flags and signs. — Credit…Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald, via Associated Press

Philadelphia

On Tuesday afternoon, a crowd of more than 100 people gathered in Center City to protest immigration raids, according to NBC Philadelphia. The demonstration lasted several hours before law enforcement officials issued orders to disperse. Shortly before 7 p.m., police officers attempted to disperse the crowd and at least 15 people were arrested.

A large group of people holding signs faces the intersection of Sixth and Market Streets. — Credit…Matthew Hatcher/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Raleigh, N.C.

The Union of Southern Service Workers, a labor group, organized a rally that about 200 people to Raleigh’s Moore Square. The crowd called for an end to the nationwide immigration raids and the withdrawal of the National Guard from Los Angeles.

A line of people along a sidewalk hold signs. — Credit…Gary D. Robertson/Associated Press

St. Louis

On Wednesday evening, more than 200 people in St. Louis took over the streets with signs and flags, chanting as police blocked off several city streets. This march was an extension of another demonstration earlier in the day where protesters gathered on an overpass near the St. Louis Zoo to the approving honks of cars passing underneath. Both actions ended at 6 p.m., the early end time planned by organizers to minimize contact with the police.

Seattle

At least 1,000 people marched on Wednesday evening from Cal Anderson Park to downtown Seattle. After a few people started a fire in a dumpster and blocked an intersection with cafe tables and trash cans, the police issued a dispersal order and began pushing protesters back. The police said eight people had been arrested.

A crowd people stands around the driveway of a brick building. The garage door is open and a police vehicle is inside. In front of the opening is a line of green scooters and bikes. — Credit…Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times, via Associated Press

Spokane, Wash.

On Wednesday, about 1,000 protesters gathered in downtown Spokane and around the local Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, The Spokesman-Review newspaper reported. Some people formed a barrier along a road in an attempt to stop officials from leaving with detainees in a vehicle. As the crowd grew, city officials implemented a curfew from 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. The police said officers used pepper balls to disperse protesters and arrested more than 30 people.