Well-funded activists and a coordinated social media campaign helped spark the pro-illegal migrant protests on Friday that descended into days of rioting in Los Angeles.
Left-wing groups posted calls to action with a location to gather on Friday in unison after the arrest of a local Service Employees International Union (SEIU) leader on Friday. The subsequent uprising echoed scenes of the Black Lives Matter riots of 2020, which brought activists such as professional "legal observers" into the streets during a wave of protests that led to fires, looting, vandalism and deaths across the country as the organization's leaders enriched themselves.
SEIU California President David Huerta helped kick off the tumultuous weekend by getting arrested during ICE raids on Friday morning.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) alleges Huerta tried to obstruct federal agents who "were executing a lawful judicial warrant" while ICE conducted raids in Los Angeles. An affidavit accuses Huerta of conspiracy to impede an officer by directing others to block the path of law enforcement vehicles.
SEIU said Huerta was "exercising his First Amendment right to observe and document law enforcement activity" in a Friday press release.
SEIU's shared graphic advertised a press conference with the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) at the building's address that ended up taking place. However, after hundreds showed up to the facility starting at 4 p.m., protesters began throwing objects at police, blocking off parts of a street and vandalizing federal property, ABC7 reported. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) declared an unlawful assembly after 7 p.m.
Another downtown Los Angeles press conference on Friday featured speakers from Unin del Barrio and Centro CSO, Facebook video shows. Unin del Barrio's Ron Gochez told his audience about the need to resist ICE "by any means necessary."
"If we organize, we can kick their asses out of every single ghetto, every single barrio, anywhere where our people are," Gochez said, drawing applause.
The Los Angeles chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) helped spread SEIU's graphic about CHIRLA's Friday press conference on X. "Citizens who know their rights can disrupt and slow ICE incursions, as well as pressure local authorities to take action," another Friday X post from the group reads. T
Los Angeles protesters were seen carrying signs from the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), which encouraged the protests to continue their "courageous stand" over the weekend and accused law enforcement of escalating the situation.
The 50501 Movement, formed in response to the second Trump administration, promoted the protests on Bluesky throughout the weekend, including the Friday 4 p.m. gathering. 50501 National Press Coordinator Hunter Dunn posted about being personally among the protesters.
How Well-Funded, Organized Leftists Helped Jumpstart LA Riots 
