from the maybe-just-act-like-regular-law-enforcement dept
The cops are rioting and the military is swarming. That’s how things are going in Los Angeles, despite anything resembling a “violent protest” being confined to a few blocks near federal buildings in the downtown area.
ICE, meanwhile, continues to carry out Trump’s mass deportation plans by acting like drug cartel members. Agents wear masks, refuse to identify themselves, drive unmarked cars without license plates, and generally do whatever they can to dodge accountability.
When someone demands something of others and claims it’s a law enforcement matter, those on the receiving end of those demands are free to ask questions. If those on the delivery end refuse to answer them (or show the proper paperwork), they’re free to go fuck themselves. And those on the receiving end of demands from masked men who won’t identify themselves are free to speculate as to which government agency employs them.
The narrative belongs to a baseball team at the moment, as NBC News reports.
The Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday blocked federal immigration agents from entering their stadium as dozens of ICE protesters gathered outside the venue, the team said.
The baseball organization said on social media that federal agents working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrived at the stadium Thursday and “requested permission to access the parking lots.”
“They were denied entry to the grounds by the organization,” the Dodgers said. Their evening game against the San Diego Padres went ahead as scheduled.
ICE tried to reclaim the narrative with a short post on XTwitter, which only said this:
False. We were never there.
But that’s not true. They were near the entrance to the stadium parking lots. That much has been captured on (digital) film. CNN’s report not only shows officers just outside of the entrance to the parking area, but the protesters gathered in response to their appearance.
The longer excuse doesn’t make any more sense than the flat denial.
“This had nothing to do with the Dodgers. CBP vehicles were in the stadium parking lot very briefly, unrelated to any operation or enforcement,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
This simply isn’t true.
The activist said they saw two people being detained at a Home Depot and followed the vehicles in which the detainees were taken away to near Dodger Stadium.
They saw a CBP agent, the activist said, whom they had also seen and spoken to at the Home Depot. “I asked what they were doing. He responded they bring the detainees there (near Dodger Stadium) to process them,” the activist said. “They conduct their investigation there without public interference, (…) that they can’t do it in the Home Depot parking lot because the public makes it too dangerous.”
So, this was related to an “operation or enforcement.” Whether or not immigration officers attempted to enter the parking area and were rebuffed by Dodgers staff is still an open question, but ICE/CBP officers were near the parking lot entry and were there specifically for reasons related to an “enforcement effort.”
The larger question is who’s lying about what. It doesn’t do anything for the Dodgers to go public with a lie about an interaction with federal officers. It makes perfect sense for ICE to lie about its actions because that might sideline some protesters who probably never would have expected the federal government to carry out a raid at sports stadium.
But I wouldn’t put that past ICE. And there’s no way any officer will have a judicially issued warrant for an action like this because no federal judge would grant a search warrant for a stadium or its parking lot.
And, if ICE wants to ensure it’s not mistaken for other law enforcement agencies (like CBP), its officers could take off the masks, put the insignia back on their uniforms, and provide identification when asked for it. If they want to continue to pretend raids carried out in public are still somehow undercover activities, then they can deal with the confusion the agency is deliberately causing.
Even if the Dodgers organization is completely mistaken about what happened at the stadium, it’s still making its voice heard:
In partnership with the City of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Dodgers have committed $1 million toward direct financial assistance for families of immigrants impacted by recent events in the region.
[…]
“What’s happening in Los Angeles has reverberated among thousands upon thousands of people, and we have heard the calls for us to take a leading role on behalf of those affected,” said Stan Kasten, President & CEO, Los Angeles Dodgers. “We believe that by committing resources and taking action, we will continue to support and uplift the communities of Greater Los Angeles.”
The Trump administration’s anti-immigrant efforts are making it far more enemies than friends. Trump’s ever-so-brief walkback of ICE raids makes that much perfectly clear. But after seeing more people attend “No Kings” rallies than his self-indulgent military parade, the vengeful autocrat went back to his usual vindictive ways. If Trump didn’t like protests against cops during his last term, he’s going to fare much worse now that the protests are targeting him specifically. Unfortunately, it will be America as a whole that will pay the price for daring to push back against encroaching fascism.
Filed Under: dhs, ice, mass deportation, tricia mclaughlin
Companies: los angeles dodgers
