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Anti-ICE protesters in Los Angeles are still on the ground pushing back against the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration policies and extreme show of military force. But they aren’t the only ones speaking out.
This week, celebrities broke their silence on the federal immigration raids where hundreds of immigrants have been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
On Tuesday, Kim Kardashian posted a statement on her Instagram story reacting to the national outcry, writing: “When we’re told that ICE exists to keep our country safe and remove violent criminals — great. But when we witness innocent, hardworking people being ripped from their families in inhumane ways, we have to speak up. We have to do what’s right.”
The reality star, a longtime resident of LA, continued to tell her millions of followers how she has witnessed firsthand “how deeply immigrants are woven into the fabric of this city,” noting that they’re “our neighbors, friends, classmates, co-workers and family.”
“No matter where you fall politically,” she added, without naming Trump, “it’s clear that our communities thrive because of the contributions of immigrants. We can’t turn a blind eye when fear and injustice keep people from living their lives freely and safely.”
“There HAS to be a BETTER way,” Kardashian concluded.
The Skims founder has largely stayed out of politics over the years, aside from visiting the White House in 2018 to discuss prison reform with Trump. But her new comments caught some heat this week from one Department of Homeland Security official, Tricia McLaughlin, the DHS assistant secretary for public affairs, who made it clear in an X post that she didn’t care for the beauty mogul’s stance.
Some social media users criticized Kardashian’s “performative” post, while others appreciated her for using her platform at the height of Trump’s immigration crackdown. And she’s not the only celebrity who has spoken out.
On Monday, live from the BET Awards in LA, Doechii went viral after she used her acceptance speech for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist to call out the administration’s “ruthless attacks” on people who are “being swept up and torn from their families,” all to stir up fear and chaos in communities across the city.
“Trump is using military forces to stop a protest. And I want y’all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic rights to protest, the military is deployed against us,” said the rap star.
“I feel it’s my responsibility as an artist to use this moment to speak up for all oppressed people,” she added. “For Black people, for Latino people, for trans people, for the people of Gaza, we all deserve to live in hope and not in fear, and I hope we stand together, my brothers and my sisters, against hate. And we protest against it.”
Kardashian also shared Doechii’s speech on her Instagram stories.
Eva Longoria also joined the wave when she took to social media to slam the “inhumane,” “hard to watch” and “un-American” mass deportations that have caused dayslong protests in parts of LA.
“We all can agree, nobody wants criminals in our country, nobody wants rapists, nobody wants drug dealers, nobody wants bad actors in our country. That’s not what’s happening,” she said in an Instagram video. “These roundups are happening in birthday parties, in elementary school graduations, Home Depot. Those are not criminals.”
“I hope that everyone has more compassion for this issue and realizes we have industries dependent on immigrant labor,” she added. “These are people who feed us and take care of us and take care of our families and our children and our communities, and we can’t deny them as humans. We just can’t.”
The Hollywood actor concluded the clip by reminding her followers why people are protesting, because “parents and mothers are being separated from young children.” In her caption, she also linked to several organizations to support, including the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, Immigrant Defenders Law Center and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network.
Other celebs have since condemned the immigration raids, too, including Tyler, the Creator, Reneé Rapp and Finneas, according to Euro News. Pedro Pascal, Mark Ruffalo and John Leguizamo also posted on their Instagram pages.
The LA protests first broke out last Friday after ICE agents conducted a series of immigration sweeps across Southern California, ABC News reported. Protesters clashed with ICE as they arrested multiple individuals. Local police in riot gear then confronted folks with batons and tear gas.
By Saturday, ICE reported that it had arrested 118 immigrants in the LA area as it tried to enforce immigration law.
Since then, the Trump administration has deployed over 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to combat the growing protests in the city, which currently has an 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew in place for the downtown LA area.
Several political figures have blasted Trump’s military response, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who in a primetime address Tuesday warned that the president’s continued “assault” on democracy is just the start of what could spread across the country.
“Look, this isn’t just about protests here in Los Angeles,” Newsom said. “When Donald Trump sought blanket authority to commandeer the National Guard, he made that order apply to every state. This is about all of us. California may be first, but it clearly will not end here.”
“Other states are next. Democracy is next,” he added.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told Forbes that she blamed federal immigration raids for starting civil unrest in the city, also accusing the administration of deliberately trying to spark chaos by federalizing troops.
As rallies against Trump’s anti-immigration policies spread nationwide, protesters continue to assert their First Amendment rights in hopes of checking Trump’s abuse of power. How, and if, that will end, only time can tell.
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