Thousands march in Los Angeles against Trump’s attacks on immigrants
Los Angeles, CA – Thousands of Chicanos and immigrants marched into downtown Los Angeles, today, February 2. Waving Mexican, Colombian, Venezuelan and Central American flags, the sea of people made it clear: Immigrants are here to stay. The event was to demonstrate public outcry and unity against Trump, his racist supporters, and his many anti-immigrant executive orders.
Jordan Peña and Gabriel Quiroz Jr. with Centro Community Service Organization (CSO) led a CSO contingent at the massive event. Quiroz Jr. is also a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO). The contingent assembled at City Hall where various speakers gave energizing and inspiring speeches. Carlos Montes spoke on behalf of Centro CSO.
Peña said, “Seeing all of us gathered here today sends a powerful message: We will not be silenced, and we will not back down in the face of injustice!”
Chanting “El pueblo, unido, jamás será vencido!” And “Se ve, se siente, el pueblo está presente,” the contingent went from Plaza Olvera to City Hall. Spring and Temple Streets were completely blocked as thousands peacefully marched, chanted and danced.
“It was such an emotional and empowering experience to see my community come together, supporting our people,” said Verita Topete, who is a new Centro CSO member. “I feel personally affected by this, since my father is still undocumented!”
Nadia Topete, who is also a new member of CSO and the sister of Verita Topete, said, “It was a very emotional experience to see communities come together and stand as one. Surrounded by empathetic individuals, we marched in solidarity. I despise seeing how this administration dehumanizes us. I’ve been fighting this since I was 15, back in 2020 my oldest sister and I spoke at the 50th anniversary Chicano Moratorium march and rally on behalf of our father who was at the time being detained by ICE.”
The Topetes’ father was detained at the Adelanto GEO ICE detention center. He suffered for three years from multiple forms of abuse as well as retaliation for being a whistleblower and leading hunger strikes. Due to this, the Topete sisters vow to always support and fight for the undocumented. They joined CSO to do just this.
Continuing with the marching, Quiroz Jr. marched with the contingent back to Boyle Heights where even more people insisted on marching towards East Los Angeles.
“We Chicanos are demonstrating that we will not allow for our Raza to be attacked by Trump,” said Quiroz Jr. “In Aztlán we will continue in the fight for self-determination after this event. Our goal is complete liberation for the undocumented, Chicanos and the working class.”
Centro CSO will rally and march on February 8. Their event is part of the Legalization for All network week of action which began on January 31 and ends February 9. If you are interested in attending, the peaceful event will take place in Boyle Heights. Follow their social media for updates here: @CentroCSO on Instagram, X, Facebook or email them at [email protected].
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