Los Angeles is experiencing heightened protests, with the police reporting numerous arrests overnight.
The Los Angeles Police Department stated in a post at 9:09 p.m. local time on Tuesday that, “Multiple groups continue to congregate on 1st St between Spring and Alameda. Those groups are being addressed and mass arrests are being initiated. Curfew is in effect.”
A subsequent post indicated that the “curfew is in effect until 6 a.m.” and encouraged businesses and residents affected by vandalism to file an official report.
Mayor Karen Bass implemented the curfew, which began at 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday, for the downtown L.A. area and declared a local emergency.
The Mayor stated that the curfew “Applies to everyone—limited exceptions, including for emergency and medical personnel, residents, workers & credentialed media.”
During a press conference, Bass reported that “There were 23 businesses that were looted [on Monday night]. If you drive through downtown L.A., the graffiti is everywhere and has caused significant damages… Law enforcement will arrest individuals who break the curfew and you will be prosecuted.”
The demonstrations in Los Angeles began on Friday, with locals protesting President Trump’s immigration policies, , and ICE raids.
These protests escalated into violence, marked by reports of vandalism and looting.
reported on deportation statistics since President Trump assumed office in January, revealing a 25% increase in detention center populations. While Customs and Border Protection arrests have decreased due to reduced border crossings, ICE arrests have significantly risen. The Department of Homeland Security provided TIME with data showing over 207,000 deportations since the beginning of Trump’s second term.
Over the weekend, Trump deployed the National Guard without a request from California Governor Gavin Newsom, a decision both Newsom and Bass have openly criticized. Trump has since also ordered marines to assist in suppressing the protests.
On Sunday morning, as National Guard troops began arriving in L.A., Newsom stated that “Trump is sending 2,000 National Guard troops into L.A. County—not to meet an unmet need, but to manufacture a crisis. He’s hoping for chaos so he can justify more crackdowns, more fear, more control.” Newsom urged Californians to “never use violence” and “stay peaceful.”
Bass called the deployment “a blatant abuse of power,” asserting that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is “illegally deploying them onto American streets so Trump can have a talking point at his parade this weekend.”
A federal judge is scheduled to hold a hearing on Thursday regarding California’s request to prevent the Trump Administration from using troops in Los Angeles. This hearing follows an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order filed by Newsom on Tuesday that was .
Newsom addressed Californians, and Americans generally, in an on Tuesday night.
Newsom stated that “What’s happening right now is very different than anything we’ve seen before… This isn’t just about protests here in Los Angeles. When Donald Trump sought blanket authority to commandeer the National Guard, he made that order apply to every state in this nation,” .
The Governor also contended that Trump’s deployment of the National Guard and subsequent introduction of marines was unlawful. “California may be first, but it clearly will not end here. Other states are next. Democracy is next.,” he cautioned.
On Wednesday morning, Trump continued his public disagreement with California’s Democrat Governor.
Trump stated via that “The INCOMPETENT Governor of California was unable to provide protection in a timely manner when our Ice Officers, GREAT Patriots they are, were attacked by an out of control mob of agitators, troublemakers, and/or insurrectionists.”
During an address at Fort Bragg in North Carolina on Tuesday, Trump reaffirmed his decision to bypass Newsom and deploy troops to California.
“Generations of Army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness,” he said. “What you’re witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags.”
The protests have now extended beyond L.A. to other U.S. cities. Hundreds in New York on Tuesday.
In response to the unrest in Texas, Republican Governor Greg Abbott has ordered the deployment of the National Guard.
Abbott stated that “Texas National Guard will be deployed to locations across the state to ensure peace and order. Peaceful protest is legal. Harming a person or property is illegal and will lead to arrest,” and that “Texas Guard will use every tool and strategy to help law enforcement maintain order.”
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