They patrol L.A.’s streets in search of ICE, Trump immigration raids

Driving north on Griffith Avenue in South Los Angeles on Monday morning, Azusena Favela and Adalberto Ríos kept an eye out for unmarked American-brand vehicles with dark tinted windows and government license plates, anything that may point to the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

As Favela turned left on 23rd Street, she noticed a white truck with yellow flashing lights stopped near an intersection in the distance.

“Do you see it?” she said.

“¿Las luces?” Ríos said.

“Yeah,” she muttered.

Ríos grabbed a two-way radio he had in hand and spoke into it: “What’s your location, Lupe?”

“27th and San Pedro [streets],” she said, amid the static noise.

Megaphones sit in a car before Unión del Barrio patrols the streets of Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

“We see some lights,” he said. “We’re going to check it out, will let you know if we see anything.”

Across the country, community groups and immigrant rights advocates began preparing for President Trump’s mass deportations by organizing know-your-rights workshops, street demonstrations and legal representation for people facing deportations.

In Southern California, many groups banded together to patrol neighborhoods to alert residents of immigration sweeps and inform them of their constitutional rights.

At the forefront of this effort is Unión del Barrio, an independent political organization advocating for immigrant rights and social justice. The organization, which is based in San Diego, has helped organize the launch of the Community Self-Defense Coalition, a network of more than 80 community groups.

Unión del Barrio says it has helped train coalition members on how to spot federal immigration agents by zeroing in on the vehicles they use before following them and using social media to alert residents in the area. When they are able to trail agents during immigration sweeps, the coalition members keep at a distance but use megahorns to inform residents about their rights.

The patrols, organizers say, also help curb misinformation shared on social media. They say residents, who are already on heightened alert and afraid, will sometimes make false reports or mistake a civilian vehicle for ICE.

From left, Francisco Romero, John Parker, Lupe Carrasco Cardona and Adalberto Ríos talk after a patrol for Unión del Barrio.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

“We’re not violent, we’re not trying to break any laws, but we’re doing everything within our legal means to protect the community,” said Ron Gochez, a member of Unión del Barrio.

For years, Gochez said, the organization has been conducting community patrols. They were pivotal during immigration enforcement crackdowns in the 1990s as well as those under the Obama and first Trump administrations.

Nearly a month ago, Favela said they came across ICE agents who had detained a man who was preparing to drive to work.

She said the agent had a folder with a photo of a person who they believed to be the driver. She said the driver told the agent that he was not the person in the photo and refused to exit the car.

“The agents saw that we were there and that we were filming and so they left,” Favela said.

Gochez said the patrols helped disrupt at least two operations on Sunday, amid rumors that federal law enforcement agents planned to carry out large-scale immigration enforcement action in the Los Angeles region. He said more than 150 coalition members were on the lookout.

It was one of those patrols that stumbled upon an operation in Alhambra. The coalition members followed ICE agents from a staging point at a Target store to an apartment complex.

A video posted on Instagram shows members standing at a distance from federal agents while using a bullhorn to communicate with residents inside the building.

Azusena Favela ties a bandana to identify the Unión del Barrio car to community members.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

“They can have their own warrants that are not signed by a judge, they are not valid,” a man is heard saying with a megaphone in the video before it ends.

The Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles — a lockup run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons — had been asked to prepare for an influx of up to 120 new bookings from expected immigration raids, but by the end of Sunday officials had dropped off about a dozen people for processing, a source familiar with the situation told The Times.

Richard Beam, a spokesman for ICE, did not respond to requests for comment.

A bandana acts as an identifier of the Unión del Barrio car.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

Favela and Ríos kept driving toward the truck with lights.

At least five other volunteers had joined them, including members from the Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice and Association of Raza Educators.

Before the patrols, Ríos had placed magnetic car banners on some of the vehicles. The red and black banners show an image of a shield with the words “Community Patrols.” Next to it, are the words: “Protecting communities from ICE and police terror.”

Terror is not a word used loosely by the coalition members. They point to a long history of police abuses and discriminatory laws that have targeted Chinese, Japanese and Mexican immigrants and their descendants.

Ríos said the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, which is primarily focused on Latino communities, has caused so much fear that some people rush in and out of stores. People have even confused a Los Angeles city landscaping truck for ICE.

“The truck was white and it had a green stripe,” Ríos said.

“I think what you hear from folks is that they’re afraid to go to work but they don’t have a choice,” Favela said, adding that they’ve received requests from residents about patrolling their streets.

“There’s a lot of fear and that for me is terror. We shouldn’t have to wake up every morning and wonder if that is the last time we’ll see our family.”

Ríos echoed that sentiment.

Volunteers sit in a car that Unión del Barrio uses to patrol the streets of Los Angles for ICE activity.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

“We’re just trying to help the community protect itself.”

Residents in the area said they were grateful for the patrols and for the volunteers helping inform residents about their rights.

Along Central Avenue and 20th Street, Juan Gonzales, 65, said he was in the area when volunteers stopped and distributed red cards that list constitutional rights under the 4th and 5th Amendments.

“The cards give people an advantage,” he said. “They tell you how to respond in a situation with ICE because these enforcements can happen just about anywhere.”

Farther up the street, Ricky Lewis, 69, said he opposed any immigration enforcement that separated families. He said community patrols were a good thing.

“I think informing people helps them know what their rights are,” he said, adding that it helps people make informed decisions.

Favela and Ríos said it’s a good day when there are no ICE sightings.

As they approached the white truck, the pair looked at the truck as they slowly moved past it. After a glimpse at the vehicle, the pair concluded that it belonged to someone in the neighborhood, not ICE.

Relieved, they continued with their patrols. It would be one of those good days.