Immigration protests erupt around U.S. as LA riots persist

Protests against immigration enforcement spread to several other U.S. cities on Monday during the fourth day of ongoing unrest and riots in Los Angeles. More demonstrations were planned for Tuesday in cities including Chicago, New York, and Atlanta.

Where did the protests spread?

• Thousands protested in San Francisco on Monday. The protesters were mostly peaceful, according to city police, but a small group committed vandalism and criminal acts. The prior day, a large crowd threw hammers and broken pieces of metal barricades at an office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They also damaged nearby buildings and graffitied a Waymo taxi, according to the San Francisco Standard. Two officers were injured—one requiring hospital care—and the city police department arrested at least 60 people, it said.

• In Santa Ana, Calif., about 200 protesters confronted police outside a federal building on Monday after ICE detained at least four people at a Home Depot. Police used pepper spray and tear gas when protesters tried to block a van, according to the Orange County Register.

• Protests also broke out in Texas, including in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and Austin. Some of the demonstrations stayed peaceful. But in Austin, the Texas Department of Public Safety on Monday used tear gas and pepper spray on a large crowd of protesters, some of whom threw rocks and spray-painted buildings downtown, according to local news. Austin law enforcement arrested over a dozen people, according to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

• Hundreds gathered for protests in Boston, Seattle, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. to call for the release of California-based union leader David Huerta, who was arrested during Los Angeles protests on Friday. Authorities released Huerta on bail Monday, on charges of impeding an immigration officer, according to the Associated Press. Smaller protests also took place in cities across the South and Midwest.

What’s happening in Los Angeles in the meantime? Protests on Monday were smaller and relatively peaceful for most of the day, according to the Los Angeles Times. But the situation deteriorated again in the evening as people threw objects at officers. Police said they made arrests as the crowd moved into the city’s arts district. Police on Tuesday asked for the public’s assistance in prosecuting looters and vandals.

President Trump on Monday ordered the deployment of another 2,000 National Guard troops to the city, according to California Gov. Gavin Newsom. A Pentagon spokesman later confirmed the reinforcements. About 1700 troops from the first deployment order had arrived in Los Angeles on Monday, according to U.S. Northern Command. About 700 Marines were also activated for duty in the city on Monday. The unit was trained in de-escalation and crowd control, U.S. Northern Command said. The troops’ role so far is limited to the protection of federal officers and property. Newsom on Monday sued to block Trump’s federal deployment of the troops. He also said the soldiers didn’t have adequate food, water, or lodging.

Dig deeper: Read my earlier report on several days of violence in Los Angeles.