Los Angeles: Boyle Heights hosts Trump Inauguration Day protest

Los Angeles, CA – On January 20, over 200 community members from Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles gathered at Mariachi Plaza for a protest to oppose the incoming Trump administration. The event, organized by Centro Community Service Organization (CSO), brought together residents and local organizations united against Trump’s reactionary anti-immigrant agenda and broader policies that threaten oppressed nationalities like Chicanos and African Americans.

Speakers from grassroots organizations, including the Palestinian Youth Movement, Union del Barrio, Black Lives Matter Grassroots, and the Raza Unida Party addressed the crowd, calling for resistance to attacks on immigrant rights, workers’ rights, and communities of color, particularly Chicano and Black people.

Rocio Rivas, an LAUSD school board member who defends public education from privatization spoke, as did progressive City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado. Protesters chanted slogans like, “We want education, not deportation” and “Power to the people, no one is illegal,” underscoring the rally’s themes of solidarity and resistance.

Angelica Reyes, a member of Centro CSO, stated, “Today, I rallied to remind my community of the vast power we hold when we stand and fight in solidarity. Join a community organization. Our liberation is tied to one another. Together we are unstoppable, together we win this fight. Together our love melts ICE.”

Reuben Navarrete, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) and a Teamster at UPS, stated, “Another Trump presidency puts us on a dangerous path where our freedoms and liberties are trampled on and ignored. His plans to deport undocumented immigrants will disproportionately affect Chicano and Latino workers and tear families apart. His anti-union stance and alliances with corporate elites threaten workers globally. He attacks and intends to roll back the rights and protections of LGBTQ people. He is a direct threat to women’s reproductive rights. And his plans for environmental deregulation threaten our planet and all of us who live on it.”

Marisol Márquez, an FRSO and Centro CSO member, called for solidarity with immigrant communities in Texas, saying, “The bigots won in Texas. We will defend DACA in California and stand with DREAMers in Texas.”

After the speeches, protesters marched through downtown Los Angeles to LA City Hall, denouncing Trump’s policies, including the threat of mass deportations.

Centro CSO, the rally’s organizing group, is a grassroots organization dedicated to fighting for immigrant rights, police accountability, and public education in Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles. It is also part of the Legalization for All (L4A) network, a national network advocating for the comprehensive legalization of undocumented people.

#LosAngelesLA #LA #ImmigrantRights #CentroCSO #L4A #FRSO #Teamsters