Eric Garcetti, the Mayor of Los Angeles, says he is worried that federal immigration authorities arresting undocumented immigrants could put the lives of police officers at risk and spark off riots in the city. Garcetti made the comments in response to questions about the immigration policies of President Donald Trump, on the Latino USA radio show.
Garcetti claims there is more trust between the community and the Los Angeles Police Department than has been the case in previous decades, adding that this trust is put to the test when agents with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement are mistaken for, or even pretend to be, police officers. Garcetti says that he fears the city could erupt if arrests go wrong, putting lives in danger.
Arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have risen all over the US by as much as 35 percent since President Donald Trump took office in January, although the figures in Southern California have remained generally flat. Trump supporters have applauded his stricter stance on immigration, believing that undocumented immigrants take jobs from American citizens and are a drain on the US economy.
Garcetti has increased the methods by which Los Angeles protects its immigrant population by creating a legal fund to assist those faced with deportation from the US, and ordering city employees to refuse to allow ICE to access city buildings that are not open to the public unless they are legally obligated.