Los Angeles descended into turmoil this weekend as left-leaning activist organizations, funded by taxpayer dollars, are believed to have intensified protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). What started as a relatively small demonstration opposing the Trump administration’s crackdown on criminal illegal immigrants rapidly escalated into violent clashes with law enforcement. Groups such as the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), closely connected to Democratic leaders and allegedly supported by billionaires with foreign ties, have been fueling the unrest while claiming to defend illegal immigrants' so-called “rights.”
The anti-ICE demonstrations in Los Angeles quickly spiraled into widespread chaos, with some participants throwing rocks at police, torching vehicles, and shouting inflammatory slogans. What began as a gathering of a few hundred soon swelled into thousands of rioters. Despite the escalating violence, Democratic leaders at the state level chose not to call for calm or de-escalation. Instead, their rhetoric appeared to encourage and fuel the aggressive actions of the crowd.
If you think you’ve read this story before, it’s because it’s very similar to the 2020 unrest that happened during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement, which turned out that many of those protests were dark-money funded.
The anti-ICE protests quickly escalated beyond control, fueled in part by prominent left-wing community figures. Among them was SEIU California President David Huerta, who was detained for obstructing federal agents during an ICE operation. After his arrest, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned the federal enforcement actions.
The anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles are backed by well-financed, ideologically motivated groups that support the violent actions on the ground. These demonstrations are part of a larger, organized effort to undermine law enforcement by framing it as a social justice and immigrant rights issue, effectively turning the city’s streets into arenas for advancing a radical political agenda.
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CHIRLA Executive Director Angelica Salas publicly called for mass action against ICE during a press event that preceded a sharp rise in unrest and confrontations. In the same period, CHIRLA saw a significant boost in public funding, pulling in $34 million in government grants by the end of June 2023, mainly from California state sources. That figure nearly tripled the $12 million the group had received last year.
According to Data Republican, CHIRLA and the Party for Socialism and Liberation are among the NGOs involved in the current unrest. Both organizations have a history of organizing protests targeting President Donald Trump.
Between October 2021 and September 2024, CHIRLA was awarded nearly $450,000 in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grants for citizenship education and training programs. When President Trump began his second term, approximately $100,000 remained from the grant. DHS's immigration division froze the remaining funds, prompting CHIRLA to file a lawsuit. In response, DHS canceled the contract, and the lawsuit was later withdrawn.
The California Department of Social Services, the California Arts Council, and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services provided CHIRLA funding. Additionally, the organization received a contract from the Department of Homeland Security, personally secured by Bass. With this funding, CHIRLA opened an “Immigrant Welcome and Empowerment Center” in downtown Los Angeles, which Bass toured in May 2024.
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