Community organizers and advocacy groups across Washington, D.C., are joining together for an emergency protest on Tuesday evening in response to a wave of federal immigration enforcement actions and what they describe as a broad crackdown on civil liberties.
The protest, titled “ICE Out! From L.A. to D.C.,” is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 10, at Columbia Heights Plaza, located at 1400 Park Rd NW. The demonstration is being organized by a coalition of groups including the ANSWER Coalition, the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), the Palestinian Youth Movement, SEIU Local 500, the Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America, and other local organizations.
Rally organizers have accused Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of intensifying raids across the country, including in Washington, D.C., where reports have surfaced of agents appearing at schools and workplaces.
“From Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., we are witnessing a coordinated effort to silence voices and terrorize immigrant families,” organizers said in a joint statement.
The action comes on the heels of the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops to Los Angeles over the weekend and, most recently, 700 Marines.
“In recent days, violent mobs have attacked ICE Officers and Federal Law Enforcement Agents carrying out basic deportation operations in Los Angeles, California. These operations are essential to halting and reversing the invasion of illegal criminals into the United States,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt in a statement, before critiquing California’s Democratic leadership for not protecting citizens. “ That is why President Trump has signed a Presidential Memorandum deploying 2,000 National Guardsmen to address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester.”
Protest organizers say the administration’s actions are intended to suppress dissent and intimidate immigrant communities.
“This is about defending the rights of all people,” the organizers said.
In D.C., demonstrators are also pushing back against local measures that they say would increase cooperation between the federal immigration enforcement and the Metropolitan Police Department. They cite concerns that such collaboration would further destabilize communities already targeted by ICE.
Mayor Muriel Bowser has not officially declared a change in policy, but the organizers expressed alarm over what they say are signals from her administration that D.C. police could be permitted to aid ICE in future operations.
The rally aims to demand an end to deportations, an end to police-ICE collaboration, and the cancellation of the National Guard deployment. Protesters say the mobilization is not only about immigration policy, but also about defending First Amendment rights, which they argue are under threat by increasing federal enforcement at demonstrations and public events.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation, one of the leading organizers of the event, describes itself as a multiracial, working-class party that advocates for socialism in the United States. The group is active in campaigns related to climate justice, anti-police brutality efforts and U.S. foreign policy.
The June 10 protest follows several others nationwide as communities mobilize in opposition to immigration raids and policies perceived as targeting immigrants and protesters alike.
“We must raise our voices while we still can,” organizers said. “If we fail to defend our rights now, we risk losing them entirely.”