U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem on Tuesday accused Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum of encouraging protests against the Trump Administration’s raids and deportations in the city of Los Angeles, which entered their fifth day on Tuesday despite the militarization of the state of California.
During a press conference from the Oval Office with President Donald Trump, the official said that “Sheinbaum encouraged more protests in Los Angeles and I condemn her for that.”
He added that “people can protest peacefully, but the violence we have seen is not acceptable and will not happen in the United States”.
Initiated on Friday of last week, the protests erupted following violent raids in Los Angeles by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The demonstrations are mostly peaceful, although there have been reports of riots, vandalism of businesses and other violence. More than 100 people have been arrested.
On Monday, Sheinbaum condemned expressions of violence, wherever they come from. She reaffirmed the substantial contribution that migrants make to US society and made it clear that it is the duty of the Mexican State to protect its citizens abroad.
In addition, he asked the U.S. authorities to respect the rule of law in the immigration process. “With raids, migration is not addressed,” emphasized Sheinbaum, who like her predecessor Andrés Manuel López Obrador (2018-2024) demands that the structural causes of migratory flows be addressed.
To quell the protests, the Police used tear gas, stun grenades and live ammunition. The demonstrations have been radicalized following the deployment in the city of some 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 members of the Marine Corps.
Instead of questioning its immigration policies, ICE abuses and police brutality as the source of the unrest, the U.S. administration - without consulting state authorities - ordered the military deployment claiming that a rebellion is underway.
Trump added that the city would have burned to the ground and that such measures are urgently needed to “liberate” Los Angeles from what he called an “immigration invasion,” a narrative that has been criticized as racist and authoritarian.
So? Sheinbaum did the thing and asked people not to be “provoked” into violence, but she still gets unsurprisingly condemned for encouraging “protests”—which is not necessarily the same as encouraging violent protests. But these people don’t operate on good faith so whatever.
Surprised they haven’t claimed Sheinbaum is Hamas yet.