Neighbors Band Together To ‘Shame' ICE Agents Out Of Their Community
The video features residents in the San Diego, California neighborhood of South Park standing up to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents donned in full tactical gear armed with assault riffles.
'Shame, shame, shame!' the residents chant as they pump their fists into the air and the agents back away.
Although the video is currently still on some platforms, it has been removed on X and TikTok. Yet, ABC News and 805 UndocuFund, an advocacy group for undocumented immigrants, have similar videos.
The South Park residents' outrage is in response to two ICE raids that occurred Friday at the South Park restaurants Buona Forchetta and Enoteca Buona Forchetta, the Los Angeles Times reports. Locals responded to the terrifying scene by protesting, calling federal agents 'Nazis' and 'fascists.'
Eventually, agents used flash-bang grenades to get away, at least according to what Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe, a spokesperson for HSI, a branch within ICE, told the Times.
'The demonstrators became unruly and as a result less lethal noise flash diversionary devices were deployed to allow law enforcement to exit the scene as safely as possible,' O'Keefe said. 'When gatherings like these are formed, it not only places law enforcement in danger but also the demonstrators and onlookers attempting to impede law enforcement activity.'
O'Keefe also told the Times that four people living in the country illegally were taken into custody.
Renato Ametrano, the general manager of Buona Forchetta in South Park, told local news station KSWB/KUSI that ICE agents arrived at 4 p.m. before his restaurant opened and put all 15 workers in handcuffs — including himself — before releasing most of them.
'It was very, very uncomfortable. They handcuffed everybody. The first 10 minutes, they don't give any explanation,' Ametrano said.
San Diego city officials condemned the raids.
'Like many San Diegans, I was deeply upset by Friday night's immigration enforcement operation at Buona Forchetta and Enoteca Buona Forchetta in South Park,' San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said in a statement Sunday. 'Federal actions like these are billed as a public safety measure, but it had the complete opposite effect.'
Gloria added, 'What we saw undermines trust and creates fear in our community.'
Councilmember Stephen Whitburn, whose district includes South Park, was also alarmed.
'Last Friday was completely unnecessary,' Whitburn told the Times. 'And residents had every right to be furious about what they were witnessing and to make their anger known, and they did that, and I'm proud of it.'
Social media users who watched the footage also found the footage deeply concerning, yet powerful. See some of their remarks below.
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