Brian Gavidia and Javier Ramirez, both U.S. citizens, are convinced that their arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were racially motivated, and therefore, they both hope that high-ranking federal government officials will be held accountable in U.S. courts, including Kristi Noem, the dismissed former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

On June 12, 2025, Gavidia, 30, was detained and mistreated for 20 minutes in front of an auto body shop in Montebello, even after repeating three times that he was a U.S. citizen, while being held against the shop's railings.

Gavidia was released after it was confirmed that he was a U.S. citizen and that he had been falsely accused of interfering with the ICE operation. A video proved that the DHS fabricated a lie about his arrest. The officers never returned his phone or ID card. Javier Ramirez, a father of three and Gavidia's friend and coworker, was arrested and beaten on the floor right there. Ramirez, the son of parents born in Puebla, Mexico, and the youngest of nine siblings, was arrested for allegedly assaulting a law enforcement officer and interfering with masked agents. "Although I've recovered a little, I'm still traumatized," Gavidia said. “I still think the government is following me.”

The young Latino man recounts that, after that experience, in the following days agents “camped out” for hours outside what used to be his business.

Likewise, Ramirez reported that he continues to see a mental health therapist.

“Before, I couldn’t even sleep; I had nightmares, to the point that, once I woke up, I started hitting the wall and my knuckles bled.”

On June 12, 2025, Ramirez was pinned to the ground and one of the ICE agents restrained him with his knee on his face. He was jailed for five days.

“They never gave me any medicine; I was practically kidnapped and isolated,” he explained. “I was released when a judge said I could leave…. The district attorney commented that there were no grounds for my detention.”

A Partial Victory

Brian Gavidia was part of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) lawsuit that obtained a temporary restraining order from Judge Maame Frimpong, limiting immigration raids based on skin color, clothing, facial expressions, or the type of work people do.

In September 2025, the Supreme Court gave the “green light” to the continuation of aggressive immigration raids.

Meanwhile, Ramirez is part of a class-action civil rights lawsuit filed by attorneys Luis and Michael Carrillo against ICE, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Ramirez gave his testimony about the illegal detention before members of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) and Robert Garcia (D-California). “To stop these practices, legal action is needed against the top brass, including the president [Donald Trump],” Ramirez told La Opinion. “When we testified before the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem initially denied that they were detaining American citizens, although she later acknowledged that they had held about 35 people.” “[Kristi Noem] lied about not detaining them for racial profiling, even though one of her agents said that they weren’t Mexican,” he added. “But I have faith that justice can be done in this country and that Kristi Noem will face criminal charges.” In 2025, a ProPublica report showed that more than 170 U.S. citizens were identified as having been illegally detained or held by immigration agents, with cases involving individuals held for days. ProPublica clarified that while the total number of ICE detentions reached record highs, exceeding 70,000 in early 2026, it is difficult to track specific, up-to-date figures on the exact number of citizens currently detained. “I was detained for only 20 minutes, but the way they grabbed me, how they threw me to the ground and put me in front of the railings is the reason I got involved in that lawsuit with the ACLU,” Brian Gavidia recalled. “The government told nothing but lies. They said I wanted to get involved in problems that weren't mine.” He added that, on June 12, when the mass raids increased, he only wanted to make sure people weren't mistreated.

Solution in Organizing

Both Gavidia and Ramirez shared their experiences during a public assembly at the Norman Y. Mineta Democracy Plaza of the Japanese American National Museum (JANM) titled, “On the Front Lines: Facing the Human Cost of ICE Deportations and Defending Our Communities.”

The meeting brought together more than 200 participants, including dozens of mayors, immigrant advocates, religious organizations, and residents affected by the continued inhumane raids by ICE, which have increased exponentially since June 6, 2025.

What solutions do you plan to implement to restore a sense of humanity to immigrants and put an end to the cruelty exercised by ICE agents? La Opinion asked Mayor Bass.

“For me, the solution—which is not a complete solution—lies in our continuing to organize,” she replied. “Together with mayors from across the region, we have shared our respective policies, executive directives, and legal demands.”

She added that, in fact, when she issued her own executive directive, she obtained some of that information from Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, as he had just issued a similar directive related to prohibiting the use of municipal parking lots, vacant lots, and garages as staging areas for civil immigration enforcement.

She stressed that it is important to remain united and ensure that no city feels attacked in isolation, and that solidarity is shown in the defense and resistance of communities.

“I must confess that when this battle began, I didn’t have much hope that the courts would actually be on our side; however, we have witnessed varied decisions, and now I am hopeful that, for example, the court decision that upheld the law on the use of masks in California will finally be confirmed by the court,” Mayor Bass stated.

In February of In 2026, a federal judge blocked California's SB 805 law, which prohibited ICE agents from wearing masks during operations. The law, intended to increase transparency and accountability, was challenged by the federal government, which argued that exempting state police while imposing restrictions on federal agents was discriminatory. “At this time, that decision is being appealed; we have had mixed rulings, but my impression is that what happened in Minneapolis may have marked a turning point, given that we are also seeing a division within the Republican Party and certainly among Republican voters themselves,” reflected the mayor, who, nevertheless,She recalled that Minneapolis was the scene of deaths—specifically, the murders of activists Renee Good and Alex Pretti—and the case of Keith Porter in Northridge, killed by an ICE agent. Attorney Jeannette Zanipatin, director of legislation for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), emphasized the need to document all the cruelty with which masked ICE agents have acted against the Latino and immigrant community. “Today, it is very important to document what is happening,” she stated. “How do you think all this cruelty against the immigrant community will be stopped?” she was asked. “We must have something to show our representatives in Washington. We must also show that the immigrant community has political power,” explained attorney Zanipatin. “We need to document how people’s rights are being violated and how the Constitution is being violated. We are living through a time unlike anything we have experienced before in this country… This is terrorizing and imposing very violent tactics against our immigrant community.”