Crowds gathered at Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights on Saturday for a rally and march to Adventist Health White Memorial after federal immigration agents mounted a blockade at the emergency room entrance and detained at least two people at the hospital.
Community organizers and elected officials on Saturday handed off a letter to the hospital’s administrators, calling for an end to any collaboration between the hospital and federal immigration agents.
Sen. Maria Elena Durazo said that it appears the hospital is earning a reputation for being an “ICE-friendly hospital.”
“What happened last night was unacceptable,” Durazo told the hospital’s administrators in the same parking lot where the blockade was held. “It’s unacceptable that ICE would go into our healthcare facilities. But we also believe that White Memorial can and should do more.”
Several hours earlier, patients arriving at the hospital were met by a large presence of masked agents who stood outside the hospital starting Friday evening and into the early hours of Saturday. Ambulances were diverted to nearby hospitals for about two hours while the activity took place.
Local residents and rapid response groups were kept away from the hospital and in multiple videos shared on social media, masked agents pushed away protesters and sprayed them with what appeared to be pepper spray.
The series of events began after eyewitnesses said they saw federal agents detain a person and take them into the hospital before a crowd of protesters came to rally against the ICE agents, according to Raquel Roman, executive director of Proyecto Pastoral and member of the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights Network.
Saturday’s rally, organized by the local rapid response group, started at Mariachi Plaza and coincided with a Dia de los Muertos celebration. People marched with signs that read “Protect the Sacred” and “Melt ICE” while others wore La Catrina face paint.
Community members, Durazo, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez and Mayor-elect Nithya Raman gathered outside the hospital around 2:30 p.m. with members of Proyecto Pastoral and Centro CSO to denounce the ICE activity that had taken place outside the emergency room.
Daniel Fontoura, president at Adventist Health White Memorial, said the hospital staff does not work with federal immigration agents.
“I don’t know what I can do to assure you there’s no special relationship, no special contract. When they show up, they show up,” Fontoura said, referring to the federal agents.
He added that the hospital would like to work with community organizations and elected officials to understand what they should do in these types of situations.
Fontoura told the crowd that hospital staff called 911 to try and stop the blockade. He was drowned out by people shouting, “Shame.”
Derek Mejia, 30, a police accountability co-chair at Centro CSO, joined the rally Saturday afternoon.
He was part of a group who gathered outside the hospital early Saturday morning after federal immigration agents detained two people. By that time, Los Angeles Police Department officers arrived at the scene and an LAPD helicopter circled the area, Mejia said.
“It’s a shame,” Mejia said of the incident.
Mejia said he was at the rally because, “One, we want to show ICE that we’re not afraid and two, we want to let White Memorial know that their collaboration with ICE is not only detrimental to the community but that it needs to stop.”
Verita Topete of Centro CSO, addressed the crowd at the rally. “White Memorial is endangering the same community they claim to serve,” she said.
“ICE out of LA. ICE out of Boyle Heights. ICE out of California,” Topete chanted, and the crowd followed suit.
The group then marched back to Mariachi Plaza before dispersing around 3 p.m.
