Dramatic video footage of a masked protester on a dirt bike, waving a Mexican flag while biking around a burning car in Los Angeles, has become a symbol of the anti-ICE riots in the city.
Drone footage capturing the masked protester soon went viral after being posted on X — with many noting that it serves as a propaganda coup for President Trump as he pushes forward with efforts to detain and deport migrants from Los Angeles and other sanctuary cities. Images and videos from the unrest show several demonstrators in Los Angeles brandishing foreign flags while clashing with federal officers.
Symbol of Protest
The viral image sparked outrage from Republican lawmakers and conservative media figures, who labeled the unrest as unpatriotic and anti-American. "Insurrectionists carrying foreign flags are attacking immigration enforcement officers, while one half of America's political leadership has decided that border enforcement is evil," Vice President JD Vance posted on X late on Saturday.
Senator Katie Britt (R-AL) was one of the many who reacted with fury to the widely circulated video. "Defund sanctuary jurisdictions. Fund ICE," she wrote on her personal X account.
"Simple message to illegal aliens: leave now. You broke our laws to get here and you will be deported," Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) wrote on X.
Fox News late-night host Greg Gutfeld wrote on X, "Trying to find a country to establish a sanctuary city where i can burn shit while waving my native country's flag, while violently demanding they don't send me back to the native country of the flag i am waving. Is there a country I can terrorize, then demand sympathy when they want me to leave?"
Conservative influencer LibsOfTikTok also joined the conversation, posting a photo of the biker waving the flag with the caption "Incredible ad for MASS DEPORTATIONS" in a widely shared post on X.
Further photos from the protests show demonstrators waving Palestinian flags, while one protester is seen standing atop a burning car holding the flag of Burkina Faso, a poor West African country.
The dramatic footage surfaced just before thousands of California National Guard troops were sent to Los Angeles to help contain the chaos. Around 300 soldiers arrived early Sunday morning, marking the initial wave of the 2,000 troops Trump ordered to be deployed.
No End to the Protests
On Sunday, Trump claimed that protesters had been spitting on ICE agents and pledged to put an end to it. "They spit, we hit. And I told them, nobody's going to spit on our police officers, nobody's going to spit on our militaries," Trump said.
Saturday night saw at least 11 arrests by the LAPD as officers clashed with demonstrators following orders to intervene on the second night of unrest.
One person was arrested by LA County sheriff's deputies for allegedly throwing a Molotov cocktail that wounded three officers. Several more were arrested after Saturday's violence, which was reportedly sparked by ICE raids conducted on Friday.
The fieriest clash took place in three areas of Los Angeles County — downtown LA near Chinatown, and the suburbs of Paramount and Compton, both located in South Central LA.
Cars were torched, and public buildings were vandalized with graffiti bearing slogans like "KILL ICE" and "F–K ICE."
Anti-ICE demonstrators were caught on camera throwing rocks at federal agents as their convoy moved through Los Angeles and nearby suburbs following a series of arrests. According to Fox News, at least one agent was injured by glass shattered from a thrown rock.
The Department of Homeland Security defended the ICE raids, saying that people arrested during the operations in LA this week included "murderers and sex offenders."
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the National Guard would be sent in to "keep peace and allow people to be able to protest but also to keep law and order."
California Governor Gavin Newsom criticized Trump's move as "purposefully inflammatory," warning that it would "only escalate tensions."
He later added, "They want a spectacle. They want the violence. They think this is good for them politically."
LAPD officers, who had earlier remained on the sidelines due to Los Angeles' sanctuary city designation, have now become actively involved in the response.
"The Incident Commander has authorized the use of less lethal munitions to be deployed," the LAPD Central Division wrote on X on Saturday night, as it urged demonstrators to "leave the area."
