The LA Dodgers claim that they refused immigration officials entry to the Dodger Stadium parking lot
The Los Angeles Dodgers announced Thursday that they have refused U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers entry to Dodger Stadium’s parking lot, marking the team’s first public protest of the immigration raids that have rocked the biggest city in California.
The Dodgers, who have a sizable Latino fan base, have recently faced backlash from local media pundits and baseball fans for their silence about immigration agency raids throughout Los Angeles.
Following mass protests over the raids, President Donald Trump dispatched the National Guard and U.S. Marines to defend government property and people, which fueled further tensions and protests.
“ICE agents arrived at Dodger Stadium this morning and asked for authorization to enter the parking lots,” the organization wrote in a post on X. “The group refused to let them onto the property. The game tonight will proceed as planned.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and ICE are part of the Department of Homeland Security, which reported that CBP cars made a brief usage of the parking lot.
“The Dodgers have nothing to do with this. Unrelated to any operation or enforcement, CBP vehicles were in the stadium parking lot for a very brief period of time, according to a statement released by DHS spokesman Tricia McLaughlin.
Video from MSNBC showed a few demonstrators demanding that the three cars and at least four uniformed agents take off their facemasks before doing so. Protesters shouting, “Where are the Dodgers?” were captured on camera by the Los Angeles Times.
After winning the 2024 World Series, the Dodgers became a cultural icon in Los Angeles. The team’s Latino fan base has played a significant role in its identity, at least since the early 1980s “Fernandomania” craze surrounding pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who was born in Mexico.
The Dodgers were scheduled to make an announcement on Thursday regarding their plans to support immigrant communities, following almost two weeks of silence regarding the raids, according to a team spokesman quoted in the Los Angeles Times.
A Reuters request for comment was not immediately answered by the Dodgers.
A fan who did not want to provide her full name, Kimberly, told Reuters at Dodger Stadium prior to Wednesday night’s game, “It’s kind of upsetting that they haven’t spoken up.”
In a recent post, Enrique “Kike” Hernandez, a well-known utility player and Puerto Rican native, expressed his amazement at the way the Los Angeles neighborhood is being “violated, profiled, abused, and ripped apart.”
The audience gave Hernandez a standing ovation when he batted on Wednesday.
Although he would want to see the team use its position to address the “bad things going on” with ICE detentions, lifelong Dodgers fan Dmitri Turner acknowledged that the organization would prefer to keep its attention on the field.
He replied, “Maybe they’d rather leave that to the politicians and give the fans what they want, which is good baseball,” across the Dodger Stadium parking lot.
Although Trump’s base of supporters may find the immigration raids appealing due to border security concerns, many local leaders in Los Angeles, which leans Democratic, have openly condemned the operations. They have been condemned by Mayor Karen Bass as damaging to the local economy and causing further friction.
Nezza, a singer, protested the patriotic ritual before the baseball game on Saturday by singing the U.S. national song in Spanish at Dodger Stadium.
Other than expressing support for immigrants, the city’s sports teams have remained silent, with the exception of professional soccer teams LAFC and Angel City FC.
