Mayor Karen Bass on Wednesday criticized the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration enforcement actions, claiming that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids are negatively affecting Los Angeles’ economy.
Speaking to local media, Bass said the enforcement operations have resulted in a significant drop in customers for some businesses and have left certain households struggling financially after a primary income earner was detained.
“When one breadwinner, one wage earner, is gone and disappears – to survive in our city, economically, you need two, three and four wage earners to keep housing, to keep food on the table, to keep clothes on your kids,” Bass said.
“When that is taken away from you that just doesn’t destabilize a family, that destabilizes a neighborhood. It destabilizes businesses. It destabilizes a community.”
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The mayor expressed particular concern for illegal alien families she says are facing economic hardship as a result of the enforcement actions.
She argued that the detentions not only impact the individuals taken into custody but also have a ripple effect on surrounding communities.
LA Mayor Karen Bass says deporting criminal alien workers and giving those jobs to Americans is “destabilizing” the city:
“We’ve seen the raids. That destabilizes the community. We aren’t going to allow this administration to destabilize our city.”
pic.twitter.com/X2htLwhqCz— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) August 8, 2025
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Bass’s comments come as immigration enforcement has intensified in the region.
The federal government has defended the operations as lawful and necessary, while immigrant advocacy groups have voiced opposition, arguing they create fear and distrust in affected communities.
Last week, a federal appeals court upheld a lower court’s temporary order blocking the Trump administration from conducting indiscriminate immigration stops and arrests in Southern California.
That ruling maintained certain restrictions on how federal immigration authorities can operate in the state while ongoing litigation continues.
The ICE operations are part of broader enforcement priorities set by the Trump administration, which has maintained that the actions target individuals who are in the country illegally and, in many cases, have criminal records or outstanding removal orders.
While Bass focused her remarks on the economic effects of the raids, the city is also managing recovery efforts following a major fire earlier this year that destroyed thousands of homes.
The rebuilding process is ongoing, with local and state agencies coordinating housing assistance, infrastructure repair, and community support programs.
City officials have not indicated whether the enforcement actions will alter municipal cooperation with federal immigration authorities, but the debate over the scope and impact of ICE operations remains active in Los Angeles.
The appeals court ruling ensures that, for now, limits on certain types of immigration enforcement remain in effect in Southern California, though federal agencies retain the authority to conduct targeted arrests consistent with the law.
