Karen Bass: «Los Angeles is a city of immigrants. It has 3.8 million people, and about 50% of our population is Latino.
And when the raids began, fear spread. Masked men in unmarked cars, with no plates, no real uniforms, got out of vehicles with rifles and abducted people off the streets, leading many to believe that kidnappings were taking place.
How can you have masked men who then claim to be federal agents, with no identification?
Well, let me tell you something: we have a Los Angeles Police Department that has to deal with crime in this city every single day. And they don’t wear masks. They’re here.
The masked men parachute in, stay for a while, and then leave. And if you enter a profession like policing, like law enforcement, I’m sorry, I don’t believe you have the right to wear a mask and abduct people from the street.»
Federal immigration agents, especially those from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), have begun wearing masks during operations to protect their identities. This practice has sparked intense public debate, but authorities claim it is a response to real threats against the safety of agents and their families.
Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE in Boston, explained that many officers have been victims of “doxxing”—the online publication of their personal information, such as names, addresses, and family photographs. In several cases, this has resulted in death threats. According to Lyons, this type of exposure has led to a 400% increase in attacks against officers between 2023 and 2024. In addition, direct assaults have been documented, including attempted murders, vehicular attacks, assaults during operations, and the throwing of incendiary devices at locations where agents are staying. These aggressions endanger not only the officers but also their families, as in many cases, criminals seek revenge by locating and harassing their loved ones.
In light of this situation, ICE has defended the use of masks as a legitimate protective measure. However, civil rights organizations have criticized the practice, arguing that it creates fear and confusion among the population, particularly within immigrant communities. They claim that the presence of armed, masked men who fail to properly identify themselves resembles kidnapping tactics and covert operations, undermining public trust in institutions.
In cities like Los Angeles, local leaders have denounced the actions of these agents. They state that masked individuals dressed in plain clothes and without visible badges have exited unmarked vehicles to detain immigrants on the streets, sparking widespread panic and fear of possible abductions. They argue that local police forces, such as the Los Angeles Police Department, do not wear masks and operate openly, and therefore federal agents should do the same.
At the national level, several state attorneys general—from Illinois, California, and New York—have introduced proposals to require all federal agents to visibly identify themselves and to ban the use of masks during arrests.
