Calls growing for Santa Ana mayor to resign, residents upset over response to ICE raids
SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- Mayor Valerie Amezcua is facing growing calls to resign over her response to the federal immigration enforcement operations in the city.
Hundreds of people attended Tuesday night's City Council meeting to voice their frustration. The mayor was met with boos and yells and she entered the council chambers.
Community members are demanding that city officials do more to protect immigrants.
Last week, crowds gathered outside the federal building in Santa Ana to try and stop unmarked white vans supposedly carrying ICE detainees. The city says other protesters launched fireworks and drove recklessly near crowds.
Homeland Security agents and police deployed tear gas, flash bangs and pepper balls amid the unrest.
Mayor Amezcua condemned the destruction.
She previously told Eyewitness News she's "not about photo-ops. I'm not going to stand up and raise my arm and give my Chicano fist pump because it makes me look good. I don't represent just one group of the community."
Those who attended Tuesday's meeting are angered about her lack of outright support.
"Where were you, Mayor Amezcua, during this historical turning point in our country, as your constituents were being kidnapped, abused and terrorized? Not condemning the criminal ICE agents and trigger happy SAPD, but instead condemning your own constituents," said one woman, Juliana, during the public comment section.
Others voiced the same sentiment.
"Instead of notifying your city of ICE presence, you chose to remain silent and you scolded your reps that told you to apply pressure. Instead of showing support to peaceful protesters, you chose to paint them as rioters ," said a woman named Maria.
Meanwhile, the council voted against a proposed policy that would have required police to publicly post alerts warning about ICE activity in the area.
Earlier this month, a U.S. attorney said such a policy could violate federal law, endanger officers and disrupt criminal investigations.
Last week, the city said it supports the right to peaceful assembly and clarified that city police officers will not assist in federal immigration enforcement.
