Los Angeles Mayor-elect Nithya Raman made her position on immigration enforcement clear within days of winning office, joining anti-ICE demonstrators Saturday and leading chants calling for federal agents to leave the city.
Raman appeared outside Adventist Health White Memorial Medical Center in Boyle Heights after a tense overnight clash between federal agents and protesters at the hospital.
“I am an immigrant myself,” Raman told the crowd. “I know the fear that so many people in this city and across the country have experienced since these raids began.”
Addressing demonstrators in Spanish, Raman helped lead chants of “ICE out of Boyle Heights” and “ICE out of LA.” She then described the previous night’s confrontation as an unacceptable affront to Americans.
Outgoing Mayor Karen Bass also criticized the federal government, urging the Trump administration to suspend immigration enforcement operations at and around medical facilities.
“I condemn ICE’s action and call on the Trump Administration to stop all immigration enforcement in and around health care facilities.”
The criticism came after a Friday night incident in which ICE agents took a person in custody to White Memorial’s emergency department for medical treatment. The specific medical circumstances were not disclosed.
Hospital officials said federal agents blocked the emergency entrance for approximately two hours.
“When agents formed a line across our ambulance entrance, which we did not request nor authorize,” a hospital spokesperson told NBC 4, explaining that ambulances had to be redirected.
KEEP READING: Best and Worst Dressed Celebrities at the 2026 CFDA Awards
Hospital president Daniel Fontoura said the facility’s mission was to provide care and protection to every patient.
“White Memorial is a place of healing and safety for everyone, regardless of immigration status.”
Protesters accused agents of using pepper spray and said several U.S. citizens were arrested along with the people federal officers had sought to detain.
At least one individual was reportedly removed from doctors’ care and transferred to a detention facility.
The Los Angeles Police Department responded to the demonstrations but emphasized that its officers were not involved in immigration enforcement.
The dispute comes as LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell’s position appears increasingly uncertain under Raman, who has promised to replace him after defeating Bass in Thursday’s mayoral election.
The 45-year-old mayor-elect has faulted McDonnell for what she considers an inadequate response to ICE operations aimed at detaining unauthorized migrants in Los Angeles.
Raman’s 100-day public safety agenda includes adding more 911 dispatchers, widening access to unarmed crisis-response teams and reviewing whether police are complying with Los Angeles’ sanctuary-city law, which limits the sharing of immigration information with federal authorities.
