Hundreds of demonstrators, including faith leaders, blocked entrances and chained themselves to the doors of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in downtown San Francisco on Tuesday morning to protest President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.
Dozens were detained at the protest, which halted operations at the federal building, according to organizers. A reporter witnessed federal officers restraining a dozen people with zip ties.
The demonstration brought together ministers, rabbis, and imams who said they were taking direct action after months of bearing witness outside immigration courthouses where immigrants have been detained during legal proceedings, they say. The protest was organized by a coalition called Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity.
“We’ve had enough of the racist ICE raids that have been going on, abducting people,” said the Rev. Kevin Mann, community minister at First Unitarian Church of Oakland. “In this building, hundreds of people have been abducted in the middle of legal court hearings.”
The 630 Sansome St. location serves as the headquarters for an ICE district that oversees operations from Oregon to Bakersfield, California.
San Francisco Police Department officers ordered the crowd to disperse at 10 a.m. but did not appear to take part in detaining demonstrators. An hour later, there were between 100 and 150 people blocking an entrance to the building, holding signs with messages like “ICE out of CA” and chanting “This Little Light of Mine,” as firefighters used bolt cutters to sever the chains binding protesters together.
Protesters chained themselves together to block the entrance to the ICE field office at 630 Sansome St. during a protest Tuesday. | Source: George Kelly/The Standard
Faith leaders said they have maintained a presence outside Bay Area immigration courthouses since July, accompanying individuals to hearings. They said some people entering the buildings for legal proceedings were detained and have not been released.
“People are being abducted during this Christmas season, during this time of Hanukkah,” Mann said. “People should be home with their families and not rotting in some ICE jail detention centers somewhere.”
The Rev. Allison Tanner of Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church in Oakland said the interfaith group decided to escalate with a confrontational protest.
“After six months, we felt the need to escalate our presence — not just bear witness but interrupt the injustice,” Tanner said.
San Francisco has been a flashpoint for immigration protests since the summer.
Demonstrators blocked Sansome Street near Washington Street during a protest outside the ICE field office at 630 Sansome St. Tuesday. | Source: George Kelly/The Standard
In June, police arrested roughly 150 people during a demonstration against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Two days later, hundreds of protesters shut down operations at the Sansome Street building. In July, tensions escalated when agents drove a van into a group of protesters outside the immigration court at 100 Montgomery St., continuing down the street for a block as a protester clung to the hood.
In October, tensions across the Bay Area intensified after President Donald Trump threatened to deploy federal agents to the region as part of an immigration enforcement surge. He abruptly canceled the plan after lobbying by tech billionaires and a phone call with Mayor Daniel Lurie.
ICE and the SFPD did not respond to requests for comment.