LA mayor compares 2025 anti-ICE unrest to Lakers victory disturbances: ‘A few knuckleheads’

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is defending her city, saying that the anti-ICE protests from 2025 were not actually riots.

She compared the vandalism and fights with police of the protesters to the rowdy behavior often seen after the Los Angeles Lakers win a basketball championship.

Karen Bass dismisses riot claims as ‘a few knuckleheads’

Appearing on the latest episode of 'At Our Table with Jamie Harrison,' on Tuesday, January 6, Mayor Karen Bass spoke about the situation of anti-ICE protests that occurred last year in her city.

She argued that the arrival of the “4000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines” was an overreaction to what she saw as a small group of troublemakers.

She told the host, "Nothing was going on. OK, we have some protests. You want to know the protests, in my opinion, equaled a Lakers championship."

She explained that the damage was caused by a few people rather than the whole crowd, saying, "You know what happens after a championship right? A few knuckleheads hang around. They're drunk, they start vandalizing things. There was no riot here."

Officers and White House reject mayor’s narrative

The Los Angeles Police Protective League, representing Los Angeles police officers, strongly disagreed with the Mayor’s comparison.

They pointed to the physical evidence of burned cars and injured officers as proof that the events were indeed riots.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the union leaders said, "We disagree with anyone who characterizes the numerous times these protests turned into riots."

They added, "All one has to do is look at the videos of the Waymo vehicles destroyed, the CHP car set on fire, the vandalism of property, looting of businesses and injuries to police officers to call that criminal behavior what it was, a riot." 

Furthermore, the White House also criticized the Mayor, with spokesperson Abigail Jackson saying, "All of America saw the violent rioters destroying Los Angeles and assaulting law enforcement officers. Karen’s lies can’t change the truth."

Small protest area didn’t warrant troops, says Karen Bass

The protests originally started because people were angry about the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

While places like Paramount and Compton saw fires and vandalism, Mayor Bass argued that the trouble was limited to a very small area of about one square mile. 

She questioned why so many soldiers were needed for such a small space, asking, "That majority of the city didn't even know anything was happening. That warrants 4,000 troops?"

Eventually, in December, a federal judge ordered the government to give control of the National Guard back to the state governor, ending the military's role in the immigration protests.