California Democrats blasted federal immigration authorities after a viral video showed officers arresting two people, including a crying woman, at San Francisco International Airport.
The video shows the woman — who the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said is an illegal alien — wailing and dropping to the ground as she is being arrested by two plainclothes agents on Sunday while her daughter cries in the background.
California Democrats argued the video showed excessive force and would instill fear in immigrant communities, while calling for answers from federal authorities.
Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif., said the woman seen in the video was a “Sacramento mother” and said she was demanding answers.
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“I am deeply angered by the video released of a Sacramento mother being forcibly detained by ICE in front of her young daughter at San Francisco International Airport this weekend,” she wrote.
“This is our neighbor and a member of our community. This video showcases the cruelty we have come to expect from Trump’s ICE agents, but also the lasting trauma that will be inflicted on those who are forced to witness their disproportionate and deadly recklessness. I am demanding answers as to why ICE treated this Sacramentan so violently in front of her daughter.”
DHS said two people from a family unit were arrested, saying the family had outstanding removal orders and was in the U.S. illegally.
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Federal officials said the arrest followed a lawful final removal order issued by an immigration judge in 2019 and that one of the individuals attempted to flee and resisted officers.
“ICE officers arrested Angelina Lopez-Jimenez and Wendy Godinez-Jimenez at the San Francisco International Airport. These illegal aliens had a final removal order from an immigration judge since 2019,” DHS said on X.
“While being escorted to the international terminal for processing, Lopez-Jimenez attempted to flee and resisted law enforcement officers. ICE is working as quickly as possible to repatriate the family unit to their home country of Guatemala.”
The arrest was not connected to the Trump administration’s plan to deploy U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to assist Transportation Security Administration (TSA) operations during the ongoing partial government shutdown, DHS said.
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said the incident was “upsetting” and that the city’s sanctuary policies would not change.
“I have spoken to leaders at SFO and SFPD, and we believe this is an isolated incident,” Lurie said in a post on X.
“We have no reason to believe there is broader federal immigration enforcement at SFO. SFPD officers remained at the scene to maintain public safety and were not involved in the incident,” the mayor continued. “Under our city’s long-standing policies, local law enforcement does not participate in federal civil immigration enforcement. Those policies keep us safe and will not change as long as I’m mayor.”
Meanwhile, state Sen. Scott Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco and candidate for U.S. Congress, held a news conference Monday outside the airport to denounce the actions of federal authorities. Several Democratic candidates for California governor also sharply criticized ICE in response to the video.
“We don’t want ICE here and when ICE descends on our communities, it only creates fear,” Wiener said, according to The Associated Press.
In the video, one female onlooker can be heard repeatedly demanding the officers show their badges.
“This is an illegal arrest, show us your badge number,” the woman can be heard saying.
The San Francisco Police Department said its officers did not take part in the arrest, noting the incident involved federal immigration authorities and that local police remained on scene only to maintain public safety.
“SFPD officers were not involved in the incident but remained at the scene to maintain public safety,” the department said in a statement, adding that city policy prohibits officers from assisting in the enforcement of federal civil immigration laws.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
