Trump's repression: migrants in Guantanamo and protests in LA!

Trump's repression: migrants in Guantanamo and protests in LA!

The situation in the USA is heading: the government under President Donald Trump has launched an offensive against migrants that are not only associated with legal measures, but also with massive repression. Today, on June 12, 2025, the streets of Los Angeles are flooded with protests against these tougher measures that could have massive consequences for thousands of people, including an Austrian who may be affected, such as newspaper of work reported.

The US government apparently plans to transfers around 9,000 illegalized persons to Guantanamo, including around 800 from European countries such as Germany, France and Great Britain, as well as other regions such as Haiti. These announcements ensure concern, especially since the first flight with "highly dangerous" migrants arrived in Guantanamo in February of this year. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described these migrants as the "worst of the worst", but critics like the ACLU indicate that there are no valid evidence for this classification, so ABC News .

protests and militarization

But not only in Guantanamo itself the situation is coming to a head. In Los Angeles, 4,000 national guards march, the city is militarized. The Immigration Authority ICE pursues migrant workers mercilessly, and fear is so great that many children no longer go to school. The massive raids, which are carried out in companies, fields and even schools without warning, create an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, which particularly affects the communities concerned.

"Silence is no longer possible," says a demonstrator who takes part in one of the numerous protests. In Los Angeles and other cities, people are calling for repressive measures. It is loudly protested against initial blocks and arbitrary arrests, with over 100 people recently arrested for "illegal meetings". The democratic governor Gavin Newsom, who is acted as a possible presidential candidate, criticizes the government's procedure and is loudly threatened by Trump.

The dark reality of Guantanamo

Guantanamo, the dreaded US base in Cuba, is a place that has been a synonym for detention without legal basis for countless prisoners since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The planned transfer to this place, which is located in a legal gray area, raise serious questions about the human rights situation. "It is the first time in the history of the United States that non-citizens are recorded in Guantanamo due to civil law immigration offices", says a critically questioned point in an article of the taz .

In the past, reports about inhuman conditions and the abuse of prisoners have accumulated. The political pressure that is on the migrant can also be seen from the fact that many of them are detained without access to legal assistance. It is particularly alarming that some of the migrants such as Jose Rodriguez Simancas and Jhoan Lee Bastida's Paz, both without criminal criminal records, were incorrectly identified as dangerous due to their origin or external characteristics.

In the middle of these developments, the Foreign Ministry in Vienna remains calm and has so far not published any information about the plans of the US government. The White House, however, assures that reports on the planned internment are dismissed as "fake news". But the reality for thousands of migrants and their relatives looks bleak. It remains to be seen whether the protests in the United States will develop into a turn in migration policy.