Tracy Lehr
Oxnard, Calif. – Another protest against immigration enforcement took place Sunday in Oxnard.
Young members of Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán, known as MEChA, organized a peaceful demonstration in Plaza Park.
Oxnard High School MEChA President Natalie Torres said she believes opponents are using artificial intelligence to generate false images of flag burning at local protests.
“There are AI-generated photos online showing the American flag being burned. That is not what we stand for,” Torres said. “This movement is about Chicano empowerment and spreading the message to ensure immigrants are treated fairly and as human beings, because that is what this movement is about.”
The high school senior said she has already been accepted into a University of California school.
Hueneme High School MEChA President Carla Barajas helped spread the word about the demonstration.
“We stand with the immigrant community no matter what. We are all descendants of immigrants. This land was stolen, and we are going to protect the rights of anyone here,” Barajas said. “If you are an immigrant, a citizen, or not, you have rights, and we want you to know we stand with you.”
Protesters held up signs and lined the streets around the park as drivers honked their horns in support.
Native Americans also performed traditional dances near the center of the park as drummers played.
Artist, musician, and activist Javior Gomez said the demonstrators are following in the footsteps of former Oxnard resident and labor leader Cesar Chavez. Chavez, for at least a portion of his career, was against illegal immigration.
“He grew up here, went to Port Hueneme Beach, fell in love with the ocean, and became a soldier for the United States Navy,” Gomez said. “Oxnard was very dear to him, but it’s also where he started organizing—in La Colonia, South Oxnard, and North Oxnard—where farmworkers labored.”
Gomez, a former teacher, noted that the first strike in Oxnard took place in 1903.
“The Chinese, Japanese, and Mexican workers united against the Oxnard brothers because they were cutting wages,” he said. “The Oxnard brothers wanted to become richer and profit more from the sugar beets grown in this area, so the farmworkers went on strike.”
He said the struggle continues today.
“This is a recurring theme, a thought Cesar Chavez brought up in the 1960s, and it remains true to this day,” Gomez said. “We can’t just relax and accept things as they are. We have to stay vigilant when injustice arises in our community, especially when our country turns its back on the most vulnerable people—the essential workers who keep our communities running.”
Gomez said the U.S.-born children of immigrants are fearful for their parents’ safety and worry about them being arrested for lacking legal documentation.
Author, artist, and activist Denis O’Leary said some voters are regretting their support for President Donald Trump.
“There are people in our community and across the country who voted for Trump, expecting that he would somehow magically make things better,” O’Leary said. “Within a week, this is the result. There has been terrorism coming from the White House—I call it terrorism because he wants people to be terrified, and you can see the results.”
Some people watching the rally live on social media posted opposing messages, including “Ice Ice Ice Baby!”
No counterprotests were seen in the area Sunday afternoon.
