Julia Falcon is a digital content producer at CBS News Texas. Julia has previously written for news outlets across Dallas-Fort Worth like the Denton Record-Chronicle, D Magazine, 1080 KRLD and 105.3 The Fan. She covers a span of topics, focusing on sports and trending topics. Every week, Julia produces a show called "Eye on Trending," where she answers top trending questions.
Several North Texas-based immigration advocacy groups hosted what they said was a peaceful rally at the bridge after days of ongoing immigration raids and counterprotests in Los Angeles.
What started out as peaceful, with just chants and signs, was soon declared unlawful by Dallas police.
At one point, a firework exploded near police officers. CBS News Texas crews at the scene said some protesters threw bottles of water and swore at police as well.
Dallas police stated that 27-year-old Gerardo Velasquez was arrested and charged with assault on a public servant and attempting to take a weapon from a peace officer.
According to Dallas police, Velasquez was seen hitting the window of a fully marked police squad car with tactical equipment inside and became combative when officers attempted to take him into custody. His bond is set at $10,000.
The protests ended by 11 p.m.
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Immigration advocates hold rallies amid ongoing raids in Los Angeles
The Trump administration's border czar, Tom Homan, has warned that immigration enforcement will continue "every day" in Los Angeles, leaving people in DFW worried.
"We've seen the action of ICE ramp up around the country. We've seen the dirty tactics of abducting, ambushing people in the hallways of courtrooms. We've witnessed it, at Vecinos Unidos, through our court sit-ins," said Noemi Jimenez with Vecinos Unidos, an advocacy group. "And I think it's important that Dallas rises proactive to stand in solidarity with L.A., make sure that ICE knows they're not welcome here either."
While immigration raids and apprehensions throughout the U.S. aren't new, it's the resiliency of the undocumented Latino community that organizers hope is remembered.
"Our DFW community, although it is living under fear, the story that isn't being told is that our community is very brave, so I feel that our community right now understands that, that our resistance and our fight, it's just starting," Rodriguez said.
CBS News Texas contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to ask about its response to the rally, and whether there are any immigration raids planned soon within the metroplex. In a statement, a spokesperson said:
"U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement fully respects the Constitutional rights of all people to peacefully express their opinions. That being said, ICE remains committed to performing its immigration enforcement mission consistent with federal law and agency policy. ICE prioritizes public safety over politics. Brave officers are on the streets every day, risking their lives to locate, arrest and remove the most egregious criminal aliens in line with the president's policy of 'worst first.'"
Julia Falcon is a digital content producer at CBS News Texas. Julia has previously written for news outlets across Dallas-Fort Worth like the Denton Record-Chronicle, D Magazine, 1080 KRLD and 105.3 The Fan. She covers a span of topics, focusing on sports and trending topics. Every week, Julia produces a show called "Eye on Trending," where she answers top trending questions.
