SHEINBAUM TO TRUMP: “THEY ARE NOT CRIMINALS”

This article originally appeared in the June 8, 2025 edition of Sin Embargo.

Mexico City. President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo condemned this Sunday the raids against migrants in the United States (US) , and the use of the National Guard (GN) to contain the protests taking place in California against the actions of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) .

“I don’t want to fail to mention a topic that is very relevant and has to do with our countrymen in the United States. Note that a few days ago the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement began a series of raids in California, particularly in the city of Los Angeles , and they detained – today we know, we are in contact with them, with their families, through the consular network – 35 Mexican migrants who were living there in the United States ,” he said.

From San Andrés Cholula, Puebla, Sheinbaum Pardo also explained that after the protests against the raids carried out by ICE, the United States government, led by Donald Trump, decided to deploy the National Guard in Los Angeles, California.

“Mexican men and women living in the United States are good men and women, honest men, who came to the United States to seek a better life for themselves and to contribute to their families. They are not criminals! They are good, honest men and women,” he asserted.

Sheinbaum affirmed that Mexican migrants have the full solidarity of her government, and therefore asked Juan Ramón de la Fuente, head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) , and the consular network to be in contact with those who require support in the neighboring country.

“Our migrant brothers and sisters go there looking for better opportunities. Most of them have been working there for many years. For example, there are many people from Puebla living in New York. They call it ‘Puebla York’ because New York wouldn’t be what it is if it weren’t for the people from Puebla living there. Los Angeles, California, wouldn’t be what it is if it weren’t for the Mexicans living there. They migrate out of necessity and from there send money to their families,” he emphasized.

During the inauguration of the IMSS-Bienestar Children’s Hospital in Puebla, the federal leader stated, “The United States is what it is thanks also to the work of Mexican women and men who live across the border.” “For us, they are heroes and heroines of the nation because they help their families and sustain the United States economy in solidarity,” she acknowledged.

Therefore, he insisted that the federal government does not agree with this approach to addressing the migration phenomenon. “We will not address the migration phenomenon with raids or violence; we will do so by sitting down and working on comprehensive immigration reform that takes into account all Mexicans on the other side of the border,” he emphasized.

The Head of the Executive Branch took the opportunity to issue “a call for peace, for nonviolence, for not inflaming any form of violent protest, none.” In this context, she shared that “the Secretary of Foreign Affairs was in contact yesterday with the United States Ambassador, our Ambassador there in the United States, and also with the United States authorities.”

“Mexicans will always have our support, and we demand that human rights always be respected. And they should know that if they want to return to Mexico, we welcome them here with open arms. We have the ‘Mexico Embraces You’ program to welcome Mexicans in the United States,” he recalled.

The doctor also reported that she instructed “all consuls to be in contact” with “the 35 detained Mexicans and their families” so that they can receive the necessary advice to resolve their cases.

“Above all, I must say that the work of Mexican women and men in the United States must be recognized. President [Donald] Trump did so when President [Andrés Manuel] López Obrador attended the signing of the trade agreement with the United States. President [Donald] Trump’s words, if we review them, were in recognition of the work of Mexican women and men in the United States, and that is what we want from the United States government,” he added.

“And on our part, all necessary diplomatic actions to defend Mexicans abroad. Long live our migrant brothers and sisters!” the scientist concluded.

Trump promises to “liberate Los Angeles” with the National Guard

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday denounced the protests against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids and arrests in California as “violent, insurrectionist mobs” and asserted that “order will be restored, illegal immigrants will be removed, and Los Angeles will be liberated.”

“These unlawful riots only strengthen our resolve,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social , in which he ordered Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Attorney General Pam Bondi “to take all necessary steps to rid Los Angeles of the migrant invasion and put an end to these immigration riots.”

The US president requested the deployment of the National Guard during Saturday’s night of protests, particularly in the cities of Compton and San Bernardino, neighboring the urban core of Los Angeles. This marks the first time in 60 years that a US president has deployed the reserve force without a request from the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom, who called the measure a “provocation.”

Now, the Democratic leader, who asked the population not to use violence to “not give Trump what he wants,” published on the social network X the letter he sent to the Head of the Pentagon asking him to revoke the military deployment “and return the National Guard to the legitimate control of the State of California, so that it can be deployed as needed.”

In the letter, the California Governor indicated that the decision to deploy federal military forces was not forwarded to his office for approval or ordering as required by law, and that it was also “inconsistent with the President’s memorandum, which provides for ‘coordination with state governors’ to identify and order National Guard units to perform federal service.”

“There is no need to deploy the National Guard to Los Angeles, and doing so in this unlawful manner and for such a prolonged period constitutes a gross violation of state sovereignty that appears intentionally designed to escalate the situation,” Newsom charged, defending the work and suitability of local and county police in addressing the protests.

In support of the Californian, one of the Democratic frontrunners, 22 governors from the party issued a statement condemning the mobilization as “an alarming abuse of power” and criticizing Hegseth’s remarks, who on Saturday did not rule out sending the Marines: “Threatening to send US Marines into American neighborhoods undermines the mission of our military, erodes public trust, and demonstrates that the Trump Administration does not trust local law enforcement.”

“We support Governor Newsom, who has made it clear that violence is unacceptable and that local authorities must be able to do their jobs without the chaos that this federal interference and intimidation entails,” the message concluded.