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Hillary Clinton's East LA rally draws protesters
Protesters from Latino and Community groups make their way to East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park on May 5, 2016 to protest U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Clinton campaigned in the Los Angeles area ahead of California's June 7 primary.
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Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
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Protesters from Latino and Community groups make their way to East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park on May 5, 2016 to protest U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Clinton campaigned in the Los Angeles area ahead of California's June 7 primary.
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Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
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A protest was held Thursday afternoon against Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton while she spoke at East Los Angeles College. Members of political group Unión del Barrio organized the demonstration and were also present at Donald Trump’s appearance in Costa Mesa last week.
Protesters gathered at Belvedere Park and marched two blocks toward the school. The Los Angeles Police Department was on standby, with some on horseback.
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Ron Gochez, one of the organization’s leaders, said that they wanted a peaceful protest — unlike what happened at the Trump rally. The group doesn't support a specific candidate or party, he told KPCC.
“At this moment, neither Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump are worthy of our vote,” he said.
Members of Unión del Barrio are against Clinton’s position on immigration, war and workers' issues, Gochez said, and they resent her appearance in East L.A. on Cinco De Mayo.
“On Cinco de Mayo, I can’t think of a better place to be than right here," Clinton said in her speech, with support from elected officials such as Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Rep. Judy Chu.
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“We’re not going to let her come pander to our community to try to get the vote for us when we know that she is not going to work for our best interests,” Gochez said.
The group says that it supports a national $15 minimum wage, as well as free and universal health care. They said that they also disagreed with her position on the removal of Honduras's president.
In her speech, Clinton called for a raise in the national minimum wage — although she didn't specify how much — as well as equal pay for women's work. She also said she would end immigration raids and round-ups.
"We are going to fight for comprehensive immigration reform, with a path to citizenship. I will fight for that reform, but the first thing I will do is to preserve DACA and DAPA," she said.
Gochez said that while they do oppose Trump, that does not automatically translate into support for the Democratic nominee.
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“We are tired of not having someone who we can vote for or that actually represents our interests,” he said.
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