What began as a regional protest against federal immigration raids escalated into a national flashpoint, drawing military deployments, political lawsuits  and a tidal wave of disinformation. From Texas to California, several cities were thrust into chaos, both on the streets and online.

In June 2025, President Donald Trump authorized a sweeping federal response to growing demonstrations triggered by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids across Los Angeles. Over the course of several days, protests spread nationally and rapidly became the subject of viral falsehoods that manipulated public perception and blurred the truth.

Online Misinformation Campaigns Impact Public Understanding

As the protests and deployments unfolded, social media was flooded with images and claims — many of them, false or misleading.

A video of a woman in Army fatigues condemning Trump’s orders at a Dallas protest went viral, with captions falsely identifying her as an active duty soldier defying orders. In reality, Carmen Colado had not been in service since 2020 and her participation, while provocative, did not represent the military or violate any deployment orders.

Other viral media included:

• A burning police car misattributed to L.A. protests, which actually dated back to the 2020 George Floyd demonstrations.
  
• A video of a flaming Jeep, falsely said to depict “illegal immigrants lighting themselves on fire,” was from a 2024 unrelated street takeover.
  
• A widely shared pallet of bricks supposedly staged for protesters was a photo taken from a Malaysian construction site.
  

High-profile users such as actor James Woods and Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas helped amplify misleading narratives, with posts that either used outdated footage or exaggerated the extent of the violence. According to the News Literacy Project, these tactics use false context to inflame partisan sentiment and distort current events.

The Spark: Immigration Raids and Protests

The unrest began on June 6 after ICE agents launched coordinated raids across greater Los Angeles, targeting day laborers, businesses and workplaces such as car washes and home improvement stores. According to PBS NewsHour, 44 individuals were detained for immigration violations on the first day alone, triggering protests in the city’s Fashion District and in front of the Los Angeles federal building. 

What followed was a mix of peaceful demonstrations and tense confrontations with law enforcement. Some protesters waved flags, others chanted in front of federal buildings. By June 7, demonstrations were held in more than a dozen cities across the country, including Seattle, San Antonio, Austin  and Las Vegas.

Military Mobilization: Presidential Power Versus State Authority

Trump issued a June 7 memorandum federalizing the California National Guard and authorizing the deployment of up to 4,000 troops to Los Angeles, alongside 700 U.S. Marines. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass objected, stating that federal troops were not requested and could escalate tensions rather than ease them.

Legal scholars quickly pointed out the rarity of such an action. The last time a president deployed the National Guard without a governor’s consent was in 1965, when President Lyndon B. Johnson sent troops to Alabama to protect civil rights demonstrators.

Trump issued a June 7 memorandum federalizing the California National Guard and authorizing the deployment of up to 4,000 troops to Los Angeles, alongside 700 U.S. Marines. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass objected, stating that federal troops were not requested and could escalate tensions rather than ease them.

Newsom’s office sued to stop the deployment, calling it a “broad overreach.” On June 13, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled the Guard’s deployment illegal, finding that it violated the Tenth Amendment and exceeded Trump’s statutory authority under Title 10. The ruling applied only to the National Guard and not the Marines, who had not yet been deployed to the streets (AP News, 2025).

However, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary stay on Breyer’s ruling just hours before it was to take effect, allowing the Trump administration to maintain federal control of the Guard pending further review. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday.

Trump defended his actions on Truth Social, stating, “If I didn’t send the Military into Los Angeles, that city would be burning to the ground right now.”

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly called Breyer’s order “unprecedented,” adding that it “puts our brave federal officials in danger.” She stated that the president acted within his lawful authority and vowed to appeal.

Generative AI, Misattribution, and Media Manipulation

The speed of misinformation in this case was further fueled by generative AI. Users prompted tools like ChatGPT and Grok to analyze images of soldiers sleeping on floors, resulting in inaccurate identifications — some wrongly claimed the photos were from the Afghanistan withdrawal in 2021. The images, in fact, were taken in downtown L.A. and verified by local media. 

Similarly, video clips of chanting crowds were misrepresented. One clip of soccer fans outside a May 18 LAFC game was reframed as footage of protesters rallying in support of immigration reform.

Even Rep. Maxine Waters of California was falsely quoted in a video suggesting she wanted to grant citizenship to undocumented protesters. In reality, Waters, a Democrat,  made a general statement advocating for immigrant rights and due process — but did not propose blanket amnesty.

What Actually Happened in L.A.?

Despite the noise online, real events continued to unfold on the ground.

As of June 11, the LAPD reported over 470 arrests, largely for curfew violations or failing to disperse. A few individuals faced more serious charges, including possession of weapons and assault on officers. Nine officers were reported injured, though most cases were minor.

Crowd control measures escalated as well. Police were seen deploying tear gas, pepper balls, and horseback officers to clear demonstrators. At one protest near L.A. City Hall, officers charged a crowd and used wooden batons after curfew took effect.

Meanwhile, footage showed National Guard troops standing in formation, some in riot gear, stationed near federal buildings. While they were intended to support ICE operations, their presence drew criticism from local officials, including Vice Mayor Brenda Olmos of Paramount, who told reporters she had been hit by rubber bullets during the protests.

The presence of troops was seen by some as a violation of civil liberties and by others as necessary enforcement. A divided response from governors across the country added to the tension: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott deployed 5,000 National Guard troops in anticipation of protests, while governors in states like Illinois condemned Trump’s orders as unconstitutional.

The Broader Threat: Weaponized Disinformation

According to Clemson University’s Darren Linvill, the narrative around the protests has been systematically manipulated to support Trump’s political messaging. By portraying the city as overrun by chaos, partisan influencers “build up the riots in a performative way” that reinforces a law-and-order framework, even when violence is localized or misrepresented. 

Some disinformation efforts were traced to accounts linked to Russian propaganda networks and domestic political actors. Accusations that George Soros funded the protests or that Mayor Bass had CIA connections were not just unfounded — they were strategically designed to undermine democratic leadership and public trust.

As misinformation floods social platforms, real concerns — like whether military force should be used against civilians — are buried beneath conspiracy theories and digital distortion.

The 2025 immigration raids and resulting protests have sparked more than just a political firestorm, they’ve ignited an information crisis. Real-world unrest has been exaggerated and manipulated by false narratives, old footage, and strategic disinformation campaigns designed to divide, mislead, and inflame.

As the legal battle over federal troop deployment continues, so does the battle for truth. In the words of Free Press senior counsel Nora Benavidez, “It confuses audiences, scares people who might otherwise have empathy for the cause, and divides us when we need solidarity most.”

References

Christensen, Laerke. “Anti-ICE protester wearing Army fatigues…” Snopes, June 12, 2025.

Ibrahim, Nur. “What we know about Trump deploying the National Guard…” Snopes, June 10, 2025.

Vertuno, Jim. “Gov. Abbott deploys over 5,000 Texas National Guard troops…” AP News, June 12, 2025.

Offenhartz, Jake & Golden, Hallie. “Trump’s use of troops faces a court test…” AP News, June 12, 2025.

Myers, Steven Lee. “Fake Images and Conspiracy Theories…” New York Times, June 10, 2025.

Ramirez Uribe, Maria. “Fact-checking misinformation about L.A. protests.” PBS NewsHour/PolitiFact, June 12, 2025.

RumorGuard. “Out-of-context images used to spread L.A. protest misinformation.” News Literacy Project, June 10, 2025.