Topline
Kim Kardashian, the billionaire entrepreneur and reality television star, condemned “hardworking people being ripped from their families in inhumane ways” amid U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids, which have sparked protests in Los Angeles and across the country, joining a chorus of celebrity critics.
Kardashian slammed the ICE raids as “inhumane.” (Photo by Edward Berthelot/GC Images)
Key Facts
Kardashian posted a statement to her Instagram story Tuesday night, where she has 356 million followers, stating she has seen “how deeply immigrants are woven into the fabric” of Los Angeles as a lifelong resident, adding people “can’t turn a blind eye when fear and injustice keep people from living their lives safely and freely.”
Actress Eva Longoria posted a four-minute long TikTok video calling the ICE raids “inhumane,” slamming the “lack of due process for law-abiding, taxpaying immigrants” and voicing support for protesters.
Rapper Doechii went viral online for a speech at the BET Awards on Monday calling out President Donald Trump for deploying the National Guard to quell protests in Los Angeles: “Trump is using military forces to stop a protest, and I want y’all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic right to protest, the military is deployed against us,” she said.
Finneas, musician and brother to Billie Eilish, posted on his Instagram that he was tear-gassed while attending a protest in Los Angeles, accusing authorities of “inciting” violence.
Actor Mark Ruffalo, a frequent Trump critic, has spoken out numerous times on Instagram, slamming Trump as a “grifter” while criticizing immigration authorities as “racist” forces who “hide their faces for shame or fear or justice and stamp their boots on your right to a fair trial.”
Why Are Protests Taking Place In Los Angeles And Other Cities?
Protests against ICE broke out in Los Angeles this weekend, and have since spread to cities including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and elsewhere, in response to authorities conducting raids and detaining immigrants. Trump has clashed with California leadership, including Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, over his decision to send in National Guard troops and Marines to quell the protests. His authority to send in the troops has faced some pushback, though Trump reportedly cited Title 10 of the U.S. Code on Armed Services in a memo, which gives the president authority to deploy troops if the United States is “invaded or is in danger of invasion by a foreign nation,” or if there is a “rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.” Newsom, in a televised address on Tuesday, slammed Trump as “a president who wants to be bound by no law or constitution, perpetuating a unified assault on American traditions.”
Surprising Fact
Khaby Lame, a content creator who is the most-followed person on TikTok, was detained by immigration authorities in Las Vegas on Friday, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed to Forbes. Lame, 25, was born in Senegal and raised in Italy and is an Italian citizen. Lame was granted voluntary departure by DHS and chose to leave the country, the department told Forbes. Lame’s exact whereabouts are unclear, but as of early Wednesday, he has posted multiple Instagram stories from São Paulo, Brazil. Lame has more than 162 million followers on TikTok and ranked as the tenth highest-earning creator in 2024, with more than $20 million in earnings, according to Forbes estimates. Bo Loudon, a pro-Trump influencer who is friends with the president’s son Barron, claimed on X he reported Lame to authorities as an illegal immigrant.
Tangent
Kardashian, who in recent years has worked toward becoming a lawyer and completed a law apprenticeship program in May, has met with the White House numerous times over the past several years to discuss prison reform, including with Trump during his first term. Kardashian reportedly pressured Trump to grant clemency to Alice Marie Johnson, who was sentenced to life for a nonviolent drug offense, in 2018, and lobbied for the First Step Act, which aimed to reduce prison sentences, including mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent drug convictions. Kardashian met former Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House last year, where she also met with former prison inmates who had sentences commuted by former President Joe Biden.
Further Reading
Los Angeles Protests Live Updates: Anti-ICE Protests Spread To New York, Philadelphia, Chicago And More (Forbes)
TikTok’s Top Star Khaby Lame Flees U.S. After Trump’s ICE Crackdown—Whereabouts Still Unknown (Forbes)
As immigration raids continue, ICE protests spread coast to coast (NBC News)
