Protesters took to the streets of Anaheim and Santa Ana Friday for the annual international workers holiday, known as May Day, and railed against police brutality and deportations of undocumented immigrants.
In Santa Ana, about 150 protesters braved the 90-degree afternoon heat, meeting first at Sasscer Park in the downtown near the Ronald Reagan Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.
Before the march, protesters listened to a rap song called “Break The Ice,” a reference to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency charged with deporting undocumented immigrants; poetry from former National Slam artist Matthew Sedillo about the oppression of establishment powers; and an impassioned speech from local activist Joese Hernandez.
“We’re tired of our children being sent to prison in the school-to-prison pipeline,” Hernandez told the crowd. “We might be breaking windows, and breaking this and that, but we have broken lives!”
There were also flashes of anger at the police, with members of masked groups like Santa Ana Cop Watch occasionally shouting at officers. Some also chanted “FTP,” which can be interpreted to mean both Film The Police and Fuck The Police, during the march.
Here are some images from the scene in Santa Ana:
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