With his team, Las Aguilitas. ‘All for one and one for all.’ Working for the community.
Kevin Ledezma’s story reminds me of Kobe Bryant’s.
Kobe debuted in the NBA at 18, and when he turned 22, he told his coach, Phil Jackson, that he was getting married. Jackson responded with a question: “Aren’t you too young?” To which Kobe replied, “I do everything very young, you know that.”
Kevin started helping support his family’s finances at the age of 10. He asked his mom to teach him the art of baking so he could become self-sufficient. At 15, he migrated alone to Guadalajara, and shortly after, to Puerto Vallarta at around 16 or 17, where he rented an apartment. He moved to Canada at 18, and by 21, had become one of the most influential TikTokers covering ICE raids in Los Angeles.
“This fight is personal for me. I don’t do this for fame or money. I do it because it deeply affects me how deplorably migrants are treated. Reporting on it is a duty. When I go cover the raids and see the conditions these families live in and how they are treated, it breaks my heart. I have to do something about it,” he says sincerely.
His work has caught the attention on social media, gaining him an audience of over 100,000 followers. His posts not only serve to expose injustices but also help organize donation drives for families in both the U.S. and Mexico. Together with other influencers, he has raised significant donations for hundreds of families, reaching millions of people.
“In this fight, if we stay united, we can win. That’s my motto: ‘Latinos united will never be defeated.’ The problem is that many within the Latino community don’t support us—they attack us instead of helping. There are these MEGA Latinos who infiltrate our marches and report other Latinos. I’m sure ICE watches me—they know who I am. They don’t like the news I share on my socials. But they won’t silence me,” says the young man from Yahualica, Jalisco.
A sample of Kevin Ledezma’s daily work. Reporting from the scene. Unfiltered. (TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@isaac_ldz19)
Born in this Mexican state, Kevin was always interested in studying and discussing current issues, which made him “a weird kid” at a young age. While he was into reading, baking, and financial education, other kids were likely just playing in the streets.
“I asked my mom to teach me how to bake. At first, she only let me help, then she started teaching me more. She used to make around 40 pastries, and I’d sell them all—I must have been about 10. That’s when I realized you could make money from this. One time, we had financial issues and no money for Christmas gifts. My parents told my sister and me that Christmas would be different that year. We asked my mom to teach us how to make ‘buñuelos de viento’ (a kind of fritter). It was such a good business that we made enough to have a proper celebration,” he says, adding with entrepreneurial spirit: “Look, buñuelos are super profitable. You invest like 10% of the sale price, and the rest is profit,” he explains like a teacher.
From a young age, he had the idea of becoming independent. He’d explain it to his mom to convince her that it was time for him to leave, to explore new paths and feed his curiosity about the world. That’s how he moved to Guadalajara for a few months, then to Puerto Vallarta, where he rented his first apartment and lived completely independently.
“I always looked for selling opportunities. If it was cold, I’d buy blankets and resell them. I kept baking, walked dogs, then became a craftsman. In Puerto Vallarta, I joined a community near the Cuale River. I offered them my desserts, and they taught me the art of handicrafts. That helped me grow a lot,” he adds.
In Vallarta, he ramped up his philanthropic work. He couldn’t stand seeing homeless people without food, which he considers a basic human right. He organized his own food donations using his own money. Sales of his crafts to tourists funded his rent, personal needs, and allowed him to share the rest.
In Yahualica, he had seen people giving out expensive toys. “The fancy ones,” he says. He set out to do the same one day. Though he always aimed to be financially free by age 25, he also knew money isn’t everything—if he doesn’t give back to the community, things won’t change for the better.
He made many friends in Vallarta, each one teaching him something. He met good people. That’s how he improved his language skills and eventually traveled to Canada at the invitation of a friend who saw his potential and wanted to show him “there were other worlds beyond Puerto Vallarta.”
In Canada, experiencing new cultures, new experiences.
After a short stint in Canada, where he collaborated on several projects, learned design, and saw new realities, his desire to go to the U.S. grew. He missed his mom, who was already in California, and he knew it was time to take the next step, which led him to Santa Monica.
Kevin is restless—he never stops. That partly explains his strong social media presence—he’s always thinking and doing something.
“Despite my young age, I want to leave a legacy, not waste time. I want to know that the things I do have meaning in this world—that they can change things,” he says.
When he migrated to the U.S., he traveled through several cities before reaching California. He went through New York, Colorado, even Hawaii, where he took photos of tourists to survive. He eventually arrived in Santa Monica, in a heavily Latino area where he built his base.
“When I got to Santa Monica, I had my first experience being homeless. It was the first time I had nowhere to sleep. I didn’t want to ask my mom for help—I had to figure it out myself. I asked the Lord for signs, for help. You won’t believe this,” he says. “The ocean waves washed a bracelet up to the shore. It reminded me of my artisan side. I went to downtown L.A., bought materials, and started making more. I’m good at selling—on my first day, I made $500. I don’t just sell my products—I sell the experience of interacting with me.”
That brought a comfortable period—good sales, good experiences. Until Santa Monica police started harassing street vendors. And then Trump came into office.
“I asked myself what I would do under all this pressure. Then the raids started. I grabbed my camera and went to one. I went super viral. Witnessing what ICE does outrages me—they don’t respect people’s rights. Overnight, I went viral. People started contacting and following me. From just a few followers, it turned into hundreds, then thousands,” he adds.
“We’re not the ‘crystal generation,’ we’re the ‘diamond generation’—we put more passion into life.”
Kevin started networking with other influencers, gaining more experience and visibility.
“That gives me the opportunity to help more people with groceries and other support using what people send me to contribute. First, we helped 50 families, then 100, and so on. I used to deliver the groceries to their homes. I know I’m taking more risks every time. ICE knows who I am. I’m on their list. I don’t sugarcoat the truth. They’re just waiting for me to make a mistake.”
Now, after a few months, he has a team helping him. They call themselves Las Aguilitas. He’s no longer alone.
Kevin believes this generation of TikTokers is vital to the immigration struggle. They take to the streets in defense of their ancestors.
“We’re not the ‘crystal generation,’ we’re the ‘diamond generation’—we put more passion into life. Personally, I can’t be a coward right now. I could leave the country—but I won’t. I’ve been tear-gassed, attacked, but I won’t be defeated.”
His mom receives praise from people who say she must be proud. Kevin laughs:
“My mom has a strong character—she’s direct, a great woman. When she found out I was getting involved in all this, she said, ‘I already heard—you’re getting into some crazy stuff. I see your lives at 2 a.m.,’” he laughs. “Now, she’s my greatest collaborator.”
At the end of the day, Kevin takes time to reflect and prays for strength. He knows life is lived only once.
“I don’t want to lose my humility. This will all last as long as my little heart wants it to,” he says in closing.
