For 80 years, East Los Angeles has celebrated Mexican Independence with a parade that brings families and generations together. This year, the celebration takes place against a different backdrop: immigration enforcement remains active across Los Angeles and California.
For 80 years, East Los Angeles has marked Mexican Independence with music, dancing, flags, families and a celebration that has become one of the most important Mexican American traditions in Los Angeles.
This year, however, the celebration comes after more than a year of aggressive immigration enforcement in the region, leaving some immigrant families with a question that has little to do with the parade route, the music or the food.
Will it be safe to celebrate?
As of publication, there is no public announcement from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or local officials indicating that an immigration enforcement operation is planned at the East Los Angeles Mexican Independence Day Parade.
Immigration enforcement remains active in Los Angeles and across California, but current enforcement activity does not establish that federal immigration authorities intend to conduct an operation at this particular event.
For families deciding whether to attend, the more useful question may be what is known, what is not known and how families can prepare regardless.
Is ICE Planning an Operation at the Parade?
There is currently no public indication that ICE is planning an operation at the East Los Angeles parade.
The presence of federal immigration officers somewhere in Los Angeles would not, by itself, mean an immigration operation is taking place at the parade.
At the same time, the absence of a public announcement cannot guarantee what federal authorities may do in the future.
That is why Parriva is separating what can be established from what remains unknown.
What we know
The 80th Annual East LA Mexican Independence Day Parade and Festival is scheduled for Sunday, September 13.
The parade begins at 10 a.m. and travels east along César E. Chávez Avenue, beginning near Mednik Avenue and continuing toward Gage Avenue.
The festival begins at 11 a.m. and continues until 4 p.m. on Mednik Avenue between East César E. Chávez Avenue and First Street.
Organizers expect thousands of people to attend.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis and regional Mexican singer El Dasa are serving as co-grand marshals.
The parade will feature floats representing Mexican states, folklorico dancers, marching bands and equestrian groups.
The Mexican Patriotic Civic Committee, which organizes the celebration, is also marking its own milestone this year, celebrating 95 years of service to the Mexican American community.
What we don’t know
There is no way to know in advance whether federal immigration officers could appear somewhere in the area independently of a publicly announced operation.
It is also impossible to know whether a particular person attending the event could separately become subject to immigration enforcement based on circumstances unrelated to the parade.
Those uncertainties are different from evidence that an operation is planned.
Parriva found no public announcement indicating that ICE is planning an operation at the parade.
Immigration Enforcement Has Not Stopped in Los Angeles
The lack of a known operation at the parade does not mean immigration enforcement has stopped.
New federal data show that ICE arrested 49,571 people nationwide in July, the highest monthly total of the second Trump administration and a 70 percent increase from February, according to government data obtained by the Deportation Data Project and analyzed by the Associated Press.
California recorded 4,274 immigration arrests in July, the highest monthly level since President Donald Trump returned to office, according to data analyzed by the Deportation Data Project.
Los Angeles has experienced the effects of that enforcement for more than a year.
Federal immigration officials arrested 14,394 people in the greater Los Angeles area during 2025, according to an analysis of Deportation Data Project records.
The enforcement has also occurred through settings and encounters that may be less visible than the large operations that dominated headlines in Los Angeles last summer.
That broader context helps explain why some immigrant families may be thinking about immigration enforcement as they prepare for a major public gathering.
But it does not establish that the parade itself is a target.
Know Your Rights Before You Go
Immigration attorneys and immigrant-rights organizations say people should understand their constitutional rights before encountering federal immigration officers.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center’s Know Your Rights guidance says people generally have the right to remain silent and can ask whether they are free to leave. People should not lie to immigration officers, and they should not physically resist an officer.
If immigration officers approach someone, that person can choose not to answer questions about matters such as birthplace or immigration status and can ask to speak with a lawyer.
The rules can differ depending on where an encounter occurs and the circumstances involved, so these are general guidelines rather than individualized legal advice.
If ICE agents come to someone’s home, the distinction between an administrative immigration warrant and a judicial warrant is especially important.
An administrative ICE warrant generally does not give federal immigration officers authority to enter a private home without consent. A judicial warrant signed by a judge is different.
People who are arrested have the right to speak with a lawyer and should not sign documents they do not understand.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center provides Know Your Rights information and materials that families can review before an encounter with immigration authorities.
Make a Family Plan Before the Parade
For families attending a large public event, preparation does not have to be complicated.
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center recommends that immigrant families create a preparedness plan that includes identifying a trusted person who can care for children, gathering important documents, identifying trusted immigration legal services and discussing what family members should do if someone is detained.
For a family attending Fiestas Patrias, that can mean taking a few basic steps before leaving home.
Keep important phone numbers available rather than relying only on a phone that could be lost or taken.
Make sure children know the name and phone number of a trusted adult.
If a family member has an immigration attorney, keep that attorney’s contact information accessible.
Know where to find a trusted legal service provider before an emergency happens.
Families can also carry an Immigrant Legal Resource Center Red Card, which provides basic information about constitutional rights during encounters with immigration authorities.
And perhaps most importantly:
Do not rely on rumors circulating on social media about where ICE agents may or may not be.
A social-media post claiming that immigration agents have been seen somewhere in Los Angeles is not evidence that an operation is occurring at the parade.
The Celebration Is Bigger Than the Uncertainty
For East Los Angeles, Mexican Independence Day is not simply another weekend event.
It is a tradition that has connected generations through music, food, dance, family and Mexican American identity for decades.
The 80th anniversary comes at a moment when some families are experiencing a different kind of uncertainty than previous generations may have faced.
But that uncertainty should not be confused with evidence that an immigration operation is planned at the celebration.
The facts available now are more limited and more straightforward:
The parade is happening.
Immigration enforcement remains active in Los Angeles and California.
There is no public indication that ICE is planning an operation at the parade.
Families can prepare by knowing their rights and having a plan.
For families considering the celebration, the most useful preparation is not a rumor about what might happen.
It is knowing what is actually known, understanding their rights and having a family plan if circumstances change.
