Los Angeles councilmembers, community groups raise alarm about recent immigration enforcement and hunger impacts

Councilmembers and community leaders told the Los Angeles City Council on Friday that a recent uptick in immigration enforcement activity is deterring people from using health clinics, food distribution sites and other services and is worsening food insecurity in multiple neighborhoods.

At a presentations block focused on enforcement and community response, Councilmember Park described teams distributing “know your rights” materials across the Westside and said clinics, markets and other community hubs were receiving fewer clients because people were afraid to come out. Genevieve Rote, chief executive officer of Westside Food Bank, told the council that food insecurity in Los Angeles is as high as 25 percent overall and rises to more than 35 percent in some Black and brown neighborhoods. She said one distribution site saw weekly visits fall from about 150 families to about 100 after reports of enforcement activity.

The presentations put local…