LA councilmember accuses Home Depot of being 'complicit' with ICE raids, opposes new store over 'silence'
A Los Angeles City Council member raged against Home Depot on Friday, accusing the hardware store chain of being "complicit" with raids on illegal immigrants and vowing to oppose the opening of a new location."Take your orange aprons somewhere else. Home Depot has no place in Eagle Rock," Councilmember Ysabel Jurado fumed on Instagram.Home Depot is planning to open a new superstore in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Eagle Rock, according to documents filed with the LA city planning department. The project would demolish a defunct Macys department store in Eagle Rock Plaza to make way for the new Home Depot location.MAN STRUCK, KILLED ON FREEWAY WHILE FLEEING IMMIGRATION AGENTS DURING HOME DEPOT RAIDJurado claimed that the hardware store chain was "complicit" with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids at their locations due to the companys refusal to speak out against them. She cited an ICE raid that occurred at a Home Depot location in the LA town of Westlake on Thursday, and claimed it was the fourth such raid to occur at that location since June."These raids are part of a disturbing pattern across Los Angeles, with ICE repeatedly targeting Home Depot parking lots common gathering spots for day laborers without judicial warrants, in clear violations of peoples rights. And yet, Home Depot has remained silent," Jurado wrote.Surveillance video posted by the Los Angeles Times reportedly shows the Thursday raid. The video shows a black van pull up to street vendors across from the Home Depot. As what appears to be rifle-brandishing federal agents dressed in tactical gear emerge from the van, numerous street vendors attempt to flee the scene. The agents pursue them on foot and deploy what appears to be tear gas. The raid saw at least 15 people arrested, the LA Times reported.CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTUREThe Westlake Home Depot location was the site of "Operation Trojan Horse," which saw federal agents emerge from a Penske truck and more than a dozen alleged illegal immigrants arrested Wednesday, Aug. 6. The raid came just days after a federal appeals court upheld a temporary restraining order against indiscriminate immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles and other areas of California.President Donald Trump deployed nearly 5,000 troops to Los Angeles in June after massive anti-ICE riots broke out in the city. Over 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines were sent to quell the chaotic uprising, which saw vehicles and American flags set ablaze, and law enforcement pelted with heavy objects."When your name becomes associated with terror, and you refuse to speak, you become complicit. Home Depot has chosen power and profit over the working people who sustain it," Jurado wrote.Home Depot told Fox News Digital that the company isn't notified of ICE activities."We arent notified that ICE activities are going to happen, and were not requesting them. In many cases, we don't know that arrests have taken place until after they're over. Were required to follow all federal and local rules and regulations in every market where we operate," a Home Depot representative said.Jurado, a former tenants rights attorney who represents Los Angeles District 14, which includes downtown LA, is herself the daughter of "undocumented Filipino immigrants," according to her city council bio. She vowed to oppose the construction of the new Home Depot, claiming it would bring "violence" to her community."I unequivocally oppose Home Depot coming to Eagle Rock Plaza, a mall that has been a gathering place for the Filipino community in Los Angeles. I will not allow violence to take root in our neighborhoods. Our communities deserve safety, dignity, and businesses that fight for the people, not against them," Jurado wrote.Jurado and DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.