Transgender actress Jen Richards was hit by rubber bullets and stun grenades used by U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) agents, National Guard troops, and police against pro-immigration activists in downtown Los Angeles.
In a Sunday evening Instagram post, Richards wrote, “Thousands of peaceful protestors showed up to demonstrate that we won’t stand by as our neighbors get rounded up to appease the racist fever dreams of a President and his fragile ego. I was hit by flashbangs and rubber bullets, all while walking backwards with my hands up.”
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“I’m a rather fragile, sensitive, fight-with-my-words type, but sometimes s**t goes too far and you gotta stand up for truth, liberty, and empathy,” Richards added, noting that the “composure” of protesting activists “in the face of LAPD’s rabid aggression was stunning.”
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Richards said police shoved a friend of hers with a baton and also included a photo of her bruised foot. She wrote, “Flashbangs aren’t too bad, they’re loud and sting. Rubber bullets however … well, check out my foot. It tore through my [shoes]!”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has been speaking out against the Trump administration’s utilization of the National Guard at immigration protests in Los Angeles. Newsom’s administration is now suing the Trump administration for doing so.
Amidst the chaos, Trump’s border czar Tom Homan threatened to arrest Newsom for interfering with immigration enforcement efforts by the federal government. Trump said Homan should do it.
Trump called the protestors “professional agitators,” “insurrectionists,” and “bad people” who “should be in jail.” However, Trump pardoned over 1,200 insurrectionists who rioted at the U.S. Capitol in his name on January 6, 2021 — he referred to these people as “political prisoners.”
Richards played a trans female character in the supernatural drama series Mayfair Witches, the 2021 The Silence of the Lambs-related crime series Clarice, and the 2019 Tales of the City revival. She also appeared as herself in the 2020 documentary Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen, a film that has been compared to the 1995 documentary The Celluloid Closet.
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