Protesters gathered to Mission Dolores Park and marched to City Hall to Protest ICE 

Protesters gather at Mission Dolores Park on Friday Jan. 30, 2026. Photo by Paul Singh

At around 1 p.m. approximately 4,000 to 6,000 people had come to Mission Dolores park to protest against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They protested the killing of 37-year-old Renee Good and nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis Minnesota and several other killings by ICE. 

This comes as businesses across the country have closed and schools have shut down in retaliation for ICE. 

Protester Pamela Smith said that it demonstrates to the people that they have the power to make a decision to take the initiative. 

“ It shows the country, it shows our leaders, it shows the economy here in California and across the country that, in fact, we do have the power to put an economic freeze on things if we choose to do so,” Smith said. “It may be mostly symbolic, but I think it can make a powerful statement.”

Furthermore, signs say “Lock Them Up ICE Not Immigrants”, “Ice Out”, “That Feminine Urge To Hate ICE” and “C……. La Migra” which is a derogatory Spanish phrase for Immigration authorities. Half of the protesters were high school students who did a walk out in protest for ICE.

Some people were playing hackie sack and some were juggling. There were multiple drum groups playing while people were chanting. 

Protesters holding multiple signs on Friday Jan. 30, 206. Photo by Paul Singh

Greg Lawler, who is retired, had come out to protest the Trump Administration referencing it as a “fascist regime” along with the arrest of Don Lemon by federal officials. 

“That’s like an attack on the media. And the kidnapping and what’s going on in Minneapolis,” Lawler said. “This is astonishing and shocking that on a Friday afternoon, we have to do this.”

Protesters were chanting “Hey hey ho ho I C E has got to go”, “The people united will never be defeated”, “ICE out” and “From Minneapolis to the Bay ICE ICE Go Away” and “No ICE or Police.”

There were even organizers at the event. One of the organizers at the event was Nodutdol for Korean Community Development which advocates for the U.S. to leave South Korea and the liberation of the Korean peninsula. They brought Korean drums called Pungmul, Janggu, and the Kkwaenggwari which is a small Korean cymbal. 

Hanul Kwon of Nodutdol said that there are 30,000 military bases across South Korea and during the Korean war, the U.S. had actually divided the peninsula which is not talked about in U.S. history. 

“What we see is that the US and Korea, they conduct joint war exercises that give a lot of environmental health in human cost for the Korean people,” Kwon said.

Protesters sit on the California Volunteer Scuplture in Duboce Triangle on Friday Jan. 30, 2026. Photo by Paul Singh

Moreover, another protester Maximus Esparza, who is a private chef said he noticed that a lot of farms cannot supply food because the workers are being taken away by ICE agents which will put the U.S. in an economic downfall and food shortage situation.

“When you look at the modern world, like the trade country that’s, like, leading everything is China. Because not only have we loosened our grip on the economic market, but we kind of, like, gave it with all the terrorists because now nobody wants to trade with us,” said Esparza. “We used to be such a superpower, and now it’s going to China.”

Sammy Scaglione, who is a medical engineer, came out to protest after having thoughts about what is happening in the country such as ICE infiltrating cities violating human rights. 

“Donald Trump’s an idiot. We all know it. He’s a wolf or a sheep in wolf’s clothing,” Scaglione said. “As time goes on, more and more people are going to open their eyes to that.”

Drivers were honking in support of the protesters. Then the protesters started to march on Dolores St. up to Market St. where it ended up in front of City Hall. 

A protester on top of a traffic light on Dolores St. on Friday Jan. 30, 2026. Photo by Paul Singh

During the march there were a few protesters who were climbing up on street lights to film the protest. They had also climbed up on the California Volunteers sculpture in Duboce Triangle. 

At City Hall, Sanika Mahajan was leading the chants with her organization the Party for Socialism and Liberation while on top of the truck with other members of the PSL Party parked at the center in front of City Hall. 

“The people, the masses of working people are the ones who make history. Not the billionaires, not Trump, not ICE,” Mahajan said in her speech at City Hall.  

One protester, Yuri G, who is originally from Belarus, had a sign that was a photo of Donald Trump and Jeffery Epstein and on the other side of that photo was a message saying “don`t get distracted.”

“I think Trump is using a lot of outrage to distract us from Jeffrey Epstein and their friendship and what they did together,” G said. “It should be all uncovered and it should be all investigated. All of the people on the list.”

Protesters at City Hall on Friday Jan. 30, 2026. Photo by Paul Singh

Multiple speakers said “we cannot forget our black brothers and sisters” and talked about the killings of people by federal agents referencing the incident back in LA where ICE agents had killed 43-year-old Keith Porter Jr. 

Media Arts Teacher for the San Francisco Unified School District Justin Gabaldon said that he disagrees with the way President Trump is running the U.S. right now. 

“He seems to be running America like a business. That seems to be the way he was raised. That’s the way he’s always run his life,” Gabaldon said. “Running America like a business seems like a terrible idea to me.”

Gabaldon also has students who are immigrants and whose families are immigrants. 

“I think that they are way out of bounds. I think what they’re doing is causing fear and hatred. Mostly fear in our streets,” said Gabaldon. “I’m not into that.”

The protest ended around 4:30 p.m. with the San Francisco Police Department wanting all the protesters and organizers to get on the sidewalk. Some organizers offered fruit and pizza to the protesters.