As Donald Trump unleashed his fascist ICE pigs on the City of Los Angeles, terrorizing millions of immigrants in that city, mass protests have erupted across the country with the protests in Los Angeles leading the way. It has been very notable that the LA Dodgers Major League Baseball (MLB) organization, which has enormous support from the immigrant community, has been silent.

But Kiké (Enrique) Hernández, of the Los Angeles Dodgers and a big fan favorite, broke through this silence. On June 15, he posted on social media:

I may not be Born & Raised, but this city adopted me as one of their own. I am saddened and infuriated by what’s happening in our country and our city. Los Angeles and Dodger fans have welcomed me, supported me and shown me nothing but kindness and love. This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart. ALL people deserve to be treated with respect, dignity and human rights. #CityOfImmigrants. 

He ended his post in Spanish, “Estoy con ustedes!!, which in English means, “I am with you all!!”

The silence from the Los Angeles Dodgers organization has fueled the ire of the sports and Latino communities in Los Angeles. When asked to comment on the ICE raids, Dodgers executive vice president and chief marketing officer Lon Rosen said, “We’re not going to comment.” Then Manager Dave Roberts said, “I just hope that we can be a positive distraction for what people are going through in Los Angeles right now.” “A positive distraction”!!!!—from what? People’s lives being destroyed. What a despicable statement! Remember, the Dodgers, who won last year’s World Series, went to the White House to visit Trump. 

In a biting column, Los Angeles Times columnist Dylan Hernandez wrote: 

When the Dodgers announced they accepted Trump’s White House invitation, team president Stan Kasten claimed the decision had “nothing to do with politics.” Kasten sounded as if he was counting on the fans to give the team a pass for visiting an aspiring tyrant, either because their love of the Dodgers overwhelmed their disgust for Trump or because they lacked the intellectual faculties to connect Trump’s racist rhetoric to real-life consequences. (See Cowardly Dodgers remain silent as ICE raids terrorize their fans.)

Now, in the wake of the ICE raids in LA, over 50 immigrant rights leaders, activists, faith leaders stated in a petition to the Dodgers: “This is the moment for the Dodgers to stand with the families whom masked agents are tearing apart… Children who may have sat in your seats enjoying a game now come home with no parents to receive them and no word of their whereabouts or well-being other than reports of inhumane treatment in detention centers across California and the Southwest.” (See Immigrant Rights Activists Call On LA Dodgers To Speak Out Against ICE Raids.)

The Latino love for the Dodgers blossomed in 1981, when Fernando Valenzuela came out of rural Mexico to pitch for the team, entering the hearts of the LA Latino community in what has been known as “Fernando Mania.” Some of us remember when the Dodgers helped Yasiel Puig immigrate from Cuba to become a star on the team. The Dodgers have always relied on Latino immigrants to win games.

Almost 50 percent of the Dodgers’ support comes from the Latino community. The site of Dodger Stadium, Chavez Ravine, was previously a Mexican-American community, and the people there were forcibly evicted by the city so the land could be used for Dodger Stadium. 

FINALLY, when ICE attempted to use the parking lot at Dodger Stadium as a staging area, protesters showed up to stop them, and the Dodgers responded by not allowing ICE into the property. Amanda Carrera, a Dodger fan who was protesting ICE outside of Dodger Stadium said, “I just feel like the organization, as a whole, needed to say something. The fanbase is predominantly Latinos, and we have been supporting them forever.”

With all this pressure and shame put on the Dodger organization, they now felt they needed to respond, so they said they were going to donate $1 million to immigrant families. But they still failed to make a statement against these ICE raids. Dodger fans would not buy this bribe. More than 100 fans showed up on Saturday to protest, letting the Dodgers know that this $1 million donation was not going to earn their forgiveness. USA Today reported that “Two protesters held handmade signs that read, ‘The Dodgers want you to shut up for $1 million’… Standing nearby, Alex Gansen of Hollywood told USA TODAY Sports, ‘I feel like the Dodgers are doing a lot of PR cleanup.’” (See 'Dodgers want you to shut up for $1 million': ICE protests continue outside Dodger Stadium.) 

There are many who feel $1 million ain’t shit when you consider, according to Spotrac, the Dodgers are first in MLB with a total payroll of $338,506,082 during the 2025 season,” and they recently gave star player Shohei Ohtani a $700 million contract.