May Day (May 1) is celebrated throughout the world as “International Workers’ Day.” However, it is also known as a day of political protest. Last Tuesday, people in Los Angeles marched for the rights of immigrants. A day characterized by peaceful protests in MacArthur Park in the Pico Union area turned ugly in the late afternoon hours as police armed in riot gear confronted protesters, who at some point began throwing rocks and bottles at them. Eventually, police shot tear gas and rubber bullets into crowds of people in an attempt to disperse the crowd, which had a permit to be at MacArthur Park until 9 p.m. Abusive acts against the crowd and the media, who were hit by battons, also ocurred. The FBI and LAPD are currently investigating the violence.
