Finneas said on Sunday that he was tear-gassed while at a “peaceful protest” in downtown L.A. He shared the news in the wake of President Donald Trump deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles in response to protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arresting people who the federal government claim are undocumented immigrants.
“Tear-gassed almost immediately at the very peaceful protest downtown — they’re inciting this,” he wrote at around 7 p.m. ET. It’s unclear if he suffered any injuries. A rep for Finneas did not immediately return Rolling Stone’s request for comment.
That post was included in a series of his Instagram stories. In one from earlier in the day, Finneas wrote, “Fuck ICE.” In another story, he shared a post reading: “If you are National Guard or Active Duty military and you are being ordered to violate the Constitutional rights of US citizens then this is the number to the GI Rights Hotline. There is support, you don’t have to go through with it. Tel:1-877-447-4487,” which was soundtracked to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ “I Won’t Back Down.” The phone number is run by GI Rights Network, a coalition of non-profit, non-governmental organizations who provide free support to veterans and their families.
Finneas also shared posts from others, including one from musician and comedian Tim Heidecker, which said he supported L.A. and admonished ICE and “Weekend GI Joe Losers.” It also read in part: “If you are into this fascist shit you are small and weak and will lose.”
On Saturday night, Trump issued a memo federalizing National Guard units in California for 60 days. He also suggested that, via his Secretary Pete Hegseth, he could choose to additionally deploy members of the “regular Armed Forces as necessary.” Hegseth appeared to back that sentiment, tweeting in part: “And, if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert.” On Sunday, the National Guard arrived in the city.
Protests began on Friday while ICE executed raids at several workplaces in the Los Angeles area, including the city of Paramount, where at least 44 individuals were arrested by ICE for alleged immigration violations. Police arrested more than a dozen people at the protests claiming the protesters impeded federal agents.
A separate protest took place near a federal building where demonstrators believed detainees were being held after showing up for their ICE check-in appointments; the detainees’ attorneys said that immigrants who showed up for their appointments were escorted to the basement and detained.