When asked about his role as an organizer in Los Angeles, Eddy Patiño gives L.A. TACO a firm answer.
“I’m not an organizer. I’m just a person,” he says.
Patiño was a creative director, living what he described as a “normal life in Los Angeles” before receiving local recognition for his activism amidst the federal immigration raids in the city. L.A. TACO spoke with Eddy about his experiences.
Before 2025, Eddy would regularly join Pro-Palestine protests and marches, but never placed himself directly on the frontlines, nor did he ever imagine that he would. Early this year, he stated he would join random protests against the Trump administration, but never saw himself as more than another body that needed to be there.
"I tried getting friends to come and do things, but no one showed up,” he says.
It wouldn’t be until June 6th of this year when Eddy would embark on a non-stop trajectory of protesting, organizing, and involvement on the frontlines of Los Angeles protests.
“It was June 6th. ICE went to three different stops,” he says. “A group of people gathered in the fashion district and surrounded this store where ICE was. They weren’t expecting a crowd, they were still processing people at the places they just raided.”
This allowed time for people to gather around the premises. It wouldn’t be long before ICE agents phoned local law enforcement. LAPD soon arrived to assist ICE as they confronted protestors.
June 6th was regarded by various activists as the beginning of the protests that would take over L.A. in the following week. However, Eddy says that recent videos show protests at the detention facility on Alameda in Downtown going back to May.
After June 6th, Eddy was filled with various ideas that he wanted to execute, mainly by changing the national public perception of what these protests looked like.
“I realized that other people weren't going to do it the way I was,” he says. “Other people thought that their ideas were better, but they weren’t executing them anyway. I figured I’d do what I wanted to do without complaints, since the people who said they were going to do something didn’t. But they still complained.”
One of the first actions that Eddy would take included distributing various United States flags on June 8th. This was in response to Donald Trump’s negative rhetoric about “foreign flags.”
“I never bought an American flag in my life,” he says. “I thought, ‘I’m gonna wave it in on the frontline so they can’t complain about foreign flags,’ and I did. Those pictures were on CNN, FOX, NBC, all the major news outlets. I wasn’t against the other flags at all, but I wanted to influence the news.”
After the feeling of success from his first action, he went on to bring large United States flags to protests on June 14th, noting that the LAPD treated him with less aggression when he held onto the flags than previously. In total, he distributed 50 flags to protestors to help change the narrative, while also presenting a striking image for the media. Meanwhile, municipal law enforcement shot “less-than-lethal” weapons at United States flags for their cameras.
“It was shocking to go to a protest and law enforcement is shooting at you,” Eddy recalls. “People left. I wanted to prove a point so other organizations would learn, when they start shooting at us we can obfuscate media news because they're shooting at American flags.”
L.A. TACO asks Patiño what it felt like being out in these protests early on in Los Angeles.
“We felt like we were at war almost, we bought so much PPE and water and emergency kits to give to protestors because these protests started happening everyday,” he says. “My friend got shot with rubber bullets, I was arrested on June 8th.”
Protesting wasn’t the only role he decided to take on. On July 7th, he was present at MacArthur Park to notify the workers and surrounding bystanders of an incoming ICE raid. He also emphasized the importance of showing up to City Council meetings. He would eventually come across the ongoing 24-hour protest at the Metropolitan Detention Center at 535 Alameda Street.
“I went down there at 6:00 a.m. It was a 24-hour protest, so I decided to just stay there,” he says. “I committed to work the day shift. I kept coming everyday and LAPD would keep fucking with us. I made a video and was like, ‘Hey, LAPD is taking all our stuff.’ I started just calling the protest ‘535 Alameda,’ so people were aware of the address and just show up. I just wanted people to show up.’”
Eddy began focusing on showcasing the injustices he felt were stemming from LAPD during the 24-hour protest. He began attending more city council meetings, constantly asking people online to show up. As the protest itself slowly grew, it also reached a plateau.
Eddy left the United States on November 9th to move to Mexico.
"Two reasons," he says. "First, I was living off savings—I chose to dedicate my time to this cause. I expected more people to join, but it wasn't sustainable. Did I really want to job-hunt in L.A., where I'd always want to protest or attend City Council meetings? We were heading toward fascism, and I couldn't focus on a new job like that."
"I made strict budgets to stretch my savings,” he explains. “On June 8th, I was heading to donate plasma for extra cash. I pushed to build the movement, but we plateaued. People expected the same 50 of us to carry it alone. That made me angry—I'm sacrificing my life, but others aren't stepping up. If I stop, maybe they'll take more responsibility."
Eddy emphasizes the bigger picture: "This goes beyond ICE. A relative might get sick without care; education is shifting. Everyone will be hit differently. We needed to organize before more suffering, but people wait until it affects them personally."
After he’s been living in Mexico City a couple of weeks, L.A. TACO poses the straightforward question to Eddy, “Did you make the right choice?”
He hesitates, then admits: "The real answer ... I was pissed the first two weeks. Angry as fuck. In the long term, I know this was the right decision, but I'm furious that not enough people fought back so I could've stayed."
Eddy describes the adjustment: "I'm an immigrant here now. I had to learn basics like turning on the water or navigating the buses. It pisses me off—I had my life set up in L.A., and now I'm starting over from scratch."
But he shifts tone, looking ahead.
"In the long run, though, I'm learning more about my family history,” he says. “I've connected with a long-lost cousin and uncovered details about my own roots that explain the deep scars of colonization. I didn't realize how profoundly colorism affects us here."
He adds, "My first week, I saw a protest and realized fascism is spreading in Mexico, too. All this is helping me gauge when it'll be safe to return to the United States."
Eddy goes on to explain that the same morning that L.A. TACO spoke with him, that he had visited a UNAM political philosophy building and was ecstatic at seeing the amount of pro-Palestine and women’s activists present.
“I feel like the revolution is upfront everywhere you go here,” he says. “Everyone feels ready to fight. It's in your face.”
Eddy would unknowingly walk into a protest not too long after his stay in Mexico. While walking to a museum in Centro Historico, he noticed several police officers in the area. He stayed and began to document the incident and ended up joining the November 15th Mexico City protest in response to the assassination of Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo, which left over 100 people injured.
“Activism is like a choir,” Eddy tells us. “When someone steps back, others are supposed to continue singing. And that's where I feel like ... I needed to take a step back. People asked me why I didn't move back to Texas, where I'm from, but I would just keep fighting in Texas. I needed to get away. We experienced trauma, but we haven't processed it.”
