As immigration raids continue to disrupt workplaces and families across Los Angeles, the County Board of Supervisors this week declined to advance a proposal that housing advocates say could have prevented a wave of evictions. The proposal, introduced by Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, would have allowed tenants countywide more time to catch up on rent before facing eviction proceedings. But when it came forward, none of the other supervisors seconded it, effectively killing the measure without a vote.

For many tenants, the connection between immigration enforcement and eviction is not theoretical. It is already happening. Surveys of immigrant renters in Los Angeles show how quickly raids are translating into housing instability. Average weekly earnings fell by roughly 60 percent after enforcement intensified, while nearly all respondents reported being rent burdened and more than a quarter were already behind on rent.

Many of these households were already living on the edge, pooling incomes just to stay housed in a city where rents far exceed what low wage workers earn. Even small disruptions can trigger eviction. Raids are not small disruptions, but an economic shock to entire communities.

Tenant organizers warned this would happen months ago. Within weeks of the first large scale raids last summer, groups began calling for eviction protections. By early fall, reports were already documenting lost wages and rising rent debt. The county approved rent relief and declared an emergency, but stronger eviction protections never followed.

Campaigns like Evict ICE, Not Us argue that rent relief alone cannot prevent displacement because relief programs move slowly while eviction cases move quickly. Organizers have called for stronger eviction protections and temporary safeguards to keep tenants housed during the emergency. Their argument is simple: eviction does more damage than debt. Once a family loses housing, the consequences spread quickly, often leading to job loss, school disruption, and homelessness.

A broad coalition of tenant groups, legal advocates, and community organization (including Mar Vista Voice) has endorsed the Evict ICE, Not Us campaign. Mayor Bass has not endorsed the campaign, and Rae Huang is the only mayoral candidate who has publicly endorsed it so far, highlighting how uneven political support remains even as the crisis deepens.

Meanwhile, the pressures keep building. Immigration enforcement is expanding, rents remain high, and emergency tenant protections from earlier crises have expired. More families are living one missed paycheck away from losing their homes. Preventing displacement is far cheaper and far more humane than responding after someone has already lost housing, but prevention requires acting before eviction notices pile up and families disappear.