NEW ORLEANS — Several dozen protesters donned ponchos, stood under umbrellas, and wrapped megaphones in plastic Monday night for a rally at Lafayette Square. It was held in protest of the start of

“No condition is going to be necessarily perfect for us to be out here, but it's important that we are regardless,” said Antonia Mar, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, one of several groups behind the rally.

A flyer posted to Instagram called it an “emergency protest.”

“Operation Swamp Sweep” first came to light in November through federal documents obtained by the Associated Press. It involves around 250 Border Patrol agents being deployed to the New Orleans area with the goal of arresting thousands of immigrants.

It is the latest escalation in a monthslong push for more i

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