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What Christopher Luna Garcia wanted to sell was 8am and 500 Tamar people.
About 17 hungry people lined up in food carts near Villa Park in Pasadena. There, an immigrant sweeps took place about two weeks ago on June 21st.
A steam flowed from the cart, the scent of Masa wafted through the air, and 14-year-old Chris reached out to pull Tamales out.
“That’s a lot,” he said of the community’s response. “But I’m grateful for that.”
Chris said he took over his mother’s street vending business after the immigrant attack.
His mother, Carmen Garcia, 44, a legal resident, said three of her clients were taken into custody during a sweeping in the park. However, immigration agents did not detain her.
“After that, I was very scared,” she said. “I have the documents, but I’m still scared and very scared.”
It wasn’t long ago that tall teenager Chris struggled to sell, sometimes bringing under $100 a day. However, on Friday, Tamales was selling fast. His aunt joined in to help meet the high demand in the second cart.
1. 14-year-old Christopher Luna Garcia sells Tamales to customers from her mother’s cart near Villa Park in Pasadena. (Luke Johnson/Los Angeles Times) 2. The side of the cart proudly states its contents. (Luke Johnson/Los Angeles Times)
Friday’s event was held one afternoon by Alex “Tio Joker” Murillo, an actor and community activist who stumbled over Chris and shared his video on social media.
“I want to help Latino young people,” Murillo said. “This ice stuff is bad, but we’ve also turned it into a good one.”
He filmed the video amid President Trump’s crackdown on immigrants, targeting suspected criminals and migrant workers who illegally live in the country on their home town’s depots, car washes and sidewalks.
As the wave of immigration over the past month has been wiped out, some American-born children have taken over the street vending business on behalf of their parents.
With its operations at Villa Park, Pasadena city officials have urged the park and two others to cancel swimming lessons and other recreational programs.
Christopher Luna Garcia says she took over her mother’s street vending business after the immigrant attack.
The decision came after a recent string of immigration enforcement actions in Pasadena. In one attack, federal agents detained people at bus stops on Orange Grove Boulevard and Los Robles Avenue on June 18, and residents held demonstrations outside the AC hotel where federal immigration agents were staying last month. Both were within a mile of the Villa Park.
Murillo said he decided to help the family when he learned that Chris had stepped up to sell Tamales for his mother because of the sweeps and because they were behind on the bill.
So Murillo took him to Instagram and asked his followers and others to show up on the stands on Friday to buy Tamales. He also said he would sell food to raise money to bring in Chris, who was detained during a bus stop operation to Disneyland, and the workers of the day.
Enjichon, 47, a resident and member of the Pasadena Tenant Union, was one of the first to appear and buy Tamales. She said it is important to show support for those affected by the federal immigration crackdown.
People line up like 14-year-old Christopher Luna Garcia was selling tamares from her mother’s cart near Villa Park in Pasadena on Friday.
“It’s very scary to know that armed hidden people are going to run around, incite fear and take people out of the streets,” she said. “It’s not just undocumented people. It’s the people who are American citizens and those they profile racially.”
Yun Ueen Ramos-Vega, 22, and 21-year-old Janette Ramos-Vega, 21, drove from Monrovia to support Chris after learning about his story. They said they have something to do with his situation as they help relatives by running errands on their behalf.
The two said they know at least two people who were detained by federal immigration agents. At least one has been deported to Mexico, while the other remains in the detention center.
Laura Ruvalcaba, 40, of Pasadena, showed up with her husband and eight-year-old son.
“We’ve seen Chris’s story and we’re going to come here,” she said. “We’re all about supporting our community, especially the youth.”
She said she was happy to see a long customer.
“Amazing,” she said. “Anything we can do to help and get together is fine.”
1. Christopher Luna Garcia collects money after selling Tamales from her mother’s cart. (Luke Johnson/Los Angeles Times) 2. The business card is sitting on Tamale Cart. (Luke Johnson/Los Angeles Times)
Lubalkaba, an American citizen, said the immigrant sweeps left her afraid.
“It’s not even anything other than my skin color,” she said. “I’m scared that it comes out from time to time.”
She said she began to have a copy of her American citizenship certificate and her son’s birth certificate two weeks ago. She tells her 18-year-old daughter to be vigilant when she goes out.
“Now you’re not just being careful about the bad things,” Ruvalkaba said he told his daughter. “You’re paying attention to people in uniform.”
The low riders also roared at the event on Friday morning. Lowriders bouncing off old-fashioned hip-hop after being blown up from the speakers of a car, encouraging them to cheer and shoot videos on their phones.
When Tamales from both carts were gone, nearly 9am brought in over $1,500 that Chris and his family would use to pay their bills and rent.
His brother, Eric Garcia, 20, said he cooked more Tamales in the hopes that his mom and aunt would sell more all day.
Exhausted, Chris sat in the folding chair for a moment, sighing in relief and massaging his eyebrows with his fingers. He was awake from 4am and was tired, but he said he wanted to take action as his mother helped raise him and his three brothers alone.
“She doesn’t have much support,” he said. “I just want to help her.”
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