Springsteen Stands With Immigrants in L.A. And Gives Shout-Out to NDLON

LOS ANGELES, April 10 — Bruce Springsteen brought his message of hope and defiance to the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on Thursday night – and sent a message of support for NDLON, the National Day Laborer Organizing Network.

NDLON, said Springsteen, is “a group of organizations all around the country that support immigrant workers in their fight for better wages, safer work conditions and basic rights. If you see them in the hall tonight, say hi and give ’em a hand.”

Springsteen and the E Street Band have been playing arenas across the country, beginning in Minneapolis, as an act of resistance to the Trump Administration’s lawless chaos and cruelty.  “This is a tour that we never planned,” Springsteen told an earlier L.A. audience, according to The Los Angeles Times. “We want to bring some hope and bring some strength to you.”

On Thursday night, as Springsteen played his new protest song, “The Streets of Minneapolis,” about the assault on that city by federal agents who murdered Renee Good and Alex Pretti, the audience joined in chanting “ICE Out!”, a phrase that NDLON coined over a decade ago that is now going viral. For the show’s encore, Tom Morello wore NDLON’ iconic ICE OUT OF LA t-shirt on stage.

Thanks to Springsteen’s generous shout-out, NDLON staffers in the arena collected donations and distributed information – spreading the message of immigrant solidarity and pride while raising much-needed money for direct immigrant defense.

After reminding the crowd that so many people in the United States have roots from someplace else – his are Sicilian and Irish – Springsteen asked:

“Is it too much to ask of our elected representatives – a sane and human immigration policy in Washington that will benefit all?”

Then he and the band kicked off his rowdy, Irish-style immigration song, “American Land.”

The following is a statement from Pablo Alvarado, NDLON’s Co-Executive Director:

“Thank you, Bruce Springsteen, for lending your poetry and power to the people’s struggle. Music is one of the mightiest weapons we have against tyranny. A song is a small thing – but the right songs at the right time can help to undo even the most repressive regimes. In this time of calamity, with our democracy under grave threat, we’re grateful that you are working to unite and inspire us and to show us a path away from hatred and violence and toward love, hope and solidarity.”

To find pictures of backstage meet up and video of the concert, please go here.

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