'Am I Next?': In Los Angeles, a city targeted by ICE raids, an exhibition invites self-reflection

One of the 'Am I Next?' projections on a building at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, Los Angeles, November 27, 2025. CALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

As night falls, the question stuns drivers stuck on the 101, one of Los Angeles's most iconic freeways. "Am I Next?" asks an Angeleno, their giant portrait projected onto the facade of a building overlooking the busy highway. The face then vanishes, replaced by a brief message introduced by a chilling word in all caps: "TAKEN."

The next lines leave no doubt about the context: "Mauricio was waiting for the bus." "Taken: José, working at a car wash." And also, "Taken: David, a US citizen, documenting a raid." Between each mini-narrative, photographs of individuals appear, each asking the haunting question: "Am I Next?"

Any LA resident will recognize the reference to ICE, the federal immigration police. The Trump administration has made the California metropolis a testing ground for its migration policy. It was here, in June, that the first raids took place. And it was here, too, that the federal government deployed the National Guard for the first time. More than 7,100 undocumented immigrants have been arrested in the LA region since June, according to the Interior Ministry.