"Are you going to war, with all those weapons?" the man asks the National Guard members who are looking at him indifferently, rifles in their hands, from the other side of the fence.
We are in Paramount, a suburb south of Los Angeles where clashes broke out last weekend between federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and a group of protesters who arrived after word spread that a deportation raid was underway in the area.
This type of unrest prompted President Donald Trump to intervene, after two days of isolated protests over immigration enforcement actions, ordering the deployment of 2.000 uniformed troops to help "re-establish order and peace" in the California metropolis.
"This is a maneuver that will only escalate tensions," warned California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat.
He anticipated what would happen the next day in downtown Los Angeles, when hundreds of thousands of protesters blocked the streets, police tried to disperse them with tear gas and stun grenades, and vehicles were set on fire.
"You are doing your job, but we are not your enemies," shouts a man on the fence in front of the soldiers.
His voice stands out among the dozens who gathered this week to let the National Guard know that their presence was not welcome.
Others in this municipality of about 51.000 residents, where about eight in 10 are of Latino descent and 36 percent were born in another country, think so, according to census data.
"There are only working people here, because this community was built by immigrants," he argues, as another neighbor waves a Mexican flag, two young people hold a banner denouncing ICE, and several cars honk as they pass by.
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'Fear reigns'
Just like every weekend, three of those immigrants who helped make Paramount the place it is today gather across the street to chat about family news and what's going on.
Sitting in their work vehicles, Juan, Rogelio and Hector discuss this week how tensions flared in the same Home Depot parking lot the day before between protesters and federal agents.
"Apparently, rumors spread that the raids were being carried out right here," explains Juan, a 63-year-old Mexican who came to the US from Jalisco when he was 17.
"And that brought people who, in the general confusion, ended up causing riots," he explains.
Some demonstrators threw Molotov cocktails and rocks.
Windows were broken and a car was set on fire.
The officers responded with pepper spray and rubber bullets.
Anxiety and fear gripped the entire neighborhood.
In a statement to the BBC, the Department of Homeland Security denied that ICE was conducting operations in the area on Sunday.
But they also said 118 undocumented immigrants were taken into custody in raids carried out in Los Angeles last week, the harshest police crackdown on immigration in the "sanctuary city" since Trump came to power on a promise to carry out "the largest deportations in the history of the country."
Yet the three friends say they feel relaxed - "we don't have any problems, all our papers are in order" - although they admit that many undocumented residents are currently in fear.
"That's why you don't see anyone here today," adds Juan, who still didn't want to introduce himself by his last name.
"Generally, but especially during the week, you can see 20-30 trucks of laborers waiting here to be hired," he explains.
One of the few who did come looking for work this week was Pedro, who asked that we only publish his pseudonym.
"Roofing, repairs, painting," reads the sign he has taped to the windshield of an old blue pickup truck, discreetly parked on the corner.
"Life is very expensive here and my pension is not enough," says Pedro, who is from El Salvador but has spent five decades in the US and, well into his seventies, is close to retirement age.
"That's why I have to keep coming here to make ends meet," he says.
He does so with the peace of mind that comes with the legalization of his immigration status in 2000, although he still feels anguish when he sees his neighbors suffer.
These are not the first demonstrations organized in Los Angeles.
The city was one of the first in the entire country to take to the streets when Trump and his anti-immigrant policies returned to the White House.
However, Pedro describes the protests of the past few days as a "turning point."
"There is more anger, there is more rage. Many are coming out to protest because their parents or previous generations suffered a lot in the shadows," he says.
"But it won't stop there. The raids will continue."
"Life is becoming impossible with this president," he continues, adding that he is considering returning to El Salvador.
"It was time to stand up," says Maria Gutierrez, who participated in the protests at Paramount on June 7.
"These are my people," she says.
Born in Mexico, she has lived in the US since she was a child, she tells the BBC, as she watches the National Guard and their Humvees.
"Everyone here has a relative or knows someone who doesn't have documents."
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'Vivid community'
Some of the local neighbors sought comfort and support in the church they attend every Sunday.
The Chapel of Change is located just a few meters from Home Depot, the scene of the conflict.
About two hundred people, mostly families of Hispanic origin, listened attentively to a sermon that called them to turn to faith.
"Here we want unity and we pray for everyone," Irena Ramirez, one of the church's priests, tells BBC Mundo.
She describes the community as "vibrant, united and family-oriented."
The church's senior pastor, Brian Worth, agrees.
"Over the years, Paramount has become a really vibrant municipality," he explains to the BBC.
"Paramount was known as one of the worst towns in the country in the 1980s, but civic leaders, people in the education sector and church leaders among us joined forces to change the community, to unite it and bring it more peace overall," he points out.
"I never dreamed that we would be watching the scenes shown on television here," laments Dora Sanchez, who helps with the church's work.
"It's all very shocking," she adds.
A few hours after that conversation, tension escalated on the streets of central Los Angeles, about 20 kilometers north of Paramount.
And the friction between the federal and California governments has only deepened.
The events also sparked a reaction from Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum.
She said she disagreed with the US raids and called on its northern neighbor to implement immigration reform.
"The issue of immigration cannot be solved through raids or violence; it must be solved by serious work on comprehensive immigration reform that respects all Mexicans on the other side of the border. That is our position," she said.
Meanwhile, in the face of calls from the California governor to withdraw the National Guard from the streets and harsh criticism from other Democratic leaders who called the measures a "troubling abuse of power," Trump has stood firm behind his decisions.
"A violent, rioting mob is surrounding and attacking our federal agents to try to stop our deportation operations, but this illegal riot will only strengthen our resolve," he wrote on his social media account Trut Social.
"Order will be restored, illegal immigrants will be expelled, and Los Angeles will be liberated."
Watch video: Rubber bullet hits journalist reporting live from Los Angeles protests
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