At Taste of East African in Minneapolis, the manager and owner are the only employees coming to work now, serving new customers who aren’t familiar with the food but trying to support a challenged restaurant Increased enforcement of federal immigration laws.
Like the employees, regular customers fear coming to a restaurant in a heavily immigrant-populated area that has been a frequent target of immigration enforcement actions. Gig workers don’t accept delivery orders because they’re afraid, too.
“Even if you tell ICE you’re a citizen they won’t listen to you, so everyone is afraid,” said the restaurant’s manager, Habaq Nimal, an American citizen who grew up in Kenya as a refugee from Somalia.
Companies across large areas Minneapolis has been hit hard as President Donald Trump’s administration carries out a massive crackdown Immigration sweep Which sparked the protests. With employees and customers staying home and protesters targeting businesses they see as helping enforce federal immigration laws, countless stores have temporarily closed, canceled events or reduced hours. Some hotels that housed federal immigration officers and witnessed protests stopped accepting reservations altogether, while Minneapolis-based Target Corp. also saw protests.
The state of Minnesota and the Twin Cities have reported devastating economic impacts in a The lawsuit filed This month he appeals to a federal judge to stop Migration processes. The lawsuit asserted that some companies reported sales falling by up to 80%.
An October report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis noted slowing economic indicators even before more than 2,000 federal immigration officers began arriving in Minneapolis and St. Paul. But a January report confirmed that some businesses in Minnesota saw a drop in sales and a slowdown in traffic due to “fear of immigration enforcement.” Nearly 20% of all companies surveyed reported reduced headcount due to similar concerns.
“I see this affecting everyone, just because of the lower levels of people traveling and spending discretionary income,” said Adam Duinink, CEO of the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District.
Even white-collar businesses have been affected, according to Fred Haberman, co-founder and CEO of a boutique marketing firm in Minneapolis. He said his operations were affected by significant disruptions to “support systems,” such as schools and day care programs, that employees rely on to maintain normal work schedules.
He worries that the city’s economic landscape could be permanently changed if the federal government doesn’t change course soon.
“A lot of these companies don’t have great margins to play with,” Haberman said.
In a statement, Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin pointed to the protests and what she called “the fact that sanctuary policies will not allow us to work with state and local law enforcement” when asked about economic concerns.
Large hotel chains such as Hilton are struggling to overcome the conflict. At least one site canceled reservations for federal immigration officials after repeated protests – Just to reverse course After the Department of Homeland Security accused her of obstructing law enforcement.
At least three hotels In the Twin Cities where protesters said resident immigration officers were not accepting bookings on Wednesday. Rooms cannot be reserved online before early February at the DoubleTree Hilton and IHG InterContinental in downtown St. Paul and at the Hilton Canopy in Minneapolis.
By phone, a front desk employee at the InterContinental said it would be closed for staff safety, but did not provide details. Signs in front of the DoubleTree and InterContinental hotels indicate that they are “temporarily closed for business until further notice.” The Canopy Zone, which has been the site of raucous protests by anti-ICE demonstrators aimed at keeping federal officers from sleeping, was open but not accepting reservations.
Hilton and IHG did not respond to emails seeking comment.
Hotels balance economically wise decisions with safety, Duinink said. He noted that many places that remained open reported fewer reservations and more cancellations than usual.
“What I feel is safe as a businessman is different from people who come here to go to work,” Duinink said, noting that many employees in the hotel industry are nonwhite and fear profiling by federal agents. On the other hand, many hoteliers are trying to avoid intense economic retaliation from the federal government or protesters.
He said this impossible choice embodies “exactly what the political moment is for our city and our country.”
Religious leaders, labor unions and activists are calling on Twin Cities residents not to work, shop or go to school on Friday “to demand an immediate halt to ICE’s actions,” according to the event’s website.
Boycotts and economic protests are a common tactic in the region.
Civil Rights Leaders in Minnesota They were among the first nationally to call for a complete boycott of Target Corp. Early last year after the retailer announced it would do so Phasing out a handful of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives After the Trump campaign To dismantle DEI policies In the federal government and schools.
Last week, nearly 100 clergy protested at the entrance to Target’s headquarters in downtown Minneapolis to demand that the retailer take a stronger stance against federal law enforcement activity.
Videos also showed protesters at Target locations in St. Paul, holding signs calling for the abolition of ICE and accusing the mega-retailer of allowing federal law enforcement to conduct operations on its properties.
Anyone – including immigration enforcement officers – may lawfully enter public areas of the Company. These areas can include dining areas, parking lots, office lobbies and store aisles. In those places, immigration officials can question people, seize information and even make arrests, according to John Medeiros, who leads the corporate immigration practice at Minneapolis-based law firm Neilan Johnson Lewis.
But workers and beneficiaries enjoy some legal protection. They can refuse to talk to immigration enforcement officials, refuse to consent to searches or request an attorney.
Ice It needs permission From your employer or a court order to enter private company spaces, such as the back office or emergency room. A judicial order must be signed by a judge and state the name of the court authorized to do so. These commands can be limited to specific days or types of information about the business. Experts stress that it is important to educate workers about their legal rights, what special areas of work are and how to differentiate between search warrants.
Immigration lawyers have raised alarm about ICE entering private spaces without proper warrants and detaining people illegally.
Medeiros encourages people to record encounters with federal agents.
Nimal said East Africa’s economic challenges have been at least temporarily offset by an outpouring of support from its non-immigrant neighbors. Before the crackdown, she estimated that approximately 80% of her customers were Somali. Now, it’s at about 10%, as new customers unfamiliar with this regional cuisine fill the gap even though usual service has slowed due to staff shortages.
Nimal said she is grateful for her neighbors’ kindness but is concerned that this is far from a sustainable solution.
“We don’t know how long we can get support,” she said.
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Associated Press reporter Wyatt Granthan Phillips contributed reporting.