The business community, from El Monte to Downey to Perris, no longer fears the impact of federal immigration raids on workplaces. They are seeing the painful fallout firsthand.

In the weeks after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents ramped up their roundups of migrant workers from car washes, swap meets and hubs such as L.A.’s Flower District, business owners and city leaders say the operations are disrupting life and spreading fear in their communities.

Sudden, scattered social media posts, some unconfirmed and others with video proof, detail the intense pace of some raids, with agents sweeping into parking lots and businesses and arresting people within minutes. Facebook, TikTok and Instagram users are posting drive-by footage of agents toting guns and reporting the time, date and location of the sightings.

In El Monte, Pablo Tamashiro said he understands the fear, and foot traffic at his yogurt shop is down, with more people ordering takeout.

“It’s clear the mood has shifted,” Tamashiro said. “Many families are sending just one person to pick up food, and what we’re seeing more and more is that younger, first-generation Americans are stepping up. It almost feels like the kids are now helping to protect and support their parents — navigating fear, language, and logistics to care for their families in ways no child should have to.”

The U.S. citizen now carries his passport everywhere, “not because I want to, but because I feel I have to. And I know I’m not alone,” Tamashiro said. “Many in our community — families, workers, small business owners — are living with the same anxiety.”

President Donald Trump’s ramped-up immigration enforcement and his deployment of roughly 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to Los Angeles following protests is designed to fulfill his promise of mass deportations with a goal of making the nation safer.

Todd Lyons, the head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended his tactics last week week against criticism that authorities are being too heavy-handed. He has said ICE is averaging about 1,600 arrests per day and that the agency has arrested “dangerous criminals.”

It is an assertion many lawmakers and city leaders decry.

Supervisor Hilda Solis will introduce a motion to the county board on Tuesday responding to the disruptions immigration enforcement has had on L.A. County’s workforce and economy.

Kelly LoBianco. director of the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity, and Stephen Cheung, president of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, are also expected to speak before the board votes.

Azusa City Mayor Robert Gonzales said his concern is the many “random” arrests happening across car washes and Home Depot parking lots Los Angeles County isn’t picking up criminal elements.

El Monte City Manager Alma Martinez said the raids are escalating business owners’ uncertainty.

“This environment of anxiety not only compromises workforce stability but also diminishes consumer spending, ultimately stifling economic growth in our community,” she said.

Martinez said members of the El Monte City Council have been visiting businesses to show solidarity and offer support and that the city is preparing resources and initiatives to help.

“I’ve heard from hairdressers and local eateries that are closing early, largely due to a noticeable drop in foot traffic and customers, even for takeout orders,” said Duarte Mayor Cesar Garcia. “At the same time, other businesses that remain open regular hours are facing staffing challenges as employees choose to stay home out of safety concerns.”

Garcia added that the Sunday church service he attends in South El Monte had only about half its usual attendance yesterday, Father’s Day. Many people opted to watch the services online, similar to how things were during the peak of the COVID pandemic, he said.

“Volunteers were also on alert, monitoring the parking lot and keeping gates closed as a precaution,” Garcia added.

Protests that erupted in response to ICE raids, from Saturday’s “No Kings” rallies to impromptu ones held at local hotels where agents were reported to be staying has also had a sobering effect on business.

The popular swap meet held at California High School in Whittier has been closed for two weekends. News that the Whittier Swap Meet was called off on June 8 because of fears of ICE enforcement is false, organizer Moses Escalona said on June 9. But the event was canceled again on Sunday.

The Whittier Area Chamber of Commerce canceled its Camp Chamber Business Expo set for today, June 17, at the Doubletree Hotel in that city. Citing “unforeseen circumstances and out of an abundance of caution,” the event is rescheduled for July 23.

The Doubletree hotel was targeted by protesters on June 11, with several vehicles vandalized. One white van mistaken for a federal vehicle was confirmed to belong to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department and was used for a routine inmate transport earlier that day, according to Shannon DeLong, assistant city manager. Deputies from Santa Clara County were staying at the DoubleTree Hotel overnight.

Protesters later broke lobby windows and entered the hotel. The crowd was dispersed by law enforcement led by the Whittier Police Department around 2 a.m., with no injuries reported and no arrests made.

Mayor Joe Vinatieri said ironically, the Doubletree in Whittier is owned by an immigrant who has brought jobs to the city as well as contributed to many causes there.

“I am angered and disappointed to think that some Whittier residents would show so little respect for the businesses and the people who make our city a very desirable place to live, and that they would do so with little or no accurate information,” Vinatieri wrote online, advising people to vet information before sharing it online.

Pablo Alvarado, co-executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network in Pasadena, said ICE raids are not only attacking families, but also the immigrant economy. He called on anyone with “the privilege and protection of citizenship” to go to downtown Los Angeles or any city or town where immigrants have been targeted and shop, eat out, buy things or use services from immigrant communities.

“Defy MAGA with your money,” he added, saying last week that downtown L.A. is emptier now than in the worst days of the pandemic.

Luz Gallegos, executive director of the Perris-based TODEC Legal Center, which stands for “Training Occupational Development Educating Communities,” said undocumented immigrants are scared. And not just because of the recent Los Angeles-area raids.

On Friday, news broke that immigrants’ Medicaid information — known as MediCal in California — had been given to federal immigration authorities.

“Our call center was non-stop calls on Friday and over the weekend asking what they need to do,” Gallegos said. “’If I signed up for MediCal, they know where we live, they know where we work.’”

After the election, she said, many of the immigrant workers her organization was working with stayed home, fearing immediate immigration raids. But that offers less security now than it used to.

“The community was staying home, ‘but now they know our addresses,’” Gallegos said.

People who have called TODEC were talking about changing their addresses and phone numbers in an attempt to avoid immigration authorities, along with not going into work for as long as possible.

“Right now, the community is taking precautions,” Gallegos said.

And that may include leaving the country entirely.

“We had a session over the weekend and community members were saying the cost of living in California is super-expensive. How are they going to be able to pay first and last month’s rent to afford a new place?” Gallegos said.

Many of those TODEC works with are immigrant farm workers. If they leave, she said, it’s going to affect all Americans.

“Those that are harvesting our crops, doing the worst jobs, are leaving or being deported. We’re already seeing the cost of goods going up. Who’s going to do those jobs?” Gallegos said. “What are we going to do if we don’t have a strong workforce? Nobody wants to do those jobs, other than the immigrants.”

Steve Carmona, Pico Rivera city manager, said while the city is not aware of confirmed ICE activity occurring within city limits, “we recognize that the regional climate and reports of enforcement actions in surrounding areas are creating real concern in our community — particularly among small businesses, workers and customers.”

Carmona said the officials at the historic Pico Rivera Sports Arena canceled a scheduled show out of concern for customer turnout and safety perceptions. The arena has long been a center for charrerías and other Mexican equestrian traditions as well as popular concerts.

An official with the sports arena who requested anonymity confirmed a rodeo dance scheduled for Sunday, June 15, was canceled because of concerns many of its attendees may be undocumented, but that a summer concert geared to younger guests (who will presumably be mostly permanent residents or American citizens) and set for June 20 will go on as planned.

“While we cannot confirm whether other businesses have formally closed or reduced hours for similar reasons, we understand that the anxiety in the air is affecting both workforce participation and customer behavior,” Carmona said.

Many business owners, joining nonprofits and human rights agencies, are pushing back on the icy effect of immigration operations and standing up for immigrant communities.

In Long Beach, local Mexican restaurant El Barrio Cantina created a special $13 menu of taquitos and a cocktail, with all proceeds going to ÓRALE, a Long Beach-based, immigrant-led movement fighting to protect and uplift immigrant communities. The menu was offered through the weekend.

The owner of Casita Bookstore in Long Beach postponed a weekend storytime featuring author Gabriela Orozco Belt and illustrator Mirelle Ortega.

“Out of care for our community and in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors who are deeply impacted by recent events, we’re choosing safety and support over business as usual,” they said.

Instead, the bookstore will donate proceeds from each purchase of the books to CHIRLA, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, in Los Angeles.

Back in El Monte, Tamashiro, whose employees are mostly local high school and college students, said he will do everything he can to keep them working, mindful they may now be their families’ only source of income.

“We’re not just here to serve food. We’re here to stand with our community,” he said. “This past weekend, local groups like Matilija Collective and Almas Closet collected donations to help neighbors in need. These efforts, from community organizations, families, and individuals, are reminders that even in times of fear, we still choose to show up for each other.”