Los Angeles’ small business scene, particularly among its Hispanic community, is under siege—not from a virus this time, but from intensified immigration raids. Local entrepreneurs say the crackdown is delivering economic pain that feels even worse than the COVID-19 pandemic.
Juan Ibarra, a U.S.-born citizen of Mexican descent, runs a fruit and vegetable outlet in LA’s main produce market. Normally bustling with hundreds of buyers—taco truck owners, street vendors, and restaurant workers—the market has gone quiet. Since Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began sweeping the area over a week ago, including a raid at a nearby textile factory, his customers have vanished.
“It’s like a ghost town,” Ibarra said. “It’s almost COVID-like. People are scared. We can only survive like this for a couple of months, max.”
Ibarra’s daily income has plummeted from around $2,000 to barely $300. For the first time, he’s dumping unsold fruit and paying $70 per pallet just to have it hauled away.
Across Los Angeles, stories like Ibarra’s are becoming common. Business owners say the raids have struck fear into the city’s immigrant workforce, many of whom are staying home or avoiding public spaces. A third of California’s labor force and 40% of its entrepreneurs are immigrants, according to the American Immigration Council, highlighting how vital they are to the state’s economy.
The Trump administration initially claimed the focus was on deporting immigrants with criminal records. But recently, ICE shifted tactics, targeting workplaces such as restaurants, farms, and hotels. Although a pause was later ordered for specific sectors, the damage was already underway.
The raids have sparked widespread protests in Los Angeles. In response, President Trump sent in National Guard troops and U.S. Marines, despite objections from California Governor Gavin Newsom. The White House blamed “Democrat riots” for the economic disruption, not the immigration raids.
Pedro Jimenez, a 62-year-old restaurant owner who gained citizenship in 1987 under President Reagan’s amnesty law, said his sales dropped by $7,000 a week in just two weeks. “I had to close early. My place was empty. It’s really hurting everyone’s business. It’s worse than COVID,” he said.
Andrew Selee of the Migration Policy Institute warned that broad enforcement sweeps, rather than targeted operations, have serious economic consequences. “They are targeting hard-working immigrants who are deeply embedded in American society,” he said.
For many, the situation is mentally draining. Luis, a 45-year-old undocumented hot dog vendor from Guatemala, described narrowly escaping an ICE raid at a flea market. “It’s exhausting,” he said. “I have to work to survive, but I stay inside as much as I can.”
As fear spreads and economic pain deepens, LA’s small business community faces an uncertain future. The crackdown might be political—but its consequences are deeply personal.
