Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Hits Latino Businesses Across the U.S.
Posted on 10/06/26 at 15:30
- Immigration raids are hitting Latino businesses hard
- Customers are avoiding going out because of immigration fears
- Entrepreneurs are reducing hours, staff, and sales.
Laurinda Pestana says she and her Venezuelan food business survived the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, but not the immigration crackdown during Donald Trump’s second term, which led her to close her business in Georgia this year, as has happened to other Latino business owners across the country.
Other Hispanic entrepreneurs have been forced to take drastic measures, including reducing staff, while waiting for the «storm to pass,» in a climate where businesses are also confronting declining sales and growing economic uncertainty.
Last September, Pestana closed Venezuelan Store, a popular business selling empanadas, cachapas, and other traditional Venezuelan dishes that she had operated for seven years in Alpharetta, north of the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Surviving COVID-19, but Not Immigration Policies
The Venezuelan woman and her partner survived the «hurricane» of COVID-19, but she could not withstand the impact of the immigration crisis.
«This is happening due to the immigration situation that all Latinos are living through and the economic situation, which is no secret what’s happening,» Pestana lamented in an emotional video posted on social media announcing her decision to close the business.
The immigrant was referring to the constant operations carried out by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which have generated anxiety in the Latino community, as well as the high cost of living, which has pushed many people to go out less and cut spending.
«Customers are afraid to go out on the street to shop or take a walk, and that was precisely our store, the meeting point for Venezuelans in Georgia,» Pestana, a mother of three who is now unemployed and looking for a new opportunity to remain in the United States, told EFE.
Latino Businesses Closing Due to ICE: «This Is the Final Straw»
A small auto repair shop owner in Gainesville, a northeastern Georgia city with one of the state’s largest Hispanic populations, is also facing a difficult economic situation and has been forced to reduce his staff.
«Sales have fallen too much, especially among Hispanics, people are very afraid to go out, even to go to work. It’s very sad what’s happening,» Misael, a Mexican from Pachuca, told EFE. In addition to his main job, he sells handicrafts from his country with his wife, a U.S. citizen.
On Sundays, Hispanic shopping centers are no longer the same: family outings have become less frequent and shorter, and small business owners are feeling the effects.
«Business is very slow due to people being nervous about ICE and not going out, and sales are not matching up. We’re just surviving for now, but hopefully, better times will come,» said Nancy, a Mexican woman who sells fruits and vegetables at a popular market located an hour from Atlanta.
«This is the final straw. The market is very affected,» said a sales agent for an Atlanta company, using a popular Colombian expression meaning that a situation has reached its limit. «And with the elections, the situation could get worse,» added the Colombian, who asked not to be identified.
Latino Businesses Closing Due to ICE: «Historic Disruptions»
Although current nationwide figures on the overall impact are unavailable, in Los Angeles, California, one of the cities with the country’s largest Hispanic populations, a report by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) found that 59% of Latino business owners surveyed said their sales had fallen by more than 50% following the 2025 immigration raids.
The UCLA survey found that 68% temporarily closed or reduced their hours, while 51% said employees stopped showing up to work because of fear.
The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) has warned about the problem and urged political leaders to unite in «support for bipartisan immigration solutions.»
«U.S. businesses are facing historic disruptions caused by the public safety crisis resulting from federal immigration enforcement operations in communities across the country,» the USHCC said.
The chamber, which represents more than five million Hispanic-owned businesses, emphasized that disruptions to commercial activity, especially among small, locally owned and family-run businesses, threaten shared prosperity nationwide.
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