In the days since immigration raids descended on Los Angeles and surrounding cities, an eerie emptiness surrounds once-bustling spots, from laundromats to clinics, Home Depots and corner markets.

The people who once frequented them are gone, chased away by fear of federal agents from U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement, and whispered allegations that “la migra” no longer honors the basic legal protections assured of everyone in the country.

Restaurants became the first ghost towns, as customers and workers alike avoided them in the wake of ICE enforcement raids in public spaces, including once-sacrosanct, sensitive places such as churches, hospitals and schools.

Owner Jaime Torres of the Salvadoran eatery Tres Amigos in East Hollywood said he has had to close his restaurant several hours earlier because of the many day laborers and fellow restaurateurs he usually serves are staying home.

“They’re my friends and my customers, it’s really shocking to see the place this empty,” Torres said, adding other restaurateurs have refrained from sending their employees to produce markets downtown out of fear they could put them in danger’s way.

On Tuesday, fueled by ongoing federal immigrant enforcement, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion to study the raids’ economic impact on small businesses.

The motion cites data showing that nearly one in every five Angelenos are either undocumented or live with someone who is, and about one-third of the county’s population of 10 million people are immigrants. They collectively contribute $115 billion through taxes and spending power.

Amid the psychological toll of federal agents descending on local parking lots, local businesses are starting to feel the impact, in areas where immigrants are both workers and consumers.

“Our immigrant communities – our neighbors, workers and small business owners are living in fear. ICE raids and immigration sweeps are targeting people who are the very backbone of our economy,” Patricia Alarcon, executive director of the El Monte Business Alliance, told the Board on Tuesday, even as word spread of a reported raid in a Pico Rivera parking lot.

‘Streets are emptier’

Pablo Alvarado, 58, co-executive director of the National Day Laborers Organizing Network in Pasadena, said every restaurant he’d been to last week reported a drop in business.

“ICE raids are not just attacking and devastating families,” he said. “They are also attacking the immigrant economy. The Fashion District and other parts of downtown Los Angeles are deserted. The streets are emptier now than in the worst days of the pandemic.”

Alvarado pleaded with anyone not in danger of deportation to keep supporting immigrant businesses and to protest peacefully.

“This is the insanity that mass deportation brings: the very workers who have been busy rebuilding L.A. after the January fires can’t go outside to work, eat, shop and live,” he said.

The situation has force many local residents – workers and costumers – to stay inside their homes, fearful of being detained, and reliant on others to bring them food and essential services.

‘We are not going away’

In recent days, President Donald Trump has acknowledged an awareness that his immigration crackdown blanketing the nation is hitting industries such as restaurants, farming and hospitality hard.

Amid massive protests over his policies, his administration has directed immigration officers to pause arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels, after Trump expressed alarm about the impact aggressive enforcement is having on those industries, the Associated Press reported, citing a U.S. official familiar with the matter who spoke only on condition of anonymity.

But at the same time, he appears to have doubled down on Democratic-run cities, such as in and around L.A, where dozens of smaller cities are home to many immigrant families and businesses that rely on them.

Trump in a social media posting on Sunday called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials “to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History.”

He added that to reach the goal officials ”must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America’s largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside.”

His declaration comes after weeks of increased enforcement, and after Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff and main architect of Trump’s immigration policies, said ICE officers would target at least 3,000 arrests a day, up from about 650 a day during the first five months of Trump’s second term.

That targeting comes after Trump’s deployment of 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to L.A., which came following protests over his administration’s stepped-up enforcement of immigration laws.

Dozens of workers have been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in a series of raids that include in LA’s fashion district and at Home Depot parking lots in Southern California.

Federal immigration authorities have been ramping up arrests across the country, with a goal of fulfilling Trump’s 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 earlier this 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.”

Echoing Lyons at a news conference on Thursday, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the enforcement operations were targeting violent criminals. During her news conference, photos of criminals detained during the Southland operations were shown on video screens.

“We are not going away. We are staying here to liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this governor (Gavin Newsom) and that this mayor (Karen Bass) placed on this country and what they have tried to insert into this city,” Noem said, pointing to the state and city’s so-called “sanctuary” policies, which prohibit the use of state and local resources and personnel for federal immigration enforcement.

Not just ‘criminals’

Jose Madera, 36, director of the Pasadena Community Job Center, said every American should think of the heartbreak of asking, “Am I next? Is someone I know going to be next?”

“At the beginning they were saying, ‘We’re only getting criminals,’ but we know that was a lie,” he said. “They’re getting anyone they see is a person of color, without any question.”

Madera said “Know Your Rights” trainings and distribution of red cards outlining everyone’s rights under the Constitution, regardless of immigration status, has hampered ICE’s efforts.

“So how they responded is breaking windows, breaking down doors, going to churches, our schools, going to courthouses, just grabbing them, without questioning them,” Madera said. “That’s the reality we’re living now. That’s why it’s important to show up and give hope to our community. We’re here, we’re not alone, and we’re fighting together.”

Communities in upheaval

The sidewalk of Whittier Boulevard that is usually bustling with foot traffic, had barely anyone days after protests erupted in Los Angeles in response to the raids. But hundreds packed two protests in the city on June 9 and 10. More than 400 filled the city’s community theater at a City Council meeting on June 10 to bring their outrage to city leaders.

Along that same boulevard in Boyle Heights last week, a man was arrested after ICE agents rammed into his car and pinned it between two unmarked cars.

Witnesses said inside the car was a dad, mom, and two kids, aged 6 years old and 6 months old, all of whom are U.S. citizens. ICE agents threw tear gas into the car, detained the man and drove off, said Enrique Velasquez, a member of the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rapid Response Network.

Homeland security officials could not be reached for comment. But according to reports, officials have said the incident was “a targeted arrest of a violent rioter who punched a CBP officer.”

That scene took place in front of the Boyle Heights bar where Anthony Medina works. Although it was lunchtime, there was only one group in the restaurant, which he said was not normal.

“Typically, around this time, we do have quite a few customers coming in for lunch, coming in to eat,” Medina said. “But again, due to everything going on, people are afraid to come out, and we don’t blame them.”

Medina said businesses started to slow on Saturday, June 7, the night the National Guard was deployed into L.A. in response to the first two nights of the ensuing L.A. protests. Most Saturday nights, Medina said the bar would serve 50 to 60 customers, but that night, only half of the usual customers were at the bar.

“It’s a big hit; it does affect us financially, but we definitely stand in solidarity with everyone, and we understand their reason for not [coming],” Medina said.

Shops around the block were closed during the afternoon of a weekday. Car washes, restaurants, coffee shops, pharmacies, medical offices, convenience stores and laundromats, all had gates in front of their locked doors, some chaining the gates together with a lock. When East LA resident and Boyle Heights frequenter Pablo Flores was asked if shops are usually closed in the afternoon, he responded: “Of course not.”

“It’s always hustling. It’s always bustling. We got people working, walking, selling, and business as usual. This is a vibrant neighborhood,” Flores said. “Everybody who comes into L.A., who lives in L.A., who comes from other places, loves the east side because of our food, our culture, for flavor, for cuisine, and to see it so empty, and people just walking with fear, that’s not normal.”

Flores said the people in the predominantly Latino community are afraid.

“Everybody’s talking about whether these protests or responses are violent and nobody’s talking about the feeling of having your mother taken from your house,” Flores said.  “How would you react? I feel like that human experience is something that we can all connect with. Nobody should condone that and that feeling spreads fear.”

The ripple effect of fear

From small businesses to large company chains, Los Angeles retailers have noticed a sudden drop in customers following the weekend’s ICE raids.

Alfonsín, who would not share his last name out of fear of his immigration status, has provided his handyman services from a Home Depot lot in Los Angeles for the last 24 years. He says never, not even during the pandemic, has he seen such little foot traffic at the home goods store. A native of Guatemala who is undocumented, he has his own fears about showing up.

“Everyone, myself included, is afraid but we haven’t stopped coming in. Our hope is to find work as we have day after day, but nobody is coming in,” Alfonsín said.

Even the home goods store security guard holding a leashed K9 wasn’t there the day before, he added.

Esmeralda, who runs a nearby food truck for eight years, watched each passing car nervously as her thermoses of stewed chicken and grilled beef went untouched due to the slower customer base.

“It’s horrible, there are no customers,” she said. “I didn’t come yesterday. The psychological toll is too much.”

Also from Guatemala, she has some hope for her 16-year-old son, who is a citizen enrolled in the Sheriff Academy. As a single mom, Esmeralda said she fears for his wellbeing should she be deported.

Some miles away in Los Feliz, independent body shop dealers are worried the continued slowdown of customers could force them to make significant business changes.

Daniel Olivares, store manager at Los Feliz Auto Parts and Services, has felt both the anti-immigrant sentiment and business lags put him between a rock and a hard place.

“We’re worried what could happen if business goes on like this, but we also feel like adding advertisements could be tone deaf,” Olivares said.

A first-generation Mexican American, Olivares said many of his Latino customers have stopped coming to the store in the last few days. The change, he said, felt significant and sudden.

The helpers: ‘only the people save the people’

Reports and images on TV and social media are terrorizing her neighbors of all ages, said Brenda Lopez-Ardon, 25, of Altadena. She said the largely migrant community in her apartment complex have stopped leading normal lives.

“For me, firsthand, I know they’re not going out to grocery stories. I’ve had to personally take their children to the grocery stores because they refuse to go out,” she said. “People are not going to work, or those who rely on public transportation to get to work choose not to go because they’re scared.”

Lopez-Ardon said they have come up with emergency plans, such as who will take care of the children if their parents are detained?

“I tell them it’s one thing to be scared, but another thing to be prepared,” she said. “Either way, they’re not doing laundry, whatever they have to do to get by, it’s not happening because of the fear.”

Lopez-Ardon said reports and videos of ICE agents arresting U.S. citizens have doubled the apprehension for herself and other mixed-status families.

“Not only do we have to fear our parents are going to get taken away, but us as well,” she said.

While the exodus is more widespread this week, Cissy Gomez of El Monte said the trepidation was there weeks before. Last month, she posted videos of the empty parking lot of the usually-packed El Monte Comprehensive Clinic on Ramona Boulevard. She had gone there to give out red cards, provided by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, that gives people a script to follow in case of an ICE encounter. Her next stop, the El Monte Transit Center, where she says many vendors go to commute to downtown Los Angeles, was equally sparse.

She left with many red cards in hand.

Local leaders respond

El Monte City Manager Alma Martinez said most of the vendors that applied for the city’s 27 sidewalk vending permits are usually seen along major thoroughfares, such as the 9900 block of Garvey Avenue. No more.

“Their absence this week is strongly felt, as they significantly contribute to our community’s vibrant atmosphere and local economy,” she said on June 11.

“These activities can impact cities like El Monte and the San Gabriel Valley by instilling fear in our communities and discouraging residents from accessing essential services, including health care and education,” Martinez said. “Local businesses may feel the strain as customers might stay away due to concerns. Additionally, heightened tensions can place police officers in challenging positions, affecting their ability to perform their duties effectively.”

On June 6, Cesar Garcia, mayor of Duarte, met with Carlos González Gutiérrez, consul general of Mexico in Los Angeles, along with 15 other leaders, on the invitation of Alejandra Ávila, mayor of Baldwin Park.

The agenda was meant to focus on how cities could bring consulate services to their communities, as Pico Rivera and Baldwin Park has done.

“It was disheartening to hear that out of 200 appointments at the consulate, only 90 people showed up,” Garcia said. “The fear is very real, individuals trying to do the right thing are scared that going through the proper channels might lead to family separation.”

Other attendees included mayors from Azusa, City of Industry, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Glendale, Glendora, Hawthorne, Montebello, Monrovia, Montclair, Monterey Park, Pico Rivera, Rosemead, San Gabriel, and Santa Clarita, as well as representatives from the offices of Rep. Gil Cisneros, Sen. Susan Rubio, D-West Covina, and Assemblymember Blanca Rubio, D-West Covina. All agreed to continue supporting the undocumented in their communities, Garcia said.

Garcia recounted his own grandmother’s struggle for a better life in the U.S., when she was pregnant, rolling down a hill fleeing immigration officers.

“California is the fourth-largest economy in the world, and that’s thanks in large part to the immigrants who power it — in our fields, our restaurants, our hospitals, and our schools,” he said.

Freelancer Amancai Biraben contributed to this story.