Local businesses impacted by looming ICE raids
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
Harvey business declines amid ICE fears
When Lesly Barahona immigrated from Honduras, she became an American citizen, had a baby boy, and built her business from scratch. From selling queso door to door to opening her own store, twenty-five years later, she was busy bringing tastes from home to the West Bank until recently. mounting fear over ICE raids is keeping many of her customers away, she says. “Our people are being scared, and my business getting slow, every day. I’m worried, because I put all my work in this place, and it’s hard and sad,” she said.
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HARVEY, La. — When Lesly Barahona immigrated from Honduras, she became an American citizen, had a baby boy, and built her business from scratch.
“When I came here, I came with Visa, and I said I love this country I want to stay here,” Owner of Mercadito La Purgita, Lesly Barahona said.
From selling queso door to door to opening her own store, twenty-five years later, Barahona was busy bringing tastes from home to the West Bank until recently.
According to Barahona, mounting fear over ICE raids is keeping many of her customers away.
“Our people are being scared, and my business getting slow. Every day it’s getting slow, every day. I’m worried, because I put all my work in this place, and it’s hard and sad,” Barahona said.
That fear stretches across the Crescent City Connection. An Uptown restaurant owner who asked to remain anonymous says the community is on edge right now.
“People who are honestly just working for a way to make money for their families, they deserve a chance,” The owner said.
About a week after President Donald Trump announced plans to stop ICE raids at farms and restaurants, the administration backtracked.
“They have very good workers,” President Donald Trump said. “They’ve worked for them for 20 years. They’re not citizens, but they’ve turned out to be, you know, great. We have to take care of our farmers. We have to take care of people who run leisure, and hotels. “
Wednesday, a Department of Homeland Security Spokesperson said “Worksite enforcement remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard public safety, national security, and economic stability.”
Despite the back and forth, Barahona says business never picked back up.
Closing means losing her life’s work just a year after she lost her son who helped her build her American dream.
“He was the only one helping me, now I’m doing it all by myself. It’s hard, it’s very hard,” Barahona said.