Restaurants and other businesses around the United States shut their doors on Thursday while thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of cities across the country in a walkout aimed at protesting US President Donald Trump's immigration policies. Activists called on immigrants to stay home from work, avoid shopping and skip classes in "A Day Without Immigrants." It was an effort to highlight the vital role they play in American society.
About 13 percent of the US population, more than 40 million people, are foreign born, according to census data.
The protest was prompted by Trump's vows to crack down on illegal immigration and his executive order, which was put on hold by federal courts, that temporarily banned travel to the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries. Immigrant rights' groups expressed alarm after federal raids last week in which more than 680 undocumented people were arrested.
In the shadow of One World Trade Center in New York, a sign on a shuttered sushi restaurant explained its closure. "We have made the decision to close on 2/16 in solidarity with the #ADayWithoutImmigrants protests. We stand 100% behind our employees. . . When employees who haven't missed a day of work in nearly 25 years come to you and ask for a day off to march against injustice, the answer is easy." "Who would want to be working in the kitchen doing the dishes or with the heat? I mean these are terrible jobs that are really underpaid. Do you see an American who would do it? Even someone who has no education?" said a neighborhood resident.
In Chicago, hundreds rallied at Union Park before marching through the city's west side.
"We're here, and we're going nowhere. We're here and we want a shot at making America great again! Let us be part of this. We contribute, we're important and we deserve for you to acknowledge it. We got no papers, but we got dignity," said Vicente Serrano, host of a Facebook live show "Sin Censura", or uncensored.
Trump will replace the suspended executive order in the near future, according to a court filing by the US Department of Justice.
The nature of Thursday's protests made it difficult to ascertain how many immigrants were participating or to measure the economic impact. Lists compiled from local news outlets and social media each tallied dozens of closed restaurants in several cities. In Washington, DC, more than 50 restaurants were closed, including high-end eateries run by the celebrity chef Jose Andres, who is embroiled in a legal dispute with Trump after backing out of a deal to open a restaurant in the president's new Washington hotel.
At the Pentagon, about half a dozen food outlets were forced to close after staff members joined the protest, including a Starbucks, a Taco Bell and a Burger King, according to a Defense Department spokesman.
Sympathy marches and rallies were also held in cities including Raleigh, North Carolina and Austin, Texas. Thousands joined demonstrations in Chicago and Detroit.
Fast-food workers in cities including Kansas City took part in support rallies, according to the "Fight for $15" campaign backed by the Service Employees International Union, which advocates for a higher minimum wage. The group said it was not officially involved in organizing the action.
The protests were the latest in a series of actions by women's groups, immigrant groups and other activists since Trump took office.
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