New York —
In Chicago’s Little Village, the Trump administration’s sweeping deportation push has paralyzed the economy.
Business owners in Little Village, which is 81% Hispanic, said customers are too frightened to walk the streets of Chicago’s second busiest commercial corridor. Sales have plunged, employees are staying home, and stores have temporarily closed since the administration’s deportation push in Chicago began on September 8. More than 1,000 people have been arrested in the Department of Homeland Security’s “Operation Midway Blitz.”
The economic fallout from deportations is typically focused on the impact to industries with large unauthorized immigrant workforces, such as construction and agriculture. But undocumented immigrants aren’t just people who simply go to work each day. They’re consumers, too. They spent roughly $300 billion in 2023, buying goods and services that power the economy.
“It’s killing business,” said Mike Moreno, the owner of Moreno’s liquor store and speakeasy bar.
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