The mayor of Minneapolis claims that the ongoing tensions between his political alliance and ICE are harming the city’s distinctive sanctuary city economy.
“I’m here at my desk looking at some really concerning figures regarding the impact of this operation. [ICE’s] Metro surge is affecting our community,” Mayor Jacob Frey noted recently.
Our local businesses are significantly affected. In total, small businesses are losing between $10 million and $20 million each week. The establishments along the Cultural Corridor are suffering at least a 50 percent drop in revenue, and businesses owned by Latino and Somali individuals have been hit particularly hard. Hotels have experienced about $4.4 million in cancellations. For those that claim to care about our economy, there’s actually a straightforward path to recovery: it’s all about discontinuing Operation Metro Surge and getting ICE out of our neighborhoods.
Let’s revive our economy. Let’s back these businesses. We need to return to the positive growth we’ve been seeing, and we need to remove ICE.
Mr. Frey’s concerns seem reasonable. The Democratic Party has established an economy in the city based on a system where the government brings in substantial numbers of foreign workers and renters for extended periods. This unusual foundation diverges from the typical market rules that apply to American workers and employers.
The “sanctuary city economy” in Minneapolis has led to various civic issues, including low productivity conflicts arising from having residents and workers with uncertain legal statuses.
The city is also dealing with two conflicting jurisdictions, corrupt business practices, politically influenced institutions, high taxes, patronage politics, and a growing divide between rich and poor. There are issues related to private regulation, vigilante crime, and low income populations.
The activities of ICE are particularly felt in the city’s lower-wage sectors, like restaurants, which rely on affordable labor to provide meals to locals, especially during winter.
“The food scene in the Twin Cities was built by immigrants—owners, cooks, investors, and dishwashers, regardless of their legal status,” an MSPMag article highlighted.
One restaurant owner shared that he carries a “safety blanket” in his car in case a staff member is pulled over. Most restaurants are now facing serious staffing shortages because many employees—both documented and undocumented—have been taken away. A local Latino business owner mentioned he hasn’t seen many familiar faces in months. Recently, a friend of mine was picked up by ICE right after leaving for takeout. One manager I spoke to lost six staff members to ICE raids.
“Some restaurants I’ve talked to report a drop in business by 20% to 70% since ICE ramped up operations,” another source noted.
No restaurant in Minnesota has faced the same level of impact from ICE as those owned by immigrants. Establishments along cultural hotspots like Lake Street are particularly scrutinized. Take Mercado Central, for example. Established in 1997, it has endured economic downturns, upheaval among vendors, and even civil unrest. Now, it’s on the verge of shutting down, as many small vendors face significant income loss and may struggle to pay rent.
Minneapolis is not alone in facing these challenges, as other major cities—in places like Los Angeles, New York City, Portland, Boston, and Seattle—also have economies shaped by similar conditions involving low-wage immigrant labor.
Across the country, federal immigration actions have contributed to expanding enclaves of immigrants in Texas and California, impacting various sectors, often leaving behind a notable gap in income among communities. For instance, a large Sikh community thrives in California, while there’s a significant population of Eastern Europeans in the Midwest that are critical to the transportation industry. Similarly, undocumented immigrants from Mexico fill many manual labor roles, while some undocumented individuals from China find work in illicit markets.
The many unique civic shortcomings tied to sanctuary city economies are becoming evident as American voters chose President Donald Trump in 2024 to confront the issues related to mass immigration.
The situation has also caused confusion among foreign companies in other cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., President Trump is advocating for a shift toward a more efficient, high-productivity economy.
“We’re going to need robots to sustain our economy since we lack sufficient manpower,” he remarked during a recent discussion.
Without the right number of workers, processes need to be automated… It’s going to be substantial. If that happens, someone will need to create robots. Overall, we aim to streamline operations.
“We need efficiency,” President Trump emphasized.
