LA County Orders Economic Impact Study After ICE Raids, Protests

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has unanimously approved a motion to study the economic impact of intensified U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids across the county, which have sparked daily protests and led to hundreds of detentions. The raids, targeting immigrant workers at workplaces such as parking lots, grocery stores, and Home Depot, have disrupted a local economy still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and recent wildfires, with immigrant labor comprising a significant portion of industries like construction. Supervisors Hilda Solis and Janice Hahn emphasized the raids' 'collateral damage,' including reduced business activity in areas like the Fashion District and Little Tokyo, and the broader fear affecting immigrant families who now avoid routine activities. In response to the unrest, President Donald Trump deployed the California National Guard and U.S. Marines to Los Angeles, and Mayor Karen Bass imposed a curfew to quell protests, which sometimes turned violent. The Department of Economic Opportunity will report back within 15 days with data on workforce losses, affected industries, and economic fallout, also exploring supportive services for impacted small businesses. ICE officials defended their actions as necessary to arrest dangerous criminals, but local leaders criticize the federal enforcement as a 'man-made disaster' harming communities and the economy.