A UCLA and Inclusive Action report finds that ICE operations in June 2025 caused a sharp downturn for Latino-owned businesses in targeted Los Angeles County neighborhoods and produced long-term harm. Over two weeks across nine sites there were about 46,000 fewer customer visits, leading to roughly $3.16 million in estimated losses for formal businesses. Surveys show large sales drops, temporary closures and ongoing financial and health strains a year later.
ICE Raids in Los Angeles Spark Immediate and Lasting Economic Shock for Latino Businesses
California National Guard troops and Homeland Security Police assemble in June 2025 at the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles and protests against ICE and immigration raids continued. A new study released Wednesday says businesses suffered "an immediate economic shock" from the raid. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI
A new report finds that Latino-owned businesses in Los Angeles County neighborhoods targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in June 2025 suffered both an immediate economic shock and persistent, long-term harms.
Researchers from UCLA's Latino Policy and Politics Institute and the nonprofit Inclusive Action for the City combined focus groups, entrepreneur surveys and foot-traffic data to assess impacts across nine sites. Businesses closest to the raid locations experienced the steepest declines: over a two-week window those sites recorded about 46,000 fewer customer visits, resulting in an estimated $3.16 million in cumulative losses for formal businesses.
Widespread Operational and Financial Damage
The study emphasizes that the financial estimates cover only "formal" enterprises and exclude many common Latino small-business models such as street vendors, home-based businesses and food trucks. Survey findings were stark:
- 59% of owners reported sales fell by more than 50%.
- 68% temporarily closed at some point after the raids.
- 51% said staff missed work out of fear.
Lasting Strain On Owners And Communities
About a year after the enforcement surge, roughly 95% of Latino entrepreneurs reported ongoing financial stress. Many are left with depleted savings, mounting debt and abandoned plans for growth and investment. More than three-quarters of respondents reported negative effects on their wellbeing, including insomnia, panic attacks and gastrointestinal problems.
"A year later, the crisis is not over. Many of these businesses remain in debt, barely breaking even and struggling to stay open. These consequences extend far beyond commercial corridors. As immigration enforcement continues, it endangers the health, wellbeing and safety of entire communities," the report says.
The full report, titled "The Cost of Fear: The Impacts of Immigration Enforcement on Small Businesses and Latino Entrepreneurs in LA County," was produced by UCLA's Latino Policy and Politics Institute in partnership with Inclusive Action for the City. The authors recommend policy responses and community supports to mitigate both the economic and public-health effects of enforcement-driven fear.
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