Quick Take
On Monday, dozens of businesses throughout Santa Cruz County were closed to take part in the nationwide "A Day Without Immigrants" protest. The campaign encouraged supporters to stay home from work and school, and for businesses to close. Participation appeared widespread in South County, and included restaurants, laundromats, bakeries, retail shops, food trucks and grocery stores.
Dozens of businesses in Santa Cruz County closed their doors Monday as part of a nationwide protest to highlight the importance of immigrants to the U.S. economy.
The “A Day Without Immigrants” movement aimed to highlight immigrants’ role in the workforce and to condemn anti-immigration and mass deportation policies from President Donald Trump. Supporters were encouraged to stay home from work and school or to close their businesses.
Around the nation, thousands of businesses and organizations closed, students walked out of schools and protesters took to the streets from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Detroit, from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., to show their support of immigrants and the objection to the Trump administration’s new policies, according to national news services.
In Santa Cruz County, some businesses – such as Watsonville Public House and Slice Project in Watsonville, and Copal Restaurant and Lúpulo Craft Beer House in Santa Cruz – publicly shared their decision on social media. Other businesses, like The Neighbor’s Pub and Samba Rock Acai Café in Santa Cruz shortened their hours or closed early to show solidarity. Many more simply hung up their “Sorry, we’re closed” signs, sometimes with a handwritten note in English or Spanish.
Participation appeared widespread in South County – an area that, according to recent census data, is around 75% Hispanic – and included restaurants, laundromats, retail shops, bakeries and food trucks. Notably, several area grocery stores and markets were closed for the day, including La Condesa Supermarket, Vallarta Supermarket, D’La Comena Market & Catering, and La Princesa Market.
“Watsonville is closed,” said Robby Olson, owner of Watsonville Public House, a craft brewery in downtown Watsonville. Information about the protest spread through social media and community newsletters in the days leading up to the protest, and he said he was amazed at the number of businesses that closed in solidarity.
Olson made the decision to close alongside My Mom’s Mole, a food truck that operates independently on the brewery’s property. Despite the loss of income from their Monday regulars, Olson felt it was important to stand with the community where he lives and works.
“While everyone in the hospitality business right now are operating on a very close margin, this seemed like an important opportunity to make a clear statement on who we are,” said Olson. “Our mission is to be a place that is community-oriented, not just a place for people to come have a beer.”
As a child of immigrants and a Watsonville restaurant owner, Slice Project co-owner Brando Sencion made the decision to close his downtown Watsonville pizza parlor for the day in order to show support for the immigrant community and highlight its close ties to the restaurant industry.
“From a restaurant approach, immigrants are the backbone of the industry, and have been for years. Think of any kitchen, and there’s an immigrant working in it or someone of Latino or Mexican descent,” he said.
Sencion said he hopes the protest will show how vital immigrants are to the state and local communities, and shine a light on their economic and cultural impact. “I hope that Watsonville and some of Santa Cruz County feel empty and lonely, because that just shows which businesses play a vital role in your life,” Sencion said Monday. “And, I hope it opens a dialogue to a better route than enforcing these cruel scare tactics on communities.”
It wasn’t a decision he took lightly. Apart from the lost income, after he made the announcement on Slice Project’s Facebook and Instagram pages on Sunday evening, he received some unsupportive and racist comments and messages.
“It’s not easy to read that stuff, on top of the fact that we’re closing our doors and losing money,” said Sencion. “It’s not an easy choice, but I think it’s an important one.”
Guillermo Alvarez, owner of The Real Taco, was encouraged to close his two Santa Cruz-based food trucks by his employees. “They asked me to be closed today to support the protest and community,” he said Monday. “Hopefully our voices will be heard from other communities, and those communities can support us through these hard times.”
Alvarez immigrated from Guanajuato, Mexico, in 2005. He worked at Staff of Life Markets for more than 15 years, starting as a produce clerk before becoming the produce buyer in 2014. In 2021, he left Staff of Life to start The Real Taco.
On Mondays, one of his food trucks is typically parked on the corner of Mission Street and Laurel Street in Santa Cruz, offering a menu of Mexican favorites, like quesabirria tacos, Baja fish tacos and burritos from noon to 8 p.m.
Alvarez said the statement he and other businesses are making is greater than any financial loss he might personally face. “No matter how much I lost today, I don’t care about money,” he said, and added in Spanish, “Que nos escuchen en nos ayudan par la future,” which means, “Let them listen to us and help us for the future.”
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