Businesses, community feel pinch of ICE crackdown

Natalie Cabrera, the owner of Henry’s Delicatessen in Mount Kisco that serves many in the village’s Hispanic community, has seen a marked slowdown of business this year. (Martin Wilbur photo)

This is the second part of a two-part series on some of the challenges facing the local immigrant community.

By DANIELA RYNOTT and MARTIN WILBUR

One post. One rumor. That’s all it takes.

A Facebook video circulates. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is spotted — or maybe not. True or false, it doesn’t matter. Customers vanish. Streets go quiet. Doors stay shut.

In communities like Mount Kisco and Bedford, where Latin-owned businesses are part of the community’s fabric, the impact is immediate. 

“There are days when we don’t see a single customer,” said Natalie Cabrera, whose family has owned Henry’s Delicatessen on Lexington Avenue in Mount Kisco for 29 years. “All because someone posted on Facebook that ICE was nearby.”

Cabrera’s father, who immigrated from Uruguay in the 1970s, bought the deli from its original owner nearly three decades ago. Since then, it’s become a staple — a place where generations have shopped, talked and connected. But lately, fear lingers.

“Sometimes the videos are true. Sometimes it’s just rumors,” Cabrera explained. “Either way, people get scared. They stay home.”

She’s noticed it not only in her store, but across industries that depend on immigrant labor, including landscaping, construction and food service. Some of the workers she knows are still wearing ankle monitors and are afraid to attend their court hearings. 

“We hear stories about people being taken right out of the courtroom while their lawyers just stand there,” Cabrera said.

Taking a Toll

The strain isn’t just emotional. For merchants like Cabrera, the impact is financial. Due to other variables such as inflation and the anticipated impact of tariffs, Cabrera now spends hundreds more on supplies, all while customer foot traffic is down. 

While it is difficult to gauge how much of a business drop-off can be attributed to fears of immigration enforcement, Bedford Councilman Andrés Castillo said it is likely playing a role in those businesses that depend on a predominantly Hispanic clientele. He called the atmosphere in portions of the community “a climate of fear,” particularly when there are reports that ICE is in the area.

Regardless of whether those warnings are valid or not, they have a chilling effect, Castillo said, sometimes forcing households to go without essential services they rely on from some of the nonprofit agencies in the community as well.

“We want them to be informed about what’s going on, but at the same time not at the expense of getting the services they need and doing their day-to-day activities. So it’s a tough balancing act,” Castillo said. 

“Some people say better safe than sorry. I’d rather be a little more paranoid than too trusting of what’s going on,” Castillo added. “But that, I would say, is the climate of fear and also, I’d say, the fear of absence of immigrants in our community when there’s word of ICE being around.”

Castillo, who leads Bedford Hispanos Unidos, a local organization that seeks to empower and unify Hispanic families, has helped organize the second annual Northern Westchester Hispanic Business Summit scheduled for Sept. 17 in Bedford Hills along with area chambers of commerce and the Westchester Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

While there have been anecdotal accounts of a decline in business among Hispanic merchants, the Westchester Hispanic Chamber of Commerce did not have any data available last month, said Sonia Montano, the organization’s president. That is part of what summit organizers would like to learn from those who attend, although it may depend on the types of businesses, she said.

“I would say something, that is, different kinds of industries may have a different impact, reaction,” Montano said.

What has been frustrating for Castillo, however, is that while there are many allies in the community, some holding visible protests against what they would consider the Trump administration’s policies toward immigrants, there has been a lack of participation from the immigrant community. It’s understandable but disappointing, he said.

“That’s a focal point for what’s going on here,” Castillo said. “Oftentimes, it’s other folks speaking on behalf of immigrants, but immigrants need to be part of the conversation. So that’s something we’re trying to figure out.”

Fear is prevalent

It has been no secret that many undocumented immigrants have lived in the area for years. They are parents with U.S.-born children. 

“They’re not afraid for themselves,” Cabrera said. “They’re afraid that if they get taken, their kids will be left behind.”

Even those with legal status are wary. Some now carry photocopies of their passports or resident cards. Cabrera has helped customers copy and laminate documents herself.

“There’s profiling,” she said bluntly. “That fear of being targeted for speaking Spanish or just looking a certain way. It’s real.” 

Cabrera said local organizations such as Neighbors Link help by providing information and flyers, but fear still runs deep.

Also, the Village of Mount Kisco has recently added an “Immigration Help” tab to its municipal website, listing an assortment of agencies and organizations that could be helpful to the immigrant population.

Karin Anderson Ponzer, director of the Neighbors Link Community Law Practice, said what has been one of the most significant changes this year for those seeking to lawfully obtain legal status is that there is no longer the expectation that following the government’s rules will allow people to see their cases reach a determination at the end.

“The story is always the same, we’re going after people who are criminals, and the reality is that the majority of folks have no criminal history, and the majority of folks with a criminal history have minor, minor convictions,” Ponzer said.

Also, the fees for going through that process, from work permit applications to Temporary Protected Status, have been raised significantly or new ones have been imposed, making it more challenging than ever before for new arrivals, she said.

In Cabrera’s case, her father arrived in New York with $175 in his pocket, started as a janitor, and over many years became a successful small business owner. 

“He did everything,” Cabrera said. “He drove a tugboat, worked as a garbage man, got held up at gunpoint running a gas station. He built a life.”

That same dream, she said, feels farther and farther away for many of today’s immigrants.

“I don’t keep tabs,” Cabrera said, “but we know who’s nervous — and right now, it’s just about everyone.”

Daniela Rynott was an intern reporter this summer for The Recorder.

Martin Wilbur has more than 30 years’ experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including having previously served as editor-in-chief of The Examiner.