NEW YORK, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Dozens of restaurants, bars and other businesses in cities around the United States shut their doors on Thursday to show support for "A Day Without Immigrants," a walkout aimed at protesting President Donald Trump's policies.

Activists called on immigrants to stay home from work, avoid shopping and eating out and skip classes in an effort to highlight the vital role they play in U.S. society.

The protest was prompted by Trump's vows to crack down on illegal immigration and his executive order, which was put on hold by federal courts, that temporarily banned travel to the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries. Immigrant rights' groups expressed alarm after federal raids last week in which more than 680 people illegally in the country were arrested.

Many Restaurants, which often depend heavily on immigrant staff, closed for the day in cities including Washington, D.C., New York and Chicago.

Celebrity chefs such as Jose Andres in Washington and Rick Bayless in Chicago shuttered several restaurants in solidarity with protesters. A number of restaurateurs whose eateries were remaining open said they would donate part of the day's proceeds to pro-immigrant groups.

"People that never missed one day of work are telling you they don't want to work on Thursday," the Spanish-born Andres said in an interview at his restaurant Oyamel, which was closed on Thursday. "They want to say, 'Here we are,' by not showing up. The least I could do was to say, 'OK, we stand by you.'"

In New York, the owners of the popular Blue Ribbon restaurants said they would close several eateries despite the economic impact.

"It's really a show of support for our staff and as a team and a family as a whole," said co-owner Eric Bromberg.

The nature of the action made it difficult to ascertain how many immigrants were participating, although there were rallies scheduled later on Thursday in Chicago, Houston and Raleigh, North Carolina.

The protest is the latest in a series of collective actions since Trump took office from women's groups, immigrant groups and other activists. (Reporting by Gina Cherelus in New York, Timothy McLaughlin in Chicago and Liza Feria and Ian Simpson in Washington; Writing by Joseph Ax; Editing by Scott Malone and Bill Trott) </s> Restaurants and other businesses across the country are closing their doors Thursday in support of a "Day Without Immigrants," a national grassroots movement seeking to protest President Trump's immigration reforms and highlight the contributions of the immigrant community in the United States. News of the protest has spread quickly through word of mouth and social media posts under the hashtag #ADayWithoutImmigrants, which call for participants to skip work and school, close businesses and avoid making any purchases.

Start the conversation, or Read more at KABC-AM Los Angeles. </s> NEW YORK/WASHINGTON: Activists are calling on immigrants to protest President Donald Trump's tough stance on immigration by staying home from work or school on Thursday, not shopping and not eating out, in an effort to highlight the vital role they play in U.S. society.

"A Day Without Immigrants," which has been largely driven by word of mouth on social media, arose in response to Trump's vows to crack down on illegal immigration and his executive order, since suspended by a federal judge, to temporarily block entry to people from seven Muslim-majority countries.

The action follows a series of federal raids last week in which more than 680 people illegally in the country were arrested, raising alarm among immigrant rights' groups.

"Mr. President, without us and without our contribution this country is paralysed," read a poster promoting the protest that was widely shared online.

It is not clear how many people plan to participate in the walkout. With few plans for large-scale rallies, it may be hard to estimate how many ultimately do. But one group that expects to be affected, and is in some cases embracing the cause, is restaurant owners.

Celebrity chef Jose Andres, locked in a legal battle with Trump after backing out of a deal to open a restaurant at the businessman-turned-politician's new hotel in Washington, said he was supporting the strikers on his staff.

"People that never missed one day of work are telling you they don't want to work on Thursday," the Spanish-born Andres said in an interview at his restaurant Oyamel, which will be closed on Thursday. "They want to say: 'Here we are,' by not showing up. The least I could do was to say: 'OK, we stand by you.'"

Dozens of restaurants, which rely heavily on immigrant workers, and other businesses in cities such as Philadelphia, New York, Houston and Raleigh, North Carolina, have vowed to shut their doors on Thursday in solidarity with no-show workers.

In New York, the owners of the Blue Ribbon restaurant chain said they would close several eateries despite the economic impact.

"It's really a show of support for our staff, and as a team and a family as a whole," said co-owner Eric Bromberg.

More than a dozen restaurants in Washington were planning to close on Thursday, according to social media.

"You have millions of Latinos, millions of immigrants, that somehow feel under attack," Andres said. "They feel like they're being pushed aside. They want to be part of the American dream." </s> NEW YORK — Restaurants and other businesses across the country are closing their doors Thursday in support of a “Day Without Immigrants,” a national grassroots movement seeking to protest President Trump’s immigration reforms and highlight the contributions of the immigrant community in the United States.

News of the protest has spread quickly through word of mouth and social media posts under the hashtag #ADayWithoutImmigrants, which call for participants to skip work and school, close businesses and avoid making any purchases. One Facebook post directed at President Donald Trump, read “Mr. President, without us and our contributions the country will be paralyzed.”

“If hundreds of thousands of immigrants stayed home from work, New York City would shut down,” said Thanu Yakupitiyage, senior communications manager for the New York Immigration Coalition.

Across the U.S., many major industries would be feeling that pain as well. That’s especially true for the restaurant industry, where foreign-born workers provide the vast majority of labor.

In 2015, 7.1 million restaurant workers in the U.S. were immigrants, versus 5.1 million who were native born, according to the most recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And analysis by Pew Research found that about 1.1 million of the industry’s workers were undocumented in 2014. That makes the industry second only to construction when it comes to relying on undocumented workers.

“Immigrants are the lifeblood of the restaurant industry,” said Saru Jayaraman, co-founder of Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC), national advocacy group for restaurant workers based in New York.

ROC recently helped launch the so-called sanctuary restaurants movement in which hundreds of chefs have pledged to create safe work environments for vulnerable workers, including the undocumented, LGBT, Muslim and disabled. ROC is also providing legal aid to workers who feel threatened or mistreated at work.

Celebrity chef Mario Batali, tweeted that his Italian food purveyor Eataly and other restaurants would remain open, but he would support any workers chose not to work Thursday.

Busboys and Poets, a popular Washington, D.C.- area restaurant, bookstore and performance venue, is one of the dozens of restaurants that are closing for the day.

The restaurant, which has been in business for 12 years, was founded by Anas “Andy” Shallal, an Iraqi immigrant who came to the U.S. at the age of 10. His restaurant has six locations and employs 650 workers, he said.

“The issue of immigration is something that is being used as fodder by politicians to instill fear in the undocumented community,” Shallal said. “Right now, sitting on the sidelines is not enough.”

New Jersey restaurateur and Mexican immigrant Uzziel Arias said he will be closing all four of his Los Charrito’s locations.

Los Charritos employs close to 60 people, all of whom are immigrants or descendants of immigrants, said Arias. He plans to pay everyone their normal day’s wages on Thursday. He estimates a loss of around $20,000 in revenue.

“Because of the economy right now, the last thing we should be doing is closing the business,” Arias said, “But doing what you believe in is more important than all the money in the world.”

Celebrity Chef José Andrés, an immigrant from Spain, announced he will also be closing his five locations. Andrés is currently involved in a legal battle with Trump over a restaurant lease at the Trump International Hotel.

“We realize it is not my restaurant, it is their restaurant, too,” said Andrés. He estimates his restaurant group will lose close to $100,000 from Thursday’s closing, but said this was an opportunity to feel “proud” and “empowered.”

“A bunch of people who did not have a voice have found their voice from the bottom up,” said Andres.

Businesses from other industries are also coming out in support of the movement.

Accounting & Consulting Services, a Bethesda, Maryland, firm that has been in business since 1998 and employs 15 people, will be closing its offices in support of A Day Without Immigrants.

“Although it is tax season and it is the busiest time of the year for us, I consider it a small cost for a big cause,” Jose Burgos, the agency’s owner said. “Sometimes, just because we sit comfortably knowing we are already permanent residents or U.S. citizens, we feel we made it to the other side and forget where we came from.”

In Des Moines, Iowa, 120 Latino-owned businesses are expected to close on Thursday, according to local Hispanic newspaper owner, Manuel Galvez. The list, he said, was expected to grow to 200.

“It’s snowballing into something huge and is sending a message about the importance of immigrants to the economy,” said Brent Wilkes, the national executive director for the League of United Latin American Citizens, the oldest Hispanic advocacy group in America. “We believe that this type of activism is essential and we’re happy to see it all across the country.” </s> Businesses in cities across the country prepared to close Thursday as immigrants boycott their jobs, classes and shopping.

Immigrants in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Austin, Texas, and other major U.S. cities plan to stay home Thursday as part of a strike called "A Day Without Immigrants."

Coming on the heels of roundups of undocumented immigrants nationwide, organizers urge legal residents as well as undocumented ones to participate in the boycott in response to President Trump's crackdown on immigration, which includes plans to build a border wall and a temporary immigration ban on nationals from certain Muslim-majority nations.

"From doctors to dishwashers, immigrants are integral to daily life in the U.S.," tweeted Janet Murguia, president and CEO of National Council of La Raza, as she praised Spanish-American Chef Jose Andrés' decision to close his Washington, D.C., restaurants Thursday.

The celebrity chef said he decided to close after a few hundred of his employees told him they weren’t coming to work Thursday. They asked for his support and got it.

“We are all one," he said. "We should not be fighting among each other, we should all be working together to keep moving the country forward."

Andrés faces a lawsuit against Trump after pulling out of a restaurant deal at Trump's new Washington, D.C., hotel over offensive comments Trump made about Mexican immigrants.

The Trump administration, less than a month in, has implemented policies that advocates call anti-immigrant. The first series of changes included executive actions to build the U.S.-Mexico wall, boost patrol agents to curb illegal immigration and strip federal funding from sanctuary cities that limit cooperation with immigration agents.

Days later, Trump signed a sweeping order that temporarily banned people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States, suspended all refugee admissions for 120 days and indefinitely barred Syrians from the country, though an appeals court order temporarily blocked the order. That order has been temporarily suspended while an appeals court weighs whether it will lift the ban.

It is unclear at this time how many immigrants in the United States will join the boycott, but restaurants across the Northeast closed their stories in solidarity with the movement. Health-food chain Sweet Green announced it would close its 18 stores in the DC-Maryland-Virginia area.

“Our diversity is what makes this family great, and we respect our team members’ right to exercise their voice in our democracy," Sweet Green said in a statement. "We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and hope you understand our commitment to our people.”

Busboys & Poets and more than a dozen other restaurants in the nation's capital announced closings. Other restaurants in New York, Philadelphia, St. Paul, Minn., and Austin, Texas, have announced closings.

In New Mexico, the state with the largest percentage of Latino residents in the U.S., school officials worry that hundreds of students may stay home.

“We respectfully ask all parents to acknowledge that students need to be in class every day to benefit from the education they are guaranteed and to avoid falling behind in school and life,” Albuquerque Public Schools principals wrote in a letter to parents.

Students who take part in the protest will receive an unexcused absence, Albuquerque school officials said.

In Phoenix, acclaimed chef Silvana Salcido Esparza said she will close three of her Phoenix restaurants for the day: Barrio Cafe, Barrio Urbano and Barrio Cafe Gran Reserva.

"You know what, my restaurants don’t function without immigrants. That starts in the field, people who pick our food, the processing plants, the slaughterhouse, I could go on," she said Wednesday, hours after she was named a James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef — Southwest for the fifth time. </s> José Andrés, a Spanish celebrity chef with 14 restaurants in the D.C. area, five of which are closing on Thursday, has been particularly vocal, tweeting his support on Tuesday. (Andrés is currently also involved in a legal battle with Trump over calling off a deal to open a restaurant at Trump’s D.C. hotel.) Andrés says he found out about the planned strike from his workers over the weekend. “They were giving us a heads-up that they weren’t coming to work on Thursday, and the number of employees kept increasing. The restaurant is the home for everybody, and everybody is part of the restaurant. We asked them whether they felt we needed to be closing,” explained Andrés in a phone interview on Wednesday. “[My employees] are doing it to show how important immigrants are for America, and we’re supporting them in closing.”

Led primarily by Latino restaurant workers and business owners, the effort has expanded this week to include a wide variety of establishments, from local eateries to even Michelin-starred restaurants. Late Wednesday afternoon, the salad chain Sweetgreen announced that it would be closing all 18 D.C. locations in support of the protest. Two notable New York City restaurateurs, Eric Bromberg of Blue Ribbon and Tom Colicchio of Craft joined in as well: Blue Ribbon will be closing seven of its restaurants (affecting around 500 employees) in New York, while Colicchio tweeted support should his staff decide to join the strike.*

“I sense that we have many people who are very uneasy about what's happening,” says Andrés. “We have over 11 million undocumented immigrants in America. They're the backbone of the American economy ... By not working tomorrow, it's a way to feel good that they're doing something about it and sending a message. This is almost saying, ‘We're here. We're working. We want to be part of the system. We want to keep supporting the America that has supported us, but at this moment we're really fed up.’”

“A Day Without Immigrants” takes its name from a national march in 2006, where close to a million people—including immigrants, advocates, and supporters—in over a dozen cities protested immigration reforms that would have criminalized any assistance to illegal immigrants. That day is said to have had a lasting effect on the politics surrounding immigration.

Carlos Rojas Rodriguez, a community organizer with the immigrant-rights group Movimiento Cosecha, says that he first saw information about the strike on Whatsapp and Facebook. “There's a lot of self-organizing that's going on in the immigrant community, and what's really interesting is that the call for ‘A Day Without Immigrants’ on [Feb 16] isn't being organized by any established organization. This is a call from the community, from business owners, and immigrant families,” said Rodriguez. The group says it is not responsible for organizing Thursday’s protest, but is organizing a national protest for May 1 of this year. </s> DETROIT/SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Businesses shut their doors, students skipped class and thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in cities across the United States on Thursday to protest President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

Activists called “A Day Without Immigrants” to highlight the importance of the foreign-born, who account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, or more than 40 million naturalized American citizens.

Trump campaigned against the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, playing on fears of violent crime while promising to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border and stop potential terrorists from entering the country.

While the number of participants in Thursday’s protests could not be determined, many sympathetic business owners closed shop and working-class immigrants forwent pay for the day.

“I told my English teacher that I wasn’t going to school, and she said she understood,” said Rosa Castro, a 13-year-old U.S. citizen in Detroit, who marched with her 26-year-old sister, one of several undocumented family members whose future she is concerned about.

Since taking office last month, the Republican president has signed an executive order temporarily banning entry to the United States by travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries and all refugees. That order was put on hold by federal courts.

Immigrant rights groups have also expressed alarm after federal raids last week rounded up more than 680 people suspected of being in the country illegally.

In San Diego’s Logan Heights neighborhood, a 44-year-old undocumented business owner who identified herself only as Lucia for fear of deportation told Reuters she closed her nutrition shop for the day, costing her $200.

Demonstrators march during the "Day Without Immigrants" protest in Washington, DC, U.S., February 16, 2017. REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein

“Our community is frightened and cannot speak out,” she said. “Things are very bad for us with the new president.”

Advocates have called attention to cases such as one in El Paso, Texas, where federal agents arrested a transgender woman as she left a courthouse where she was seeking a protective order for domestic violence.

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe wrote Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to express concern over immigration enforcement in his state, citing an NBC Washington report that agents arrested people outside a church that operates as a shelter from the cold.

Sympathy marches and rallies were held in cities including Raleigh, North Carolina, and Austin, Texas. Thousands joined demonstrations in Chicago and Detroit.

In the Los Angeles Fashion District - comprising some 4,000 apparel outlets, showrooms and manufacturers covering about 100 blocks of downtown - about half the shops in the area’s retail core were closed, along with about 40 percent of one of the large flower markets in the area, said district spokeswoman Ariana Gomez.

A Southern California grocery chain, Northgate Gonzalez Markets, said it gave employees at 41 stores and the corporate headquarters permission to use paid personal time off to participate.

In Washington, more than 50 restaurants were closed, including high-end eateries.

“As far as I’m aware, all of our immigrant employees chose to take the day off,” said Ruth Gresser, 57, who owns four pizza restaurants in the District of Columbia area. “We have three relative novices and an old lady making pizza,” she said, referring to herself.

Slideshow (12 Images)

At the Pentagon, about half a dozen food outlets were forced to close after staff members joined the protest, a Defense Department spokesman said.

The National Restaurant Association criticized the walkouts, saying in a statement that the organizers “disrupt the workplaces of hard-working Americans who are trying to provide for their families.”

In Austin, hundreds chanting “Say it loud, say it clear, immigrants are welcome here” marched from City Hall to the State Capitol, where lawmakers in the Republican-controlled body are considering a measure to punish sanctuary cities that shield immigrants from federal agents. </s> L.A. Unified is urging students not to join in any walkouts or demonstrations planned for Thursday as part of a national “Day Without Immigrants” being marked across the country.

The nation’s second-largest school district contacted parents and employees via voicemail on Wednesday evening with a recording by Alma Pena-Sanchez, LAUSD’s chief of staff.

“While we respect everyone’s right to have their voices heard and to participate in civic action such as protest, all students and staff are encouraged and expected to come to school,” Pena-Sanchez said.

“A Day Without Immigrants” actions are expected to take place in Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and other cities with large immigrant populations.

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Activists are encouraging immigrants to skip work, avoid shopping and otherwise withdraw from the economy for a day to make clear the roles they play in American society.

The protest action was prompted by the policy goals voiced by President Trump, who has vowed to ramp up deportations of those in the country illegally and build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

Schools and universities across the nation have been the centers of protests, walkouts and unrest.

A week after the election, L.A. Unified, which is 74% Latino, saw thousands of students stream from classrooms and gather at Boyle Heights’ Mariachi Plaza and Lincoln Park in Lincoln Heights before marching to City Hall.

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To alleviate anxiety among students and parents, the district has set up a hotline and offered “extended support sites,” with a full list of resources on a website for “post-election resources.”

In her message on Wednesday evening to the LAUSD community, Pena-Sanchez said that the various campuses offer a “safe and productive forum where students can express their thoughts and feelings.”

“I urge students and staff not to disrupt learning by participating in protest or walkouts during the instructional day,” Pena-Sanchez said.

Organizers of the national event say some businesses will close their doors as part of the protest.

But some immigrant rights groups in Los Angeles said they decided not to participate.

matt.hamilton@latimes.com

Twitter: @MattHjourno

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UPDATES:

10:45 a.m.: This post was updated with some immigrant rights groups in Los Angeles saying they decided not to participate.

7:50 a.m., Thursday: Updated with more details about the protest.

This post was originally published at 11 p.m. Wednesday. </s> (AP Photo/Don Ryan). In this Wednesday, June 27, 2018, photo, Kate Sharaf, who is spearheading a small group of stay-at-home mothers to organize an immigration rally, gestures to other volunteers while working at home in Portland, Ore. The small group ...

(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer). Protesters chant slogans outside a Federal court during a demonstration calling for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and demand changes in U.S. immigration policies, Friday, June 29, 2018, in New...

(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer). Protesters chant slogans as they march during a demonstration calling for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and demand changes in U.S. immigration policies, Friday, June 29, 2018, in New York.

(AP Photo/Don Ryan). In this Wednesday, June 27, 2018, photo, a small group of stay-at-home mothers, with children at their sides, work to organize an immigration rally in Portland, Ore. The small group of mothers organizing Saturday's rally in Portlan...

(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer). Protesters chant slogans outside a Federal court during a demonstration calling for the abolishment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and demand changes in U.S. immigration policies, Friday, June 29, 2018, in New...

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Liberal activists, parents and first-time protesters motivated by accounts of children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border plan to rally in hundreds of cities nationwide Saturday to press President Donald Trump's administration to reunite the families quickly.

More than 600 marches could draw hundreds of thousands of people across the country, from immigrant-friendly cities like Los Angeles and New York City to conservative Appalachia and Wyoming under the banner Families Belong Together.

Though many who show up will be seasoned anti-Trump demonstrators, others will be new to immigration activism, including parents who say they feel compelled to show up after heart-wrenching accounts of children forcibly taken from their families as they crossed the border illegally. In Portland, Oregon, for example, several stay-at-home moms have organized their first rally while caring for young kids.

"I'm not a radical, and I'm not an activist," said Kate Sharaf, a Portland co-organizer. "I just reached a point where I felt I had to do more."

Immigrant advocacy groups say they're thrilled - and surprised - to see the issue gaining traction among those not tied to immigration.

"Honestly, I am blown away. I have literally never seen Americans show up for immigrants like this," said Jess Morales Rocketto, political director at the National Domestic Workers Alliance, which represents nannies, housekeepers and caregivers, many of whom are immigrants. "We just kept hearing over and over again, if it was my child, I would want someone to do something."

Saturday's rallies are getting funding and support from the American Civil Liberties Union, MoveOn.org, the National Domestic Workers Alliance and The Leadership Conference. But local organizers are shouldering on-the-ground planning, many of them women relying on informal networks established during worldwide women's marches on Trump's inauguration and its anniversary.

Tyler Houlton, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, welcomed interest in the immigration system and said only Congress has the power to change the law.

"We appreciate that these individuals have expressed an interest in and concern with the critical issue of securing our nation's borders and enforcing our immigration laws," Houlton said. "As we have indicated before, the department is disappointed and frustrated by our nation's disastrous immigration laws and supports action."

In Portland, Sharaf and other mothers who organized the rally hope to attract 5,000 people.

Right-wing activists with the group Patriot Prayer also have a permit to march later in the day Saturday and the Portland Police Bureau said Friday they planned to have a heavy police presence.

Sharaf and co-organizer Erin Conroy have coordinated with immigrant advocacy groups.

"This is not my wheelhouse," Conroy said. "As far as I'm concerned, this is a national emergency that we all need to be focused on right now."

That passion is heartening for the broader anti-Trump coalition, which hopes marches will attract people who have otherwise been on the sidelines, said David S. Meyer, a political science professor at the University of California, Irvine, who has authored books on U.S. political protest.

"There are people who have all kinds of other grievances or gripes with the Trump administration and they're quite happy to use this one as the most productive and salient for the moment," he said.

Immigration attorney Linda Rivas said groups have met with U.S. authorities, congressional representatives and other leaders to discuss an escalating immigration crackdown that they say began decades ago. But the family separation policy has been a watershed for attracting a broader spectrum of demonstrators, she said.

"To finally have people on board wanting to take action, marching, taking to the streets, it's been motivating for us as advocates because we have to keep going," Rivas said.

Taxin reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press reporter Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, contributed to this report. Follow Flaccus on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/gflaccus. Follow Taxin on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ataxin

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Hundreds of restaurants and other businesses in U.S. cities close their doors after activists called on immigrants to stay home from work, avoid shopping or eating out, and skip classes Thursday for #ADayWithoutImmigrants, to protest the President's immigration reforms and highlight the immigrant community's contributions to the United States.