KENNER, La. (RTW News) — The doors of Carmela Diaz’s taco joint are locked, the tables are devoid of customers, and no one is working in the kitchen. It’s one of many once-thriving Hispanic businesses, from Nicaraguan eateries to Honduran restaurants, emptied out in recent weeks in neighborhoods filled with signs in Spanish but increasingly fewer people on the streets.
In Kenner, which has the highest concentration of Hispanic residents in Louisiana, a federal immigration crackdown aimed at making 5,000 arrests is devastating an already struggling economy, according to some business owners. “Fewer and fewer people came,” said a tearful Diaz, whose Taqueria La Conquistadora has been closed for several weeks now, as both customers and workers are afraid to leave home. “There were days we didn’t sell anything. That’s why I made the decision to close the business — because there was no business.”
On Wednesday, convoys of federal vehicles began rumbling back and forth down Kenner’s main commercial streets as the Department of Homeland Security commenced the latest series of immigration enforcement operations that have been occurring in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Videos shared by bystanders show federal agents detaining individuals outside Kenner businesses and at construction sites.
Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino made an appearance in the city amidst agents in tactical gear to announce the launch of an operation dubbed Catahoula Crunch, named after Louisiana's state dog.
The state’s Hispanic population has surged in the past two decades, many arriving in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 to assist with rebuilding efforts. In Kenner, just west of New Orleans between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, Hispanics make up about 30% of residents.
Diaz, who is from El Salvador, relocated in 2006 after years of working on farms in Texas. She initially opened food trucks, which earned her enough to buy a home in Kenner, expanding her business to include a fleet of trucks and two brick-and-mortar restaurants.
Now, nearly all of her operations are shuttered due to the crackdown, and she survives by making home deliveries. “They don’t respect anyone,” Diaz said. “They don’t ask for documents. They don’t investigate. They slap the handcuffs on them and take them away.”
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed that federal agents have already made dozens of arrests, although the agency has not disclosed a full list of those detained. “Americans should be able to live without fear of violent criminal illegal aliens harming them, their families, or their neighbors,” McLaughlin stated. “In just 24 hours on the ground, our law enforcement officers have arrested violent criminals.”
The office of Mayor Michael Glaser, a former police chief, has refrained from commenting directly on the operation but stated that it “falls under federal jurisdiction” while expecting all operating agencies to act “professionally, lawfully, and with respect for our community.” Notably, the city’s police are among law enforcement agencies that have agreements to participate in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program authorizing them to detain individuals for potential deportation.
Residents like Sergio Perez, a Guatemalan immigrant and U.S. citizen living in Kenner since 2010, express fear for their relatives who lack legal immigration status. He worries that any Hispanic individual is at risk of abuse by federal agents, regardless of their immigration status. While Kenner feels like home, he is ready to leave if family members are deported, stating, “They don’t want us here. It’s like you are in someone’s house, and you don’t feel welcome. They’re just killing our spirit.”
In Kenner, which has the highest concentration of Hispanic residents in Louisiana, a federal immigration crackdown aimed at making 5,000 arrests is devastating an already struggling economy, according to some business owners. “Fewer and fewer people came,” said a tearful Diaz, whose Taqueria La Conquistadora has been closed for several weeks now, as both customers and workers are afraid to leave home. “There were days we didn’t sell anything. That’s why I made the decision to close the business — because there was no business.”
On Wednesday, convoys of federal vehicles began rumbling back and forth down Kenner’s main commercial streets as the Department of Homeland Security commenced the latest series of immigration enforcement operations that have been occurring in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Videos shared by bystanders show federal agents detaining individuals outside Kenner businesses and at construction sites.
Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino made an appearance in the city amidst agents in tactical gear to announce the launch of an operation dubbed Catahoula Crunch, named after Louisiana's state dog.
The state’s Hispanic population has surged in the past two decades, many arriving in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 to assist with rebuilding efforts. In Kenner, just west of New Orleans between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain, Hispanics make up about 30% of residents.
Diaz, who is from El Salvador, relocated in 2006 after years of working on farms in Texas. She initially opened food trucks, which earned her enough to buy a home in Kenner, expanding her business to include a fleet of trucks and two brick-and-mortar restaurants.
Now, nearly all of her operations are shuttered due to the crackdown, and she survives by making home deliveries. “They don’t respect anyone,” Diaz said. “They don’t ask for documents. They don’t investigate. They slap the handcuffs on them and take them away.”
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed that federal agents have already made dozens of arrests, although the agency has not disclosed a full list of those detained. “Americans should be able to live without fear of violent criminal illegal aliens harming them, their families, or their neighbors,” McLaughlin stated. “In just 24 hours on the ground, our law enforcement officers have arrested violent criminals.”
The office of Mayor Michael Glaser, a former police chief, has refrained from commenting directly on the operation but stated that it “falls under federal jurisdiction” while expecting all operating agencies to act “professionally, lawfully, and with respect for our community.” Notably, the city’s police are among law enforcement agencies that have agreements to participate in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement program authorizing them to detain individuals for potential deportation.
Residents like Sergio Perez, a Guatemalan immigrant and U.S. citizen living in Kenner since 2010, express fear for their relatives who lack legal immigration status. He worries that any Hispanic individual is at risk of abuse by federal agents, regardless of their immigration status. While Kenner feels like home, he is ready to leave if family members are deported, stating, “They don’t want us here. It’s like you are in someone’s house, and you don’t feel welcome. They’re just killing our spirit.”
