KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers Kansas City, Missouri. Share your story idea with Alyssa.
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Kansas City-area businesses on both sides of the state line decided to support a nationwide day of protest against ICE on Friday.
From Kansas City, Missouri, to Blue Springs, and Kansas City, Kansas, the responses varied.
The anti-ICE demonstrations have ramped up after the deaths of Renee Good and ICU Nurse Alex Pretti this month in Minnesota.
KSHB 41 Kansas City reporter Alyssa Jackson called KCMO businesses who posted a stance against ICE on social media. Several of the businesses declined interviews.
The cost of taking a stand was evident in the response from some businesses that feared retaliation, didn't want the extra publicity or expressed concern about the safety of its employees.
Some businesses, including a bookstore in KCMO called Under the Cover, have strongly-worded signs that say ICE agents are not welcome.
"I have white privilege, so my risk is going to be less than other people's, but people will review bomb," said Carley Morton, owner of Under the Cover.
Businesses told KSHB 41 that people were leaving false reviews to harm their business because they publicly support anti-ICE strikes.
Under the Cover and The Fix KC, a restaurant in Kansas City, are businesses that could not afford to close and lose a day of sales.
They provided posters and materials for people to create signs for use at the protests.
"I think at this point — it's just I need to show up for my community," said Kelsey Merrigan, owner of The Fix. "We're really to a point where citizens and immigrants have had really traumatic experiences with ICE and our neighborhoods should feel safer."
The Fix also provided free hot chocolate for protesters and plans to donate a portion of proceeds from to-go burrito sales toward Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation (AIRR) KC.
"People are getting angry. People are getting fired up and it's impactful to see," said Chris Griffiths, customer at The Fix.
Some businesses acknowledged that taking a stance already caused negative feedback on social media.
Morton said the shootings in Minneapolis were only part of her anger toward immigration enforcement that has been building over time.
"As a small business, we're here in the community," she said. "We have to speak out because if you don't say anything you're compliant."
Immigration is a controversial issue — eliciting a nationwide response and sparking conversations in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
The cost of not taking a stand for certain business owners far outweighs the price they pay from losing any business.
Morton said: "People will see be able to see what actions you take when things are bad."
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