Anti-immigration enforcement protests have incorporated some creative angles like a naked bike ride in Portland and inflatable characters. The latest includes some symbolism and retail dysfunction.
Demonstrators and activists clogged up the Home Depot in Monrovia, California, on Nov. 22 by each purchasing an ice scraper for 17 cents before getting right back in line to return the item. Demonstrators said it was in protest of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents targeting day laborers around Home Depot locations in Southern California.
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Ice scraper protest
The purchasing and return of the small item held up customer service lines at the location for nearly an hour. Hundreds of people came out to support the cause.
The goal was to “scrape ICE out of their stores,” Erika Andiola, political director for the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), told the Los Angeles Times.
Andiola’s organization organized the buy-in.
“Whether the corporation wants to admit it or not, Home Depot has become ground zero for this cruel, vicious immigration enforcement that’s taking place in our country,” Pablo Alvarado, NDLON’s co-executive director, told the Times.
Protestors eventually marched through the aisles of the store, leading management to eventually close the store, a measure Home Depot did not use during federal immigration enforcement raids.
“Oh, you can actually shut a store, right?” Palmira Figueroa, the communications director for the NDLON, told CBS News. “You can shut for this, but you cannot, you have not, shut them when an ICE raid and abuse is happening.”
Part of the protest came in response to the death of immigrant day laborer Carlos Roberto Montoya. He died after being hit by a car while fleeing from ICE agents in Monrovia in mid-August.
Videos of the protest have gone viral on social media, racking up millions of views.
Home Depot ICE raids
Home Depot parking lots have become a hotspot for immigration raids because day laborers, often immigrants, typically gather there looking for work.
“We aren’t notified that immigration enforcement activities are going to happen, and we aren’t involved in the operations,” George Lane, a spokesperson for Home Depot, told Straight Arrow News. “We’re required to follow all federal and local rules and regulations in every market where we operate.”
Several men were taken into federal custody in front of a North Hollywood Home Depot in September. There were similar incidents in previous months at Home Depots in Westlake, Van Nuys and Pomona.
ICE raids continued in recent days at Home Depot locations in North Carolina.
“We want for Home Depot to condemn these ICE raids on their property,” Figueroa told CBS News. “We know they can do that. They should speak out, reject the use of its stores and their sites for fear and violence.”
Figueroa said the group could organize similar protests in the future.
Home Depot stock
Home Depot’s stock has dropped following a negative Q3 report last week.
The stock is now hovering around a 52-week low after that disappointing report and has updated its full-year guidance. Despite the stock market performing well, Home Depot’s numbers show a difference in the consumer-facing market.
“It’s certainly a very interesting consumer dynamic out there,” Edward Decker, Home Depot CEO, said on an earnings call covered by The Motley Fool. “On the one hand, you look at certain economic indicators and you say, geez, things are pretty good. You look at GDP [Gross Domestic Product], you look at PCE [Personal Consumption Expenditures], those are both strong. But on the other hand, what’s impacting us in home improvement is the ongoing pressure in housing and incremental consumer uncertainty.”