Austin Restaurants Sign Up For 'A Day Without An Immigrant' In Rebuke Of Trump Policies

AUSTIN, TX — Some local restaurants reportedly will be participating in Un Dia Sin Inmigrante (A Day Without An Immigrant), a national, grassroots movement scheduled Thursday when minority-owned/operated businesses will close to illustrate the contributions made by the nation's migrant class.

The event has been publicized largely via social media, but fliers have popped up around Austin alerting to the upcoming closures. The movement is in response to heightened immigration enforcement by the U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement agency in Austin and other cities with a sweep dubbed "Operation Cross Check," that has netted more than 50 people in the Austin-San Antonio area.

More broadly, the movement is a rebuke to the policies of Donald Trump, who has called for the building of a wall along the U.S. southern border to dissuade migration and unsuccessfully tried to implement a ban on Muslims entering the country.

Austin360, a blog operated by the Austin American-Statesman, reported on a handful of eateries signing up for the mass closures, including El Borrego de Oro at 3900 S. Congress Ave.; Kyoten Sushiko, 4600 Mueller Blvd. #1035; Sweet Sweet Co.; and Taqueria los Jaliscienses at 1815 W. Ben White Blvd. In addition, Takoba and other restaurants will close on Thursday as well, the blog reported.

Sweet Sweet Co. describes itself on the company website as a service that "...delivers donuts as a 'thank you,' 'I love you' or for your craving satisfaction. Among its doughnut offerings are glazed, original and chocolate varieties baked "...to make life's moments sweeter."

Sweet Sweet Co. officials announced their plans to close on Thursday, posting the flyer detailing the event on their Facebook page. "Sweet Sweet will be taking the day off on Thursday to help stand up for all the hardworking immigrants in this country!" officials wrote.

The flier indicates restaurant closures aren't the only part of the movement but includes a call for participants not to go to work that day, refrain from shopping at stores or on the Internet, not buy gasoline, or attend classes. Organizers also urge parents not to take their children to school on Thursday.

"Mr. President," the flier reads in Spanish. "Without us and our contributions, this country would be paralyzed."

The grassroots movement is reminiscent of the 20004 mockumentary "A Day Without a Mexican" that depicted the sudden, unexplained disappearance of millions of immigrant workers in California. While the film didn't execute its premise artfully enough to gain approval of most critics, the message of the film resonated culturally.

The film depicts unkempt lawns, piled-up restaurant dishes, unpicked crops and untidy buildings among the side effects of a sudden dearth of Mexican workers, a working class willing to accept work unpalatable to Americans. Immigrants' willingness to toil at difficult jobs to which Americans are averse have earned them the moniker of the "backbone of the economy" by many observers.

Many more Austin restaurants could participate in "A Day Without An Immigrant" come Thursday, choosing to close without any advance notice. "We will miss a day of work, but could gain so much more," the flier for the event reads.

A similar effort was undertaken in 2006 with a similar name, "A Day Without Immigrants," centered primarily on traditional protest marches but also calling for commercial boycotts and absences from school and work. In that version, more than a million protesters in 50 cities across the country partook in mass protest a bill by the U.S. House of Representatives that sought to criminalize undocumented immigrants while toughening border control. The legislation also did not offer a path to citizenship for those already in the U.S.

>>> Photo credit: Tomas Castelazo via WikiMedia Commons