On Jan. 30, thousands of people across America skipped school and work to protest against recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity as part of a nationwide shutdown.
In Providence, as over a thousand demonstrators took to the streets and marched to the Rhode Island State House, many businesses joined the opposition and closed their doors.
Alex Maddalena, owner of the ice cream shop Big Feeling, told The Herald that his decision to close the store for the day was a “no-brainer.”
According to Maddalena, Big Feeling has participated in a number of community organizing events in the past, including holding fundraisers for Youth Pride, Inc. and Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance, an immigration defense nonprofit in Rhode Island.
Maddalena said that the ice cream shop was inspired by the Providence Student Union — Big Feeling’s next-door neighbor. “I was just really moved to see that these kids cared so much” about “their peers at school who feel threatened by ICE,” he said.
ICE did not respond to a request for comment.
Maddalena attended the demonstration at the statehouse along with five other Big Feeling employees. “I’m just really proud of the crew here,” he said. “I made the decision to close, but they also showed up in a pretty big way.”
The decision to shut down was not a simple one for Big Feeling, Maddalena said, pointing to the snowstorm that had already forced Big Feeling to close once the prior weekend. He noted that Friday, the day of the shutdown, is typically the ice cream shop’s “busiest day.”
But to Maddalena, a “one-day loss of business” is “nothing” in comparison to the gravity of ICE’s actions across the country.
Bean Marcelino, the chef and owner of the catering company Black Beans PVD, also ceased business operations on Jan. 30. To Bean, participating in the shutdown was a way to “stand in solidarity” and “remember (her) upbringings.” Marcelino has held jobs in community work and social services for 22 years.
As she operates the business on her own, Marcelino noted that she did not have to worry about how a closure could affect staff.
Instead of working on Jan. 30, Marcelino joined the march at the State House. There, she was approached by people who thanked her for attending. “It made me want to cry,” she said. “It felt like in that moment, we were all connected, even though we were strangers.”
Knit Club, a yarn store and community knitting space, also closed on the day of the protest. Lindsay Degen, the store’s owner, said that she was initially “really conflicted” about the decision.
Although Degen does not believe that what is needed is for small business owners to be the “people to drive change,” she felt it was valuable to show “solidarity for the protesters” by closing Knit Club’s doors.
While Degen said that she could afford a day of not working, she acknowledged that “people who want to work should be paid.” She gave her Friday employees the opportunity to work on Saturday so they could still have the hours of pay and not “feel impacted by (her) decision to close the store,” she said.
Knit Club’s “biggest tool as a community-centered business is to enable the community to be able to protest in the way that they can,” Degen said. The business has previously engaged with advocacy by creating a safe space for LGBTQ+ people to come together, she added.
While Maddalena, Marcelino and Degen all closed their business’ doors for the day, they all expressed that they were understanding of factors that may have led to an establishment’s decision not to close.
Some businesses showed their support for the Providence community in ways other than closing the store.
Though Coffee Exchange stayed open on Jan. 30, the coffee shop posted a statement of support for the shutdown on their Instagram. “The day’s profits will be donated to the (American Civil Liberties Union), and our employees are free to choose whether to work or not,” the post read.
“We are regrettably unable to close for the ICE OUT Shutdown on Friday, Jan. 30,” Campus Fine Wines wrote in a post on their Instagram. According to the post, they dedicated 5% of their sales that day to AMOR.
Hazel Origin Coffee wrote in an Instagram story that they would provide free drip coffee at their two Providence locations in “a small gesture of warmth and community.”
East Side Pockets was one of many businesses to stay open on Jan. 30. “Our priority is maintaining stability for our staff and continuing to provide service to our customers who rely on us,” East Side Pockets owner Paul Boutros wrote in an email to The Herald.
In addition, while East Side Pockets does not take formal positions on political issues, they “remain committed to treating all people with dignity and respect,” Boutros added.
“While we respect that people and businesses express their views in different ways, we choose to support our community by staying consistent, inclusive and focused on hospitality,” he wrote.
Pavani Durbhakula is a senior staff writer and photographer. She is a first-year from DC and plans to study IAPA and Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys baking, reading, and searching for new coffee shops.
Michelle Bi is a metro editor covering City Hall & Crime and State Politics & Justice. She is a sophomore from Oak Park, CA and studies English and IAPA. In her free time, you can find her playing guitar, the LA Times crossword or one of her 115 Spotify playlists.
