Fears over possible ICE raids have heightened across the U.S., causing Chicago’s Mexican-American community Little Village to become deserted

The second busiest retail corridor in Chicago is typically a bustling area dotted with taquerias and Mexican grocery stores in the southwestern part of the city. By Monday afternoon it had turned

I’m in Chicago where immigration raids are rumored. A restaurant owner just broke down crying, she lost 30% of her clientele, they’re staying indoors. “Esto se va a poner feo.” whether there are raids here or not the $ blow, fear is already here. And people say that’s the point.

Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, home to a large population of Latin American immigrants, has reportedly gone quiet, as the city waits to see whether it becomes the first target of Donald Trump’s plan to carry out mass deportations immediately upon taking office.

Activists monitoring for immigration arrests said they had seen no activity, but the threat of deportations continues and the local community should remain alert.

A bustling shopping district in Chicago known as the “Mexico of the Midwest” has seen foot traffic plummet by 50% — as residents say they fear the immigration raids promised by President Trump. The sidewalks were empty and some businesses were closed along a two-mile stretch of shops and restaurants on 26th Street in Chicago’s Little Village — the Windy City’s second busiest retail corridor — as Trump was sworn into office Monday.