{"id":61635,"date":"2025-11-20T06:42:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T06:42:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/61635\/"},"modified":"2025-11-20T06:42:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T06:42:11","slug":"vendors-at-santa-fe-springs-swap-meet-say-they-are-paying-the-price-of-june-14-ice-raid-daily-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/61635\/","title":{"rendered":"Vendors at Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet say they are paying the price of June 14 ICE raid \u2013 Daily News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Time was anytime Jesse Herrera stepped inside any open-air swap meet, he saw opportunity.<\/p>\n

At 25, he bought his first churro cart and set it up at Five Points in Whittier, soon adding a second cart to that venture and quickly branching out to open stalls at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t finish high school, but I learned fast,\u201d said Herrera, 57, of La Mirada. \u201cIf what you\u2019re selling is clean and presentable, it sells itself. And I take pride in what I do.\u201d<\/p>\n

But after about 100 ICE agents<\/a> marched through the Santa Fe Springs open-air marketplace on June 14, Herrera\u2019s businesses at the swap meet, as well about 300 other small businesses owned mostly by immigrant entrepreneurs, are struggling<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

An immigration enforcement raid at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet in June led to a decline in attendance. Longtime vendors want the crowds to return, saying the raid happened when the market was closing and led to two arrests, not the mass detentions reported by some on social media. (Photo courtesy of Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet)\n<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From left, Jesse Herrera and two of his children, Robert and Jessica stand at one of the food stalls the family owns at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet on Oct. 24. Vendors at the open-air market are struggling to keep their businesses open in the aftermath of the raid. (Photo by Job E. Rivera)\n<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A crowd watches Game 1 of the World Series at the open-air Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet on Oct. 24. Vendors at the marketplace want customers to return to the community hub, after they said reports on social media misinformed the public about the operation. (Photo courtesy of Job E. Rivera)\n<\/p>\n

\"Jesse<\/p>\n

Jesse Herrera and members of his family run several stores at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet. The aftermath of a June 14 ICE raid, and the misinformation that kept customers away, are taking a lot of businesses under. \u201cIt\u2019s a graveyard,\u201d Herrera said on Oct. 24. (Photo courtesy of Job E. Rivera)\n<\/p>\n

\"Manuel<\/p>\n

Manuel Hernandez\u2019s sports shop at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet did brisk business in the leadup to the Los Angeles Dodgers World Series win on Nov. 1. It was a welcome boost from a drought of business after an ICE raid in June. (Photo courtesy of Job E. Rivera)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 5<\/p>\n

An immigration enforcement raid at the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet in June led to a decline in attendance. Longtime vendors want the crowds to return, saying the raid happened when the market was closing and led to two arrests, not the mass detentions reported by some on social media. (Photo courtesy of Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

Business was even better during COVID, Herrera said, when the outdoor market was allowed to stay open and people came to buy essential items.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore, the crowd was elbow to elbow,\u201d he added. \u201cRight now, it\u2019s a graveyard and it\u2019s getting worse. As soon as the raids stop, that will energize our side of the business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Herrera, who owns several stands at the Santa Fe Springs and Redondo Beach swap meets, and more in Cabazon, said his patrons are not spending money like they used to, when a trip to the swap meet was a regular family outing.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore, you would see people carrying bags with things they bought and snacks,\u201d he said. \u201cThese days you don\u2019t see that. These days, people are asking if we could cut a hot dog in two so a family can share one. That\u2019s how bad it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The June 14 raid, coming in the early days of the ramped-up immigration enforcement<\/a> promised by the Trump administration, was amplified on social media in the hours and days after. Immigrant advocates criticized swap meet management for letting the armed and masked agents<\/a> in. Shopping center officials responded that federal law allows officers access to public areas of the swap meet.<\/p>\n

Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet management is pushing back on social media reports they said spread misinformation about the event, saying they did document the ICE agents while they were at the site and that two Colombian nationals were detained, and not the 40 or 50 reported online.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe June 14th\u00a0incident was disruptive and painful, but one fact remains clear: our vendors are the ones carrying the greatest burden,\u201d officials said in a statement. \u201cThey are small business owners, parents and neighbors whose livelihoods depend on this marketplace. We stand with our vendors, and our role is to provide them with the safest and most supportive marketplace possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Management has also worked with the Whittier-based nonprofit Hispanic Outreach Taskforce led by David Gonzalez, who held a \u201cKnow Your Rights\u201d training on Sept. 3. About 50 employees and vendors attended the training, which was originally offered at the swap meet\u2019s sister location in North Las Vegas this summer with ACLU Nevada.<\/p>\n

The Department of Homeland Security has not provided any additional information about the operation, except for a statement from a spokesperson confirming the presents of ICE and CBP officers at the swap meet and that they were looking for violations of customs and immigration law.<\/p>\n

\u201cICE administratively arrested two individuals,\u201d the statement read. \u201cDHS agencies will not be deterred from the completion of our mission.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since early June in Southern California, that mission has been to round up and mass deport undocumented immigrants \u2014 targeting what administration officials call the \u201cworst of the worst\u201d criminals. Trump and officials in his administration say the raids have beefed up the border and made it safer. But locally, leaders and businesses say they\u2019ve impacted local economies and caused fear within immigrant communities<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Herrera\u2019s daughter Jessica, 17, was at the shopping center in the late afternoon of June 14. She confirmed more than 80 percent of vendors had already left for the day. She watched as ICE agents gathered at the swap meet stage area, where it looked like they were being filmed. There were about 40 vans in the parking lot and a helicopter flying overhead, her father added.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened was bad, but the way it was shown on social media made it worse. They got things wrong,\u201d Jessica said.<\/p>\n

She and her younger brother Robert, 14, help run a store selling huaraches, or Mexican sandals.<\/p>\n

While her father admits having any of his six children work the business is always Plan B, with college being the first option, Jessica said she doesn\u2019t mind learning the ropes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like the family dynamic of the business,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

But with sales down, Herrera said hiring family is less costly, even as he fears putting them to work dims the prospect of seeing his children become professionals.<\/p>\n

\u201cNever in my lifetime did I think I would see this,\u201d Herrera said. \u201cThe horizon looks really bad and it\u2019s all due to this administration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Manuel Hernandez, 49, has run a sports clothing store at the swap meet for 27 years. He immigrated from Mexico City at the age of 19, working in a distribution center for Hanes T-shirts before starting his own business.<\/p>\n

Despite the ICE-related downturn, Hernandez said he has no plans to give up his business.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou may not have control now, but your success depends on how you plan for tomorrow,\u201d he said. \u201cI continue to push forward and support my family. My son is starting college this year, and I will support him in his goals. My goal is a better life for me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love to expand, as I\u2019ve now incorporated my business,\u201d Hernandez added. \u201cBut I have to wait and see how business develops and hope that I can move forward with our plan for growth here in Santa Fe Springs.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of his workers, Jesus\u00a0 Alvarez, 18, said his boss has mentored him since he was hired three years ago. He works at the swap meet while attending Cal State Fullerton where he is majoring in biology.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love the environment here,\u201d Alvarez said of working at the swap meet, especially during the leadup to the Los Angeles Dodgers\u2019 World Series victory on Nov. 1.<\/p>\n

On the night of Game 1 on Oct. 24, there was a Dodgers-blue clad crowd at the marketplace, but nowhere near the thousands that usually would have attended in years past, even as the swap meet offered a Halloween treat to shoppers.<\/p>\n

Most of the crowds return on nights when a banda is in concert there, Alvarez said. But since concerts are held when the swap meet is closed, most vendors don\u2019t see a related hike in sales.<\/p>\n

Hernandez said after June 14, sales dropped by around 60% compared to previous levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome customers were upset about what had happened,\u201d he said, feeling that both social media and news media coverage had influenced public perception while also understanding that many customers had family and friends who are undocumented.<\/p>\n

Friday, Nov. 7 was one of the best days since the raid, Hernandez reports.<\/p>\n

For Herrera, to know the law is one thing, and for government agents to follow that law is another.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to be brave,\u201d he said, and stay together as an immigrant community, in this place where he\u2019s always seen hope and opportunity. \u201cWe can see it again. We\u2019re waiting for the raids to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n

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