Restaurant owners nationwide are attempting to take a stand against President Donald Trump and the rule of law, according to a Wednesday report by the Associated Press.
Eighty restaurants in seven states joined a group that coaches restaurateurs how to own “sanctuary restaurants.” The program is designed to assist and coach their illegal workers on how to avoid immigration officials, as well as how to conduct themselves should a raid occur.
“I have this one little place where I get to decide how people treat each other,” Russell Street Deli owner Ben Hall told the AP. “If someone has the need to insult someone … then they don’t get to participate. I’ve told them, ‘There’s another diner next door.'”
Organizers assert the movement is purely a result of Trump’s election, and the actions taken by the restaurant owners are largely symbolic. This is due in large part to the fact that a “sanctuary restaurant” isn’t a legal designation, and does absolutely nothing to keep immigration officials out of those particular restaurants.
The group also asserts that it’s important to act now, because the restaurant industry relies on illegal immigrant labor more than most other industries, according to the AP.
The lobbying group for restaurants, the National Restaurant Association, is largely against the move, opting instead to double down on stricter ID requirements that would make it easier for businesses to verify legal worker status before hiring. The ssociation “is looking forward to working with the Trump administration” to make employment verification “easier and more cost-effective.”
Of the roughly 12 million workers in the restaurant industry, it’s estimated that about 1.3 million of those represent illegal immigrants by the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United. The program’s directors cited the need for a “robust pool of workers” to ensure that restaurants nationwide had easy access to labor.
“This is not about a restaurant harboring people in a closet. This is about creating a safe space,” said Saru Jayaraman, a co-founder of ROC United. “Employers have a responsibility to protect their workers.”
“In terms of all the negativity and the hatred we have in social media and in general … it’ll be good to be known as a sanctuary restaurant,” she said. “All our co-workers stand for the same things. It’s really important for others to feel the same vibes in the restaurant and have a good meal without having to worry about anything negative.”
Trump is expected to sign an executive order clearing a border barrier between the United States and Mexico early Wednesday. Republican lawmakers assert that a solid border wall is the first step towards gaining control of the nation’s immigration.
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