Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has claimed that the city could face labor shortages if illegal immigrants are targeted amid the ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations.
During an interview with Katie Couric, Bass blamed President Donald Trump for sparking anti-ICE protests that have led to days of unrest in the city.
“My biggest fear is the impact that all Angelenos will begin to feel when the labor of immigrants is absent,” Bass said.
“We’ll feel it in the construction industry. We’ll feel it in hospitality. We’ll feel it at grocery stores. People will begin to notice.”
She also said that the situation could significantly affect families that rely on services provided by immigrants.
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“You think about the mothers who have nannies and housekeepers. They will feel it when there’s nobody to do childcare and there’s nobody to take their kids to school,” she continued.
“You know, you will feel it when your gardener goes away, and you don’t know where he or she is. So Angelenos will feel the absence of immigrant labor.”
Bass said she spoke with one resident who reported that local grocery store shelves were empty due to a lack of workers available.
“[T]o have parents who are not sure they could go to work, or to be fearful of letting their kids go to school, it disrupts families,” Bass said.
“It creates unbelievable pressure and tension. You can imagine the mental health impacts on the children, especially the children that are old enough to remember the last Trump administration or were old enough to remember COVID,” she added.
Bass also maintains that immigration raids launched in Los Angeles contributed directly to the current wave of anti-ICE protests.
However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) indicated it will not alter course.
“Secretary Noem has a message to the LA rioters: you will not stop us or slow us down. ICE will continue to enforce the law and arrest criminal illegal aliens,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Wednesday in a statement.
ICE operations continue to ramp up amid unrest in several major cities, with a focus on identifying and arresting illegal immigrants with criminal records.
DHS was clear that its enforcement priorities remain unchanged.
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