While many businesses in Greater Portland were closed Friday as part of a national strike against recent federal immigration enforcement actions, some remained open and found other ways to show support for Maine’s immigrant community.
Longfellow Books on Monument Square in Portland stayed open and said it will donate 20% of all sales Friday through Sunday to Project Relief Maine, a Black immigrant-led collective that provides food, shelter and legal support.
Bookstore owner Ari Gersen also planned to serve hot cocoa and chamomile tea to protesters during a demonstration held in the square Friday afternoon.
“We wanted to be available as a warm community space because it’s going to be really cold,” Gersen said Friday morning. “What’s happening now with (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is simply inhumane and race based. The truth is, this is our community. These are our neighbors. People who for the most part are law-abiding are being rounded up, and it reeks of historical tragedies.”
Organized at NationalShutdown.us, Friday’s daylong protest called for “No work. No school. No shopping.” The goals are to push political leaders to rein in ICE by disrupting the economy and show support for the immigrant community, including many in the Portland area who have stayed home in recent weeks out of fear they will be detained.
While some businesses received negative feedback for staying open on Friday, customers at Longfellow Books were supportive.
“I saw on Instagram that they were donating today, so I thought I’d come in,” said Ali Philbrook, of Portland. “I think it’s important and really powerful to see people reaching out and supporting each other here in Maine and across the country.”
DONATING TO CAUSES
Customers at Becky’s Diner on Portland’s waterfront also endorsed that restaurant’s decision to stay open Friday and donate 100% of profits to local nonprofits.
“I support what the diner is doing, and I support businesses that chose to close,” said Diane Leo, of Westbrook. “I think we need to band together and support each other.”
Michael Thiboutot, a Saco resident who was having breakfast with his sister and her girlfriend, said it’s important that Portland businesses support the immigrant community.
“Personally, I think immigration is a wonderful thing and I’m against the brutality of ICE operations,” Thiboutot said. “There has to be a better way.”
The diner said on Instagram that it will split the donation between Maine Needs, a Portland nonprofit that provides clothing, hygiene products and household items to people in need; and the Maine Solidarity Fund, a coalition supporting immigrant and transgender communities.
“Maine has always been a place where neighbors look out for neighbors,” Becky’s post states. “We hope this is one way we can show our support for dignity, compassion and standing up for one another.”
Aomori Restaurant, a new Japanese soul food place in Portland, also posted an explanation of its decision to stay open Friday.
“We want to be clear about where we stand. We stand in solidarity with our community,” the post states. “As a family-run, newly opened small business, closing our doors right now would put our future at risk — so we will remain open this Friday.”
The restaurant will continue its usual practice of donating $1 from each order of Yodare Dori, a popular chicken dish, to Food For All Services, an African market and food pantry, according to the post.
ELSEWHERE IN MAINE
National big box stores in Greater Portland were bustling Friday, including Home Depot in South Portland and Target in Scarborough. Separate from the blackout, the two companies have been subject of national boycott campaigns because of activity by immigration agents at their stores.
Several Home Depot employees said it felt like the usual flow of customers. One said he didn’t even know there was a strike planned.
Outside Greater Portland, most businesses were open with little recognition of the national action, including in and around Lewiston, Auburn, Augusta and Waterville.
Brickyard Hollow Brewing Co.’s 10 locations across the state, from Portland to Sugarloaf Mountain, were open Friday and donating a portion of sales to Maine Needs.
“Our sincere hope is that by staying open, we can continue to provide a warm, welcoming place for our communities to gather — for our staff, our guests and our neighbors from all walks of life,” the company posted on Facebook. “Keeping our doors open lets our team continue to earn their wages and support their families — a responsibility we don’t take lightly. … We encourage everyone to take care of themselves and one another, support local small businesses, and continue to show up for our community with kindness and respect.”
In Rockport, 18 Central Oyster Bar & Grill decided to operate Friday and donate 10% of the week’s proceeds to the Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition.
“We were closed on Monday because of the storm and cannot ask our employees to go another day without pay in the slowest season,” the restaurant posted on Instagram. “We wish we could pay them wages to stay home, but that is not the reality of a stand-alone restaurant in winter, in Maine.”
Fish & Whistle in Biddeford stayed open and said it would donate 20% of its sales to Better Biddeford to help families affected by ICE, according to its Instagram post.
“We are saddened and angered and stand by everyone striking,” the post states. “We have decided the best way for us to show up for our staff and neighbors is to open our doors.”
Rosemont Market, with locations in Portland, Cape Elizabeth, Scarborough, Falmouth and Yarmouth, also stayed open, according to its Instagram post.
“Harm, fear, and intimidation have no place here. Everyone belongs, and everyone deserves to feel safe,” the post states. “We stand with our immigrant neighbors and remain committed to supporting our entire community.
“There are many meaningful ways to show up,” the post continues. “To that end, we have made the decision to remain open on Friday, and in addition to our ongoing contributions to local food pantries, we are making a donation of $10,000 to The Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project.”
Staff Writer Dana Richie contributed to this report.
