Protests against U.S. President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown are spreading to hotels across the United States. Protesters are raiding hotels where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are staying to stage all-night noise demonstrations, while, in turn, conservatives are pressuring hotels that refuse to give rooms to ICE, escalating tensions.
According to the Washington Post (WP) on the 29th, anti-immigration protesters are expanding their activities to hotels where ICE agents stay, from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Maine. They bang pots and drums outside hotels in "no sleep" protests and have taken hard-line measures such as occupying hotel lobbies to block ICE agents from entering.
The no-sleep protests targeting ICE agents were sparked last summer in California as immigration enforcement intensified, centered on Los Angeles (LA), and later spread to progressive-leaning major cities such as Minnesota, New York, and Maine. This year, a series of shootings in Minneapolis that left a man in his 30s and a woman dead have further intensified the protests.
Sunrise Movement, a progressive youth group, is encouraging collective action by booking multiple hotels near Minneapolis at once and canceling just before check-in to block ICE agents from lodging. Aru Ajay, head of Sunrise Movement, said, "We want hotels to realize they have more to lose than gain by supporting ICE."
Conservative influencers, meanwhile, have begun publicly singling out and pressuring hotels that refuse or are reluctant to host ICE agents. Early this month, at the Hampton Hill Hotel in Lakeville, Minnesota, an employee was filmed refusing to provide a room to federal agents, and the video was posted online; Hilton subsequently terminated the hotel's franchise agreement. Hilton said, "We always welcome everyone," reiterating to franchisees the need to comply with brand standards.
However, there are concerns that franchise owners who run individual hotels are bearing the brunt of the fallout. Many hotels in large chains such as Hilton and Marriott are operated by individual franchisees, and more than half of the owners are of Asian immigrant origin by some counts. They face protests and falling revenue if they accept ICE agents, and corporate sanctions and contract cancellations if they refuse.
Hotel workers are also on edge. Krista Serock, president of the Minnesota hotel union Unite Here, said, "In hotels with a high share of workers who are undocumented immigrants, the presence of ICE agents is extremely threatening," adding, "Hotel workers are facing unprecedented fear."
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is also monitoring the situation. Tricia McLough, a DHS Spokesperson, publicly noted, "Federal agents are being targeted by organized violent protests," and vowed to crack down on property damage and violence by protesters. In fact, two hotels in the Twin Cities area—the DoubleTree by Hilton and an InterContinental under the IHG brand—were temporarily closed recently due to bomb threats.
The hotel industry, however, appears to be refraining from official responses. The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) said, "As public accommodations, hotels prioritize the safety of employees, guests, and the community," adding that it is monitoring the situation. Major hotel chains such as Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt have not made public statements.