The Indicator from Planet Money · Monday, August 31, 2026
Residents and business owners in San Antonio's East Side are experiencing fear and economic anxiety due to an increased presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The community, which has a strong base of mom-and-pop businesses, is concerned about the potential impact of a planned ICE processing and detention facility.
“Despite James' enthusiasm, he says one thing has cast a shadow over this mostly Latino community over the last year or so, and that is the growing presence of immigration and customs enforcement.”
“No one wants to have a business or live near an ICE facility. It's a deterrent.”
“Particularly on the East Side, he says, an area that historically seen decades of disinvestment. And unfortunately, this is a trend in the United States of placing these otherwise undesirable facilities in communities that historically have had less economic power, less means, are usually a little bit more racially diverse.”