A weeklong boycott beginning today is making something as simple as buying a soda at the neighborhood convenience store a political statement in Prince William County.
The most active Hispanic immigrant organization in the fast-growing suburban community is calling on its thousands of supporters to avoid all stores not owned by immigrants or those sympathetic to the movement.
“We want to show what it would be like if we were not here,” said Ricardo Juarez, a leading boycott organizer from Mexicanos Sin Fronteras.
Meanwhile, an anti-illegal immigration organization is calling on supporters across the region to shop in Prince William County to support merchants in a community that is trying to make a stand against illegal immigration.
The boycott is being stoked by intense outrage over a new resolution aimed at banning some county services to illegal immigrants and make it easier to deport those who are charged with breaking local laws.
Many immigrant business owners have reported stunning drops in sales since the resolution passed last month, leading to reports that the resolution is already causing illegal and legal immigrants to leave.
“If [the County Board of Supervisors] are actually idiots enough to implement this proposal, you’re going to see an enormous economic impact,” Mexicanos Sin Fronteras organizer John Steinbach said. “That’s the reason why the community decided to have this economic boycott, to show the economic muscle of the immigrant community.”
Merchants who want to show allegiance to the boycott are posting up signs opposing the policy and welcoming business from those who are freezing out other popular stores and eateries.
“Any business that puts that sign up is making itself a target of 90 percent of the consumers of Prince William County,” said Greg Letiecq, president of the anti-illegal immigration organization Help Save Manassas. “Consumers want to find out who those businesses are and never do businesses with them again.”
Illegal immigration opponents from Loudoun County, Fairfax County and Montgomery County, Md., have planned shopping trips to Prince William County to counteract the boycott, he said.
dgenz@dcexaminer.com
