KC businesses train staff for ICE encounters as arrests surge
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Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Local businesses are training staff to respond to ICE encounters as immigration arrests rise across the metro and move farther into neighborhoods and workplaces.
The big picture: Immigration arrests jumped 76% in Missouri and nearly tripled in Kansas last year, according to Deportation Data Project figures analyzed by KCTV5.
- Business owners say the shift is forcing them to prepare for law enforcement situations they never expected to encounter on the job.
Zoom in: David Bulcock, co-owner of Rochester Brewing and Roasting Co., partnered with Boots on the Ground Midwest to educate the business' staff with a roughly 90-minute session focused on constitutional rights, de-escalation and how to respond if federal agents arrive.
- "We wanted our staff to know what to do so they're not shocked or panicked," he tells Axios. "The goal is safety."
What they're saying: The demand for these "Know Your Rights" training sessions has increased exponentially, Nancy Mays with Boots on the Ground Midwest tells Axios.
- "We've reached out to roughly 1,000 businesses across the metro," says Mays. "About 80% have asked for the materials or a training."
- She says most owners are not looking to make political statements, adding, "They don't want signs. They want to know their rights and how to keep people safe."
Mays emphasized that the sessions are informational but don't contain legal advice.
- "This is about knowing your constitutional rights and de-escalation. We're not lawyers, we're just telling you how to get out of a burning building," she said.
How it works: The trainings draw on information from the Roeland Park DEI Committee and Project RISE, a city-backed small business initiative.
- The materials outline what questions employees can decline to answer and note that a judicial warrant is generally required to enter private spaces.
- Organizers emphasize de-escalation, framing the guidance as a way for businesses to protect staff and customers amid an increase in enforcement activity they say is no longer confined to jails.
The bottom line: With immigration enforcement moving into neighborhoods and workplaces, KC business owners are responding with staff training focused on safety and de-escalation.