Caroline Frame: ‘It’s probably hitting more of the suburbs now.’
Caroline Frame is a senior at the University of Minnesota studying strategic communications.
“I work in a restaurant in South Minneapolis, where I feel like all the coworkers are really close and have a good community there. A lot of our back-of-house staff were at immediate risk of ICE agents coming into the restaurant.
“It was definitely hard to see my coworkers going through all of that and see them stressed out. There was a moment where we had like a week and a half of none of them coming into work just out of fear.
“So our coworkers created a group chat and kind of all buddied up with someone in the back of the house who needed the extra support, and we started a GoFundMe and did some fundraising. We were able to do their grocery shopping for them and give them rides to and from work, or just deposit checks at the bank, et cetera.
“I do think it’s unique to Minneapolis. I don’t think that it was just the restaurant I was working at that was doing it. It was communities throughout all of Minneapolis and even the suburbs, and it wasn’t even just restaurants. It was churches, families, and everyone who could help. I feel like I’ve heard of operations in different cities and states, and I don’t see the same support from the community that I’ve seen in Minneapolis.
“I definitely still see the effects of it. I think it’s calmed down. I see my coworkers feel much safer coming back into work, and we still offer them rides and help them out, but it hasn’t been as extreme as it was in the past.
“I do think it’s probably hitting more of the suburbs now. A lot of my coworkers live out in the suburbs and are still scared to just leave, and they still need help paying their rent and utilities.
“I feel like it doesn’t personally affect me as much as it does others. I haven’t personally seen an ICE agent either. I’ve been fortunate enough not to run into any experiences like that. I feel like it’s more so affecting me because it’s just hard to see the community going through everything, and hard to see families being torn apart.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Interview by Josie Wise
