The National Shutdown on Jan. 30, 2025, kicked off a weekend of protests in Ventura County, as well as in the rest of the nation. Several local businesses shut down, and rallies were held across the county. The loudest voices at these protests were heard yelling “ICE out” and other anti-immigration enforcement slogans. The shutdown was sparked by recent events in Minneapolis Minn. including the infamous shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. While the shutdown aimed to limit school and work attendance in resistance to the recent conditions, some protesters felt caught between the shutdown and their daily responsibilities.
“The goal of a strike is to show that the nation can not function without people feeling confident in our government and the way they treat civil rights. If people aren’t happy, they can forcibly shut things down,” Kell Kingsmith ‘26, a high school student who participated in the shutdown, said.
The goal of the shutdown was to stop the flow of consumer costs into the nation’s economy. This would ideally catch the attention of the federal government. With the slogan, “No Work, No School, No Shopping”, strikers essentially wanted to boycott America.
“I do believe that silence is consent, and if more people stand up, I believe that the people have the power,” said a protester, “More people need to unify, because that’s the only way we can fight back against this.”
Some local businesses completely shut their doors on Jan. 30, but Simone Jurgen, the owner of Simones Coffee and Tea, a local cafe, decided to stay open and donate a percentage of their profits to VCDefensa, a local nonprofit which provides resources to the immigrant community, and tracks I.C.E activity. Jurgen said she told her staff that it was completely optional to come to work, but that most wanted to come anyway.
Similarly, Kingsmith decided to participate in the economic boycott of the shutdown, but attended some of her classes on the day. “Some people can’t afford to skip work or school, it’s just important to show what you can,” she said.
