Rhode Island Businesses Form Network to Limit ICE Access

Twenty-five Rhode Island businesses have joined a network designating themselves as 'immigrant defense zones,' where they will require federal immigration officials to present judicial warrants before entering. The initiative, announced in July 2025, involves businesses primarily located in Providence's Southside and Westminster Street areas, including Crown Fried Chicken, Down the Road Movers, and Frog & Toad's two locations. Participating establishments display window signs identifying them as defense zones and providing a hotline number to report Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity.

The Rhode Island Deportation Defense Coalition, which organized the effort, comprises several community organizations including the Alliance to Mobilize Our Resistance, the Party for Socialism and Liberation Rhode Island, and the Olneyville Neighborhood Association. The coalition has been active since February 2025 and maintains a hotline (401-675-1414) similar to one operating in Massachusetts. When calls are received, volunteers verify reported ICE presence and can mobilize community members if enforcement actions are occurring.

The legal basis for the initiative stems from immigration enforcement limitations. According to the National Immigration Law Center, ICE agents may enter public areas of businesses but cannot access private areas without permission or a judicial warrant. The coalition states that their effort aims to ensure these legal protections are maintained. Organizers indicated plans to expand the network beyond its current locations to include businesses in Providence's East Side, West End, and Olneyville neighborhoods.

This development occurs amid ongoing national discussions about immigration enforcement policies under the Trump administration, which began its second term in January 2025. The initiative represents a local response to federal immigration enforcement practices. Similar community-based efforts to establish guidelines for interactions between local entities and federal immigration authorities have emerged in various locations across the United States in recent years.