An anti-ICE sign on display in the window of Richmond taqueria TBT El Gallo
In recent months, it has become nearly impossible for many Richmond residents to separate their daily routines from the realities unfolding around them both locally and nationwide. The prospect of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Hanover County, reports of unmarked vehicles circulating through neighborhoods, owners of a longtime Carytown business choosing to self-deport, news and social media replaying videos of the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis, and other violence directed at lawful protesters have created a persistent sense of unease. Focusing on work — or remaining silent — has begun to feel increasingly hollow.
Local businesses are wrestling with that same tension.
But closing their doors in solidarity with Minneapolis and being a part of the nationwide general strike on Jan. 30 wasn’t a feasible option for many local business owners, particularly after days of lost revenue and other lingering impacts from the recent winter storm. Still, these entrepreneurs have found other ways to show up.
More than 70 Richmond businesses have joined forces for One Big Beautiful Raffle, a citywide fundraiser featuring prize packages donated by establishments, with most valued at $400 or more. The raffle runs through Feb. 10, with proceeds directed to organizations that work directly with families affected by ICE enforcement efforts.
Participants range from Gallery5 and World of Mirth to Shelf Life Books and Tiger’s Eye Hair Studio. A majority of the businesses involved come from the food and beverage sector, including Abi’s Books & Brews, Afterglow Coffee Cooperative, Blanchard’s Coffee, Blue Atlas, Cobra Burger, GWARbar, Fat Rabbit bakery, Helen’s, Janet’s Café & Bakery, Lamplighter Coffee Roasters, sausage purveyor The Mayor, Proper Pie Co., Riverside Tavern, Recluse Roasting Project, Second Bottle Wine and Snack Shop, Stanley’s, Sub Rosa Bakery, Susie’s, TBT El Gallo, The Emerald Lounge, The Jasper, and Zorch Pizza.
Within 24 hours of launching, the raffle surpassed its initial $5,000 goal, with proceeds quickly climbing to $40,000. As of this writing, donations have surpassed $65,000, and the total continues to rise. For Adam Musselman, owner of Church Hill eatery Cobra Burger and one of the organizers behind the raffle, the question was never whether to speak up, rather how to do so in a meaningful way.
“We wanted to show support for Minneapolis and beyond, and say we don’t f--- with ICE, but also ask, ‘What can we actually do that matters here?’”
Loud and Clear
Musselman has never been silent with his stance on issues. His restaurant has become known almost equally for its outspoken social media presence as for its crispy-edged smashburgers. He’s quick — sometimes pointedly so — to respond to criticism, but beneath the confrontational demeanor is a consistent belief.
“We have a direct responsibility to speak up,” Musselman says. “We’re the meeting places. Maybe it sounds cheesy, but small local businesses are pillars of the community. If you’re part of that and you’re not saying, ‘We care about our neighbors’ when they’re being brutalized, that’s f--- ed up. You have to speak up.”
The raffle took shape after Ellie Livingston of Richmond Tattoo Club reached out to Musselman trying to figure out a way to respond to current events. What began as a conversation among a handful of businesses rapidly transformed into something with serious potential.
Musselman says he continues to receive calls and messages from owners looking to participate, with additional prize packages in the works and conversations already underway about what could come next — festivals, live shows and other collaborative efforts.
“This is a chunk of the Richmond economy right here,” he says. “Look at the diversity of businesses involved. When we pool our resources, we can kind of do whatever the hell we want. This is momentum. We’re not done — this just lit a fire under everyone’s a--.”
For Ellyn Hopper, a raffle participant and owner of Fat Rabbit bakery in Union Hill, the timing felt critical.
“This group of businesses started brainstorming at exactly the right moment,” Hopper says.
Musselman believes the response reflects a broader uncertainty about how to get involved. Initiatives such as the raffle offer an accessible first step — one that has already proven its impact.
“A lot of people don’t know what to do,” he says. “They’re intimidated to ask, and that’s reasonable. This s--- is scary. But this is an easy way to say, ‘OK, I can do this.’ And maybe that leads to something else.”
“There’s a million ways to show up for your community,” he adds. “Any way you do it is valid. There’s no meaningless contribution.”
Extending Efforts
The raffle is not the only effort underway. Across the region, cafes, breweries, restaurants and bars have doubled as donation drop-off points, served specials benefiting local nonprofits and, in some cases, closed temporarily in protest. Much like during the COVID-19 pandemic, these third spaces find themselves on the front lines of a broader movement, recognizing their ability to reach large groups of people and the opportunity their platforms offer to support collective action.
Beginning last summer, signs proclaiming “ICE is not welcome here, we know our rights,” written in both English and Spanish, started going up at businesses around the city.
“We think people should be able to express their views through whatever platforms they want,” says Chris Ray, co-owner of Center of the Universe Brewing Co. in Ashland. “It’s one of the great things about this country. Our brewery generally takes a back seat when it comes to politics, but issues like human rights and decency should never be reduced to party lines.”
On Jan. 25, the brewery posted a message reading, “CLOSED DUE TO ICE & SNOW. F--- ICE.” The post (and follow-ups Jan. 26 and 27) quickly circulated online, its message unmistakably touching on more than the slick roads. (The proposed ICE detention facility in Hanover County will not go forward after the property owner, facing the opposition of local residents and the county Board of Supervisors, withdrew its plan to sell the building.)
“As a community-focused business, we support a wide range of groups and charities,” Ray says. “When we feel an issue negatively affects those groups, we feel obligated to speak out. With what we’ve been witnessing across the country — and the threat of bringing that violence to our backyard — our team agreed it was time.”
Others are joining in. The Jasper donated 20% of its sales from select drinks to the Richmond Community Legal Fund, while its sibling spot, the Emerald Lounge, has been accepting donations for those impacted by ICE. Celladora Wines poured special selections with all sales going to local families affected by ICE.
Abi’s Books & Brews, a cafe and bookstore near VCU, has been crafting “Chinga la Migra” lattes — an extra-hot oat milk latte with agave and coconut syrup — with 50% of proceeds benefiting the Richmond Community Legal Fund.
Abi’s owner Mailie Duffin, whose business is part of One Big Beautiful Raffle, says anxiety in the community over the immigration situation is palpable.
“There’s definitely been a lot of fear among employees and customers,” Duffin says. “Many of us may not be directly affected yet, we know that can change any day. And we’re angry watching people be terrorized by ICE and the administration.”
Duffin rejects the idea that businesses should “stay in their lane.”
“I think while we have the chance to use our voice and whatever resources we have, it’s our responsibility to do so,” she says. “This is not the time to be silent.”
Abi’s plans to continue serving the lattes through February, and this week introduced three additional “ICE melting specials,” including a No-Ice Cold Brew.
“For me, showing up is to make the business feel safe and … to not be afraid to step outside coffee and books,” Duffin says, noting, “They are both kind of radical in their own way.”
For Hopper, the lines between business and politics have all but disappeared. She says herself, employees and fellow bakers are feeling a sense of sorrow and heaviness in recent weeks.
“In an ideal situation, I believe we should be able to separate them, but the way that the current climate affects our everyday life — it seems impossible,” Hopper says. “Personally, I believe that small businesses primarily have a responsibility to their staff. That is my No. 1 goal. I feel a hefty onus to make sure they are cared for and protected.”
Along with Hopper, many local proprietors spoke of feeling a responsibility to protect their employees on various fronts. Ray says he checks in with staff before taking public stances. “Fortunately, we have incredible people who share the same principles of human decency and compassion,” he says. “It makes it easier when you’re not standing alone.”
Brandon Peck, co-owner of The Jasper and The Emerald Lounge, says conversations among staff and patrons mirror a broader unease.
“People are scared,” Peck says. “Even citizens are worried about being targeted. There’s some really bad energy right now. We’re all just looking for a way to do something positive.”
In Manchester, Gold Lion Community Cafe owners Matthew and Nafis Narsinghani posted an Instagram story with the message “We come from a family of immigrants and live in fear of what could happen to our family. We have worked to make Gold Lion one of the many homes of Richmond’s resistance.”
These sentiments are not siloed. Mac McCormack, owner of McCormack’s Irish Pub, McCormack’s Big Whisky Grill and McCormack’s Whisky Grill, was recently at the center of a national debate after releasing politically charged merchandise.
At Lakeside vegan gelato shop Davvero Gelato, owner Layne Montgomery has shown that, for her, there has never been a distinction between business and belief. Since opening, she has advocated for abolishing ICE and supporting Palestinian liberation, regularly donating 10% of special sales to causes including the Richmond Community Legal Fund and Matchbox Mutual Aid.
It is impossible to separate rising concerns about ICE from the food and beverage industry, which is largely built by immigrant communities. According to the National Restaurant Association, immigrants make up more than 20% of the U.S. food service workforce. Their role extends even further: An estimated 73% of agricultural workers in the United States are immigrants.
For Carlos Ordaz-Nuñez, owner of taqueria TBT El Gallo in the Fan, the issue is deeply personal, woven into the fabric of his life. Mexican-born and Hanover-raised, he has family that still live in Mexico, and his parents worked as farmers before settling on their Mechanicsville farm, Rosa’s Garden.
“A big part of my identity is being the son of an immigrant,” Ordaz-Nuñez said in an interview earlier this year, “and honoring the sacrifices my parents made — especially with my father passing a couple of years ago.”
The One Big Beautiful Raffle has become a reminder of the small-city, big-town infrastructure we’re a part of — neighbors helping neighbors in moments of shared fear and urgency. Amid the doomscrolling and dread of what comes next, it offers something tangible: collective action and compassion.
“I hope this fundraiser brings awareness,” Hopper says. “And that it will create a further greater community amongst the business owners participating, allowing us to do more for our city with the current issues and ones in the future. And I hope that it spurs other cities to similar action. It’s actually insane what we have been and are able to accomplish by banding together.”
“The group chat is buzzing,” Musselman says. “It’s good energy. Between the winter, the violence — everything — it felt good, even just for a moment, to look at this and say, ‘F--- yeah.’”
Other One Big Beautiful Raffle participants include Black Rabbit Tattoo, Richmond Tattoo Club, Unkindness Art, Kind Hearted Goods, Solstice Hair Studio, State of Love Tattoo, Vinyl Conflict, Luminary Hair Company, Rosewood Clothing Company, Misfit Tattoo and New Moon Blue Moon. Raffle tickets are $20 each or $100 for six.
