Employees didn't show up for work, forcing some businesses to shut down. Most Latino-owned shops and restaurants never opened in support of the "Brown Out." Many Latino students missed class, and one school postponed a state-mandated test due to absences.
It is not yet known how much Utah's economy was affected by Monday's boycott, but the historic national movement had a visible impact around the Beehive State.
Throughout the day, supporters of reforms that would give legal status to undocumented workers united in celebration of "A Day Without Immigrants." In Salt Lake City, thousands of people walked around Liberty Park on Monday night chanting "USA! USA!" In Wendover, more than 500 Latinos marched along the small town's main street waving U.S. flags. In Ogden, about 1,000 people rallied in front of the Federal Building carrying signs. One read, "I was born in USA. Do not divide my family."
At Hector's Miramar Restaurant in Salt Lake City, a handwritten note on white paper was posted on the front door that read: "We will be closed May 1." Mexican bakeries didn't sell conchas and popular parking-lot taco stands didn't sell burritos. Cars drove around a West Valley City strip mall that houses 15 businesses, but none of the 10 Latino businesses - including a fancy-dress store, candy shop and hair salons - were open.
Many Latinos didn't go to work, though some did shop.
Ana Rosa Reynaga, a 43-year-old motel housekeeper, and her husband, Santos Velasquez, stayed home with their family in support of the boycott, but stopped by Supermercado de las Américas on Salt Lake City's west side to buy meat and tortillas. The couple came to the United States more than 15 years ago as undocumented immigrants from Mexico but now have proper documentation. They said Mexicans have no choice sometimes but to head north for jobs.
"If we were in the same situation, we would've done it again," Velasquez said.
Danae Vega - one of about 90,000 undocumented immigrants in Utah - cleans the houses of six white families for a living and lost about $300 in business by not working. The 21-year-old and her relatives joined the boycott to unite with Latinos nationwide in hopes that U.S. laws are changed to give undocumented workers legal status.
Yet, some Latinos said they didn't have a chance to join the boycott because they have bills to pay and children to feed.
Christina Flores, a 26-year-old mother of three, wanted to miss work and her employer, McDonald's, was willing to give her the time off, but she needs the $36 she earned Monday. She prays for change.
"I believe in God. I believe He's going to do this and help us fix our papers," Flores said. "Our children are from here - and they will serve this country one day."
Some businesses closed and some construction sites and production lines either slowed to a crawl or were halted, while many business owners said they felt little or no impact.
Craig Forman of Deseret Labs, a dietary supplement manufacturer in St. George, said after 35 of the company's 198 employees stayed away: "It didn't slow us down completely, but if this were a monthly occurrence, it would really have an impact."
Although the boycott's effects were negligible for the local hotel industry, two of Cache Valley's largest employers chose to close in anticipation of no-shows. In Wendover, the largest hotel-casinos were unable to open their restaurants because most of their Latinos employees chose not to work.
Some non-Latino business owners also decided not to open on Monday in support of their Latino workers.
John Bouzek, owner of the Blue Plate Diner near Salt Lake City's Sugar House neighborhood, said he closed because his Latino employees requested the day off and on a day-to-day basis he couldn't run his small business without them.
Some businesses, including Mexican restaurants, were forced to close when too many workers stayed away.
La Frontera, which was founded 26 years ago by the late Mexican immigrant Antonio Tovar, shut down its Salt Lake City store at 1250 E. 3300 South because six employees didn't show up for work. The closure is estimated to cost $3,000 in business for the local chain of six Mexican restaurants, said La Frontera General Manager Jerri Quintana. Still, she said the West Valley City restaurant was much busier than usual.
Jose de Rodriguez, owner of the Las Islitas in West Valley City, gave his 14 employees the day off without pay on Monday. He also didn't buy his usual Monday delivery of $800 worth of beer for his Mexican seafood restaurant. And he probably lost about $400 in profits for shutting down.
At schools statewide, empty desks dotted classrooms, particularly in areas with large Latino populations.
Specific districtwide attendance data was available only in Ogden, where almost 30 percent of 5,409 Latino students were reported absent, but anecdotal evidence suggests the boycott blanketed schools from Logan to St. George.
At least one Salt Lake City school, Jackson Elementary, postponed state-mandated testing due to absences of more than four times the average number of students.
In late afternoon, about 150 anti-illegal immigration demonstrators gathered for the Utah Minuteman Project's Wake-Up America Rally at the Salt Lake City-County Building.
They sat under the shade with signs that read "Cannon, Hatch traitors" and "Which laws do I get to break?"
A few blocks away, boycott supporters walked in support of "compassionate and comprehensive immigration reform" at Liberty Park. Police estimated the crowd at 7,500 people; organizers at 7,500 to 10,000.
Chris Gomez, a native of El Salvador, is a U.S. citizen and Salt Lake City resident, but he has relatives who are undocumented immigrants. In support of the boycott, Gomez didn't work or shop.
"I feel like I needed to support my heritage," he said. "My background is Latino and there is no shame in that."
A candlelight vigil of about 250 people, organized by Latino university students at the state Capitol, completed the day.
jsanchez@sltrib.com
Reporters Julia Lyon, Kristen Moulton, Bob Mims, Mark Eddington, Rosemary Winters, Mark Havnes, Steven Oberbeck, Dawn House, Christopher Smart, Jason Bergreen and Mike Gorrell and correspondents Arrin Newton Brunson and Lisa Church contributed to this story.
