Milwaukee business owners are finding various ways to participate in national protests while balancing solidarity with the practical needs of staying open and supporting their communities.
Across the city, small businesses are taking different approaches to show support during the national day of action, from adjusting hours to donating profits to simply staying open as a form of community support.
Hundreds of anti-ICE protesters peacefully gathered in Cathedral Square Park Friday, before marching through the streets of Milwaukee for about a half hour.
Watch: Charles Benson reports from anti-ICE protest in downtown Milwaukee:
(Video contains explicit language)
"I think it's important that people are intentional versus being kind of broadly engaged, because when you shop small, you are supporting real people," said Romero McCants, interim executive director of Sherman Phoenix.
McCants said that for many small businesses, closing for a day simply isn't an option, but there are other ways to make a statement.
"Protests can take many forms and choosing where you spend your dollars is taking a stand in itself," McCants said.
For small businesses where every sale matters and every dollar goes directly back into the neighborhood, staying open can be its own form of activism.
"A small business every day counts, every dollar counts, every purchase counts… it's about building economic equity and recirculating the dollars right back into the community," McCants said.
In Walker's Point, Indeed Brewing Company is staying open while donating all profits to support protesters.
"We're giving back 100% of all of our net proceeds to the Minnesota Immigration Action Committee," said Cullen Voss, general manager of Indeed Brewing Company Milwaukee.
Every tap beer, piece of merchandise, and dollar spent will go toward supporting protesters on the ground in Minneapolis.
"We're a small business, we can't exactly afford to close, but we can provide a space for people to have these conversations," Voss said.
At Voyager in Bayview, owner Jordan Burrich cut back hours to give employees time to protest while planning to reopen later to support both staff and the community.
"I wanted to give my employees a chance to go and take part in the demonstrations… I think it's important that we get out on the streets and exercise our First Amendment rights," Burrich said.
Business owners say there's no single way to protest, and many agree that supporting communities, workers, and neighbors is where their stand begins.
"We think it's important to keep conversations going after the demonstration as well. People are welcome to come down and hang out and support each other," Burrich said.
Voyager is reopening later, donating proceeds from food specials to protest groups in Minneapolis and locally.
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