Car wash workers join forces with bikini-clad strippers to raise money for people hurt by ICE raids

Published Sep 26, 2025 4:52 PM

In a parking lot, a white woman wearing a baseball cap and pink sponge bikini top stands in front of a car with her arms extended. She is holding a pink sponge. The gray car in front of her has soapy suds on the driver window.

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An unexpected coalition of labor groups joined forces Friday to host a bikini car wash near MacArthur Park and raise money for car wash workers and their families who have been hurt by the ICE raids. The event was in collaboration with the Strippers Co-Op, the CLEAN Carwash Worker Center and CLEAN Wash Mobile Cooperative.

Los Angeles has seen over 88 car washes targeted by agents and over 260 workers detained, according to organizers. Some have signed a “voluntary” departure and are no longer in the country.

“A few of them are still fighting. More than 30 families are connected to us who are fighting that deportation, and we have been successfully able to bring three workers home,” CLEAN executive director Flor Melendrez said. “We wouldn't be able to do that if it weren't for our community support and all the efforts happening around us.”

Immigration under the Trump Administration

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The industry is suffering

Immigration enforcement has heavily targeted day laborers, street vendors and car wash workers, Carlos Amador, economic justice manager at CLEAN Carwash Worker Center, said. As a result, many households are struggling to pay for rent, groceries and other necessities.

A medium skin tone man stands in front of a white mini can and black work truck. He wears a read bandana on his head, black glasses and a navy blue shirt that says, "CLEAN Carwash Worker Center."

“The economic impact is very, very serious,” Amador said. “The impact has been devastating, where some car washes have fully closed because of the workers who have been taken.”

Carmen Gutierrez, an organizer with CLEAN, said workers are afraid.

“Car wash workers have to not only do their job but also be vigilant of their surroundings,” Gutierrez said. “We are hearing of a lot of workers who are leaving the industry because of this.”

Saba Waheed, director of the UCLA Labor Center, said Friday’s event is a great example of worker solidarity.

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“Car washers are on the front line of everything from the cruelty of this administration to the complete violation of basic human rights to the fact that we're legalizing racial profiling and building a mass incarceration state,” Waheed said.

Worker solidarity

Velveeta is a stripper from Hollywood who helped organize the event. She said strippers have learned a lot from the labor movements of car washers.

“We find the work that the Carwash Worker Center has done since 2007 to raise industry standards super inspiring. The strippers are following in that path,” Velveeta said. “We hope to raise industry standards like you have, and it really requires that solidarity.”

Antonia Crane, founder of Strippers United, also volunteered with the Strippers Co-Op on Friday.

“These are my neighbors and friends, and I care deeply about them and their well-being, and we are working very hard to fight ICE,” Crane said.

A white woman with blonde hair stands in a parking lot in front of white tents. A white mini van is under one of the canopies. She is wearing a cropped white t-shirt that reads, "Stripper Co-Op," and has hot pink sponges on each of her hands. Her jean shorts are unbuttoned and she has a pink barrette in her hair.

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LAist has a guide to get help if you’re affected by the immigration sweeps. There’s also a breakdown of what your civil rights are and how to talk to an immigration agent.

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