His business has a ‘no law enforcement’ sign. The Memphis Safe Task Force swarmed the parking lot.

Rob Brown helps a customer put in an order at the counter of his restaurant, Da Sammich Spot. On Sunday, Brown was confronted by National Guard and Memphis Safe Task Force agents posted up outside the shop. (Photo by Brad Vest for MLK50)

(This story was originally published by MLK50: Justice Through Journalism. Subscribe to their newsletter here.)

Rob Brown opened Da Sammich Spot Restaurant and Resource Hub in Orange Mound in March 2025 to be a “cultural hub for regular, everyday people in the community,” he said. The dining room’s walls are covered in wavy patterns of yellow and white. The space is dotted with positive quotes, hand-painted in bright-orange, bold text: “Respect humans. Protect children. Lettuce be friends.”

But on Sunday night, the restaurant became a scene of fear and confusion when dozens of law enforcement and military officers staked out the parking lot, although Da Sammich Spot was closed. The National Guard and several other local, state and federal law enforcement agencies have been patrolling the city since September as part of President Donald Trump’s Memphis Safe Task Force.

Community members said they saw people wearing military uniforms standing in front of several businesses along Park Avenue on Sunday night. “A friend texted me and was like, ‘Hey, I was riding past and saw the National Guard setting up in front of your restaurant.’ So I turned on my camera first and saw them,” Brown told MLK50: Justice Through Journalism.

Brown was at his home, just minutes away from the restaurant. After seeing the live camera footage, he showed up and asked them to move their van. It was blocking the restaurant’s entrance, Brown said. They agreed to move, but soon after, more than 20 law enforcement and military officers filed into the cramped parking lot.

(Scenes from Rob Brown’s Facebook Live on Jan. 4, 2026.)

Almost instinctively, Brown started a livestream on Facebook at 8:22 p.m. on Sunday. A social media video showed that the National Guard was present first. Moments later, federal agents from the FBI, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, and Homeland Security Investigations arrived. Officers from the Memphis Police Department were also on the scene around 9 p.m. Officers were responding to a “disturbance at Park and Semmes,” an MPD spokesperson told MLK50 via text.

“I’m getting more and more scared for my life,” Brown said during the livestream as he pointed out all the weapons task force members were carrying. Brown went into “fight-or-flight” mode as a result of PTSD, he said.

“My adrenaline (was) pumping,” Brown said. “Things will go from zero to 100 in Memphis.”

The sudden police and military presence felt like an affront to the restaurant’s mission as “a safe space for the community,” Brown said. That mission is part of the reason Brown accepted the offer to put a new sign on the front door of his restaurant from a community organizer when the task force began its work in the fall.

(Scenes from Hunter Demster’s Facebook Live on Jan. 4, 2026)

“Come to find out, I’m one of the only businesses in the city that actually put it up,” he said.

Taped to the front door, the sign is a laminated sheet of printer paper. “Stop. No ICE access in this business. Notice to all law enforcement & immigration agents,” it reads. “If you attempt to enter this business without a valid judicial warrant, you will be asked to leave. This policy is in compliance with: U.S. Constitution, 4th Amendment.”

“It’s just crazy that the one space in the whole neighborhood that has this sign up, y’all come park in front of it,” Brown said while livestreaming on social media. “It’s an occupying force right here…This shit don’t make no sense.”

When Brown told guard members that he felt unsafe, one responded: “We’re patrolling this whole area.”

As Brown aired his experience on social media, other community members showed up to support him. Their presence seemed to “de-escalate the situation,” Brown said, and by 9:43 p.m., the parking lot was mostly empty. No arrests were made, nor any citations given.