Minnesota Nice Beats ICE
Kindness and solidarity in the face of state-sponsored cruelty.
ICE’s policy of inflicting cruelty and terror on the streets of Minneapolis is shocking and horrifying. Every day, we’re confronted with video proof that the Trump administration is waging war on the American people, on the streets of American cities. After a while, it’s enough to make anyone want to turn away and just not think about it. We aren’t built to witness callousness and inhumanity on this scale.
But then you see the stories of hope. Of pushback. Of community resilience in the face of state-sponsored violence. Of protestors and local leaders and regular people who never ever thought they’d be involved in something like this—all coming together to support one another. They shouldn’t have to do this; all of them would rather be living their normal lives.
But the Trump administration and ICE forced them into this position, and they are responding in classic Minnesota Nice fashion: By being there for their friends and neighbors, and modeling the kind of decency and humanity that is so glaringly absent on the other side.
Here’s Minnesota Now’s Aaron Galloway, with a helpful timeline of ICE’s occupation of Minneapolis, and how the community has responded in real time:
DECEMBER: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter publicly expressed concerns about the scale of the operation and its impact on local communities.
JANUARY 7: The shooting of [Renee] Good was caught on multiple video angles, and her death immediately drew widespread attention and prompted calls from community leaders and civil rights groups for an independent investigation into the shooting.
JANUARY 8: Demonstrators confront federal agents outside the Whipple federal building in Minneapolis, a day after a federal agent shot Renee Good. Organizers demanded accountability from ICE and DHS leadership and called for changes to federal enforcement tactics being used in Minnesota.
JANUARY 12: Governor Tim Walz, along with Mayor Jacob Frey and Mayor Melvin Carter, announced a joint lawsuit against the federal government seeking to halt Operation Metro Surge.
JANUARY 15: The Minnesota Department of Corrections publicly challenged claims made by the US Department of Homeland Security, calling them “categorically false” and accusing DHS of misrepresenting routine prison transfers as ICE “arrests.”
JANUARY 23: Large-scale protests, organized under the “ICE Out” movement, brought thousands of demonstrators to downtown Minneapolis and other cities.
JANUARY 25: People gather during a vigil held by healthcare workers at a memorial for Alex Pretti. Demonstrations spread to additional locations, including hotels where federal agents were reportedly staying. Some protests became tense as crowd-control tactics were deployed.
This is not the portrait of a community that’s accepting its fate, rolling over, and letting ICE do its dirty work. It’s a massive, organic, coordinated response to the ICE killing of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. It’s overwhelmingly peaceful, and involves Minnesotans up and down the chain—from regular people protesting on the streets, to city and state leadership, to local law enforcement, and beyond.
The “Day of Truth and Freedom” on January 23 was an inflection point in the fight against ICE. Tens of thousands of people marched in wind chill temperatures reaching negative 20°F. On January 30, more than 700 businesses closed in a general strike with a very clear message: “The people of the Twin Cities have shown the way for the whole country—to stop ICE’s reign of terror, we need to SHUT IT DOWN.”
Unlike the violence on display from ICE’s masked agents, these demonstrations were overwhelmingly peaceful. People filled the streets holding signs saying “ICE Out of MN!” and chanting, “ICE out! Minnesota—ICE out!” They sang Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It.” They filled entire city blocks. As many as 100,000 of them showed up, more than could fit inside the Minnesota Vikings stadium, which protestors marched past all day.
When asked by a Reuters reporter why they were there, the demonstrators spoke with a moral clarity that this moment demands. One woman said, “Standing back and not doing anything doesn’t help with the situation. Everybody’s scared, so we need to speak out.” A man said, “This is not how we treat our neighbors. The inhumanity of this Trump administration is just beyond the pale. We are better than this.” These people are living proof that this is true.
Video Credit: Reuters / @Reuters via Twitter
Students in high schools and colleges across the Minneapolis/St. Paul region walked out in protest of ICE. They were there to register their outrage at the killing of Good and Pretti, to call for accountability for those responsible, and to demand that ICE leave their state immediately. In states as far away as Wisconsin, New York, and Georgia, other students did the same thing. It didn’t matter that ICE hadn’t reached their communities—yet. They felt the same pain that Minnesotans were feeling, the same rage, the same refusal to be silent.
Video Credit: BreakThrough News / @BTnewsroom via Twitter / BreakThrough News / @BTnewsroom via Twitter / Spectrum News NY1 / @NY1 via Twitter / Brian Allen / @allenanalysis via Twitter
While ICE agents continued to menace, taunt, and intimidate protestors, members of the Minnesota National Guard made their presence felt in a different way: by handing out coffee, donuts, and hot chocolate to protesters weathering the sub-zero temperatures. When asked why they were doing this, one Guardsman said: “This is a demonstration of safety and security. We’re here to help them.”
Video Credit: Brian Allen / @allenanalysis via Twitter
Other protestors handed out pizza, sodas, apples, cookies, animal crackers—anything to make the protestors feel more comfortable. A local small business owner named Shontay Evans picked up some snacks, water, and two pizzas and brought them to a protest group in her community. Her business had been hit hard by ICE’s presence, and she was feeling the pinch as customers and employees were scared away. She realized she couldn’t afford to be silent.
When a journalist from Mother Jones asked her why she showed up to the protest, she said: “Minnesota is definitely about solidarity and sticking together and standing for injustice, just like we did for George Floyd. Don’t forget, if you’ve been silent, that’s complicit, so you’re agreeing with what’s going on, so we need everybody to stand up.” Then she offered the reporter a hand-warmer.
Video Credit: bridget123goooo / @bridget123goooo via Twitter
Earlier this week, Minneapolis resident Joe Leary wrote in these pages: “Minnesotans don’t brag much, but we are stubborn, resilient, and not easily bullied. Many are saying this administration picked the wrong state—and that it’s unwise to attack winter people in winter. We are heartbroken. We are furious. We are learning how to resist. We will not stop. And many of us will never forget or forgive.” In response to this piece, Joe received a note from a friend, an immigrant whose identity we are withholding. It said:
We are in a constant state of worrying over what will happen to us. We were told not to talk, post, comment, or even like anything even remotely political because it could be used against us to detain us. Doesn’t matter if we are citizens of the United States and have immigrated to this country through completely legal means. People looking at our skin color may always think otherwise.
They don’t know that we followed every single rule that was laid out there to become a citizen of the US. They don’t know that we waited decades to get this status. They don’t know how many sacrifices we made to get this citizenship, which we thought would give our kids a better life. We are not so sure about our choices anymore. We are scared for our children. They were born here and were raised like any other American. They studied in the same schools and learned the same culture.
Now they are treated like outsiders and they are confused. They don’t understand what their identity is anymore. They are so used to American culture that it will be a shock for them to go back. At the same time, they can’t live here without feeling threatened.
The fact that our friends and neighbors are being forced to live with this kind of fear, is exactly why all of us have a special obligation to stand up and speak out in this moment. It’s why the people of Minneapolis have chosen to do the hard work of fighting back, rather than taking the easy way out and giving in. It’s why people like Joe Leary, Shontay Evans, and tens of thousands of others braved the arctic cold to make their voices heard. It’s why Renee Good and Alex Pretti showed up when ICE occupied an American city.
You can hear a lot on the streets of Minneapolis right now: residents chanting, crying, shouting, praying. Masked agents yelling obscenities at peaceful protesters. ICE officials lying about what they’re doing there. Speeches and exhortations from local leaders trying to keep the community safe. Legal observers documenting what’s happening. In some places, you can also hear the Minnesota state flag waving in the freezing wind, while a crowd sings a song called “Hold On” by Heidi Wilson.
It goes: “Hold on. Hold on, my dear ones. Here comes the dawn.” Minnesota will see a new dawn, thanks to the people who live there, and in spite of the federal agents doing their best to prolong this darkest night.
Video Credit: madibankssss via TikTok
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Most MAGAts couldn't pass the test that immigrants have to take in order to become US citizens.
This is patriotism at it's finest.