Minnesotans strike to protest ICE surge in state: ‘No work, no school, no shopping’ | Minnesota

Tens of thousands of Minnesotans marched in Minneapolis and participated in economic disruption on Friday to protest the state’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) increase.

Nearly 100 clergy were detained by the police during the action. video footage showed.

The “no work, no school, no shopping” day of protest, initiated by faith leaders as well as community leaders and labor unions, included statewide actions as well as business closures in solidarity.

The “Truth and Freedom Day” protest comes after unarmed woman Renee Good was shot and killed by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis earlier this month.

Their demands They include ICE leaving Minnesota, holding the ICE officer who killed Good legally accountable, ending additional federal funding for ICE, and investigating the agency for civil rights and constitutional violations.

Hundreds of local businesses in Minnesota announced It is closed for solidarity purposes. While thousands of people will take a day off from work to participate in the protest, some will participate in the protest by not shopping on Friday. Minneapolis city council approved day of action and general strike.

The state’s cultural institutions, including the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minnesota Science Museum, and Minnesota Children’s Museum will be closed Also on Friday.

During a protest at the Minneapolis-St Paul airport on Friday morning, hundreds of clergy called for an end to the ICE surge and called on airlines to join them in opposing ICE in the state. Video of the protest shows hundreds of people walking, singing and praying together outside the airport in sub-zero temperatures. Deportation flights enter and exit the airport every day.

On Friday afternoon, thousands of people dressed in winter clothing and carrying signs filled the streets of downtown Minneapolis to march in sub-zero temperatures, ending with a rally at Target Center, a downtown arena.

Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, president of the Minnesota Regional Federation of Labor (AFL-CIO), previously told the Guardian: “We’re going to have dangerously cold weather on Friday – -10F with windchill. Highs like -10F with windchill up to -20F.”

“We are a northern state and we are built to withstand the cold and we will emerge, but people will need to pay attention not just to the march, but to what people are doing, to the individual stories of solidarity.”

Minnesota AFL-CIO, the state’s federation of more than 1,000 affiliated local unions approved Dozens of local labor unions were also present on the day of action.

“I think what led to this idea of ​​action was the need to figure out what we could do in a meaningful way to stop this,” Kieran Knutson, president of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 7250 in Minneapolis, told the Guardian last week. “The government in the state of Minnesota has not offered any way to stop these attacks, this violence.”

A child care worker in Minneapolis, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation against the immigrant families they serve, said they would close for the day after consulting with and receiving great support from the families of the children they care for.

“We had time to ask the families we serve if they would agree to the closure, and we received an overwhelmingly positive response,” they said. “We serve families who are on child care, families who are paying out-of-pocket. So they were all on board, even those who were trying to go to work, even during this time when they were afraid to leave their homes. So really, so were the families. They were all against it.”

Labor unions representing student workers and staff at the University of Minnesota campuses in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth called for the university system to shut down on Friday to allow students and workers to participate in the day of action.

The University of Minnesota alumni union said ICE’s operations have had an impact on student workers since the beginning of the Trump administration. At least three international students at the University of Minnesota in early 2025 arrested and detained by ICE, despite an immigration judge ordering their release.

“We are truly concerned that the university remains neutral at a time when immigrant communities and international students are literally under attack,” said Abaki Beck, president of the University of Minnesota alumni union. “One of the other things we’re working on specifically on campus is increasing support for immigrant workers and international students.”

A University of Minnesota spokesperson quoted: guidance note From the university leadership in response to the day of action. They said in a statement: “The University of Minnesota fully supports the rights of faculty, staff, and students to participate in lawful civic expression. We must also ensure continuity of operations and fulfill our responsibilities to students and the University community.”

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requested There have been 3,000 arrests in Minnesota in the last six weeks.

us army Put 1,500 soldiers 3,000 immigration officers on duty pending possible deployment to Minnesota shipped to the state by the Trump administration.

“This is beyond crazy. Why don’t these labor bosses want these public safety threats out of their communities?” a DHS spokesperson said in an email in response to the economic disruption. “These are the criminals that labor bosses are trying to protect,” the spokesperson added, referring to 23 uncaptioned photos of undocumented immigrants with criminal records detained by ICE.

Nationwide, immigrants without criminal records continue to constitute the largest group in record levels of U.S. immigration detention.