Anti-ICE demonstrators chase off outnumbered far-right activists at Minneapolis rally
By Brad Brooks
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan 17 (Reuters) – Hundreds of anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis chased away a small group of far-right activists who vowed to march on a neighborhood with many immigrants on Saturday, raising tensions in the city on edge following the killing of Renee Good by a federal immigration officer 10 days ago.
Anti-ICE protesters gathered downtown near City Hall, waving signs and chanting slogans calling for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents to leave Minneapolis. Several people moved forward, pushing approximately 10 far-right demonstrators out of the municipal administration center within minutes. Some in the crowd threw water balloons, which drenched right-wing demonstrators as wind-driven temperatures reached -4 degrees Fahrenheit (-20 Celsius).
Police kept their distance as dueling protests continued. About an hour after the rallies began, a small contingent of right-wing activists quickly marched to a hotel a few blocks away, pursued by hundreds of anti-ICE protesters who screamed obscenities and told them to leave town. A few fights broke out, but Reuters did not observe any serious violence.
ONLINE INFUNENCER REPORTS STABBING ATTEMPT
Jake Lang, an online right-wing influencer and one of more than 1,500 people pardoned by President Donald Trump following their criminal convictions for the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, held what he called an “anti-fraud” rally. Lang’s voice could never be heard by the crowd.
Later, Lang shared that he was stabbed during a fight at X, but his protective vest prevented the attempt. Reuters was unable to verify his account. Minneapolis police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The anti-ICE protest was organized by the People’s Action Coalition Against Trump.
Trump has repeatedly cited the scandal of the theft of federal funds for welfare programs in Minnesota as justification for sending thousands of immigration enforcement officers to Minnesota. The president and administration officials have repeatedly singled out the state’s Somali immigrant community.
“We are here to support our Somali neighbors, they have asked their white allies to come to them,” said Laura, 56, who, like all the protesters interviewed, asked that her last name not be used for fear of retribution from the federal government. “I’m here to exercise my First Amendment right because my neighbors can’t do that, they’re too afraid to leave their homes.”
Lang, who has made anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic comments, said he wanted to secure the United States for white Christians. He attended small pro-ICE rallies in Minneapolis this week and targeted Somali immigrants, who are largely Muslim.
Nearly 3,000 agents from ICE and Border Patrol have been in Minneapolis and St. Louis in recent weeks. flocked to Paul. An ICE agent shot and killed Good, a U.S. citizen and mother of three, who walked away after being ordered to exit her vehicle by ICE agents. The officer who shot Good was on the left side of the front of his car. DHS said he was struck by the car and feared for his life, but the videos show the agent remaining standing, raising questions about how much contact the car made with him.
This has put Minnesota’s Democratic leadership at odds with Trump, whose Justice Department has launched an investigation into Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks; Editing by Sergio Non, Rod Nickel and Franklin Paul)
