Minneapolis residents and politicians condemn fatal ICE shooting: ‘People are being hurt’ | Minneapolis
When a federal agent shot and killed a woman during a large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis on Wednesday, the Guardian was nearby, shadowing observers who had spent months training to monitor and respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity in the state.
Unmarked ICE vehicles lined the street and yellow police tape cordoned off the area immediately after the attack. Dozens of protesters and community members were seen yelling at both ICE agents and local police on the snowy street. Amidst the chaos, more agents arrived.
People shouted at Minneapolis police to arrest the ICE agent who shot the woman in the car.
“What did your parents teach you?” a woman shouted at the agents.
A man playing a megaphone shouted the slogan “Say it loud, say it clearly, immigrants are welcome here” to some people in the area. People repeatedly shouted for ICE to go away, go home, and get out of Minneapolis; This request was repeated by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
“I have a message to our community for our city, and I have a message for ICE. To ICE, get the hell out of Minneapolis. We don’t want you here. The reason you’re in this city is to create some kind of security, and you’re doing the exact opposite. People are getting hurt,” Frey said.
The mayor added: “Families are being torn apart. Long-time Minneapolis residents who have contributed greatly to our city, our culture, our economy are being terrorized, and now someone is dead.”
Wednesday marked the second day of an expected 30-day surge in what ICE calls its largest operation to date.
Trained observers went to houses overlooking the street where the attack took place and asked citizens if they had any videos they could share. A woman raced through the crowd, telling people at a nearby school where ICE had been seen that more was needed.
City Council members Frey and Minneapolis police Chief Brian O’Hara arrived at the scene. Eventually, Minneapolis police took over and the ICE agents left. While he was doing this, bystanders shouted and threw snowballs at their vehicles. Agents sprayed irritants and shot pellets at those pursuing the vehicles.
After agents left the area, volunteer paramedics helped people who had been sprayed clean their eyes. Observers then heard other whistles blowing nearby; This was a sign that ICE was moving to another part of south Minneapolis. Dozens of people took off in the direction of the whistles.
“This is so sad,” said a man watching the incident.
The victim’s identity has not been publicly released, but according to O’Hara, she was a 37-year-old white woman.
The investigation into the shooting is currently being conducted jointly by the FBI and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. The second will investigate whether any state laws were violated.
