Rallies against the Trump administration’s hardline immigration tactics were also reported in other cities, such as Los Angeles. It comes as the US Justice Department opened a probe into the killing of Alex Pretti.
Thousands of protesters rallied in Minneapolis and other parts of the United States on Friday against the hardline immigration tactics used by US President Donald Trump’s administration.
Last month, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection launched Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis and neighboring St. Paul in an attempt to detain undocumented immigrants in the metropolitan area.
Some 3,000 federal agents have been deployed to Minneapolis amid the operation, five times the number of local police officers in the city.
What happened during the demonstrations?
The killing of two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, by federal agents during the operation this month has sparked national and international indignation and ramped up calls for the Trump administration to end its raids in the Twin Cities as well as broader calls to reform and defund ICE.
The demonstrators in Minneapolis carried posters amid freezing temperatures with slogans such as “ICE OUT NOW!” Others held images of Renee Good and called for Trump and US Vice President JD Vance to be impeached.
Rock star Bruce Springsteen also performed his new single “Streets of Minneapolis” in the city to show solidarity with protesters at a benefit concert hosted by Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello.
The protests were part of an event called the “National Shutdown,” which called for a “nationwide day of no school, no work and no shopping.”
In addition, demonstrations were also reported in US cities, including Los Angeles. US media also reported that students walked out of high schools in states such as Indiana, Wisconsin and Maine.
DOJ opens civil rights probe into Alex Pretti killing
The demonstrations come as the US Department of Justice has opened a civil rights probe into the killing of 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti by US Border Patrol agents.
“We’re looking at everything that would shed light on what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened,” US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said of the investigation.
The decision to open an investigation has raised questions about whether the federal government can accurately probe a killing by its own agents. Moreover, the federal government has not opened an investigation into the killing of Nicole Good, who was shot dead by an ICE agent.
US Senate passes DHS stopgap as Democrats urge ICE reform
The killings of US citizens — and the deaths of six non-US nationals while held in ICE custody — and reports of unconstitutional activity by ICE and Border Patrol triggered demands from federal Democratic lawmakers for reform, and abolition, of ICE.
The US Senate on Friday voted to fund most of the government through the end of September, dodging the worst impacts of a government shutdown. However, the Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for ICE and Border Patrol, will only be funded for two more weeks.
This stopgap measure gives legislators time to discuss possible ICE reforms, such as a ban on face masks and an end to warrantless roving patrols.
Source : https://www.dw.com/en/minneapolis-thousands-rally-against-trump-immigration-blitz/a-75736782
