Why Over 100 Clergy Were Arrested During an Anti-ICE Protest in Minnesota
Quick Summary
In a significant "ICE OUT!" day of action across Minnesota, dozens of clergy members were arrested at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport for kneeling on a road to protest the Trump administration's deployment of thousands of immigration enforcement officers. This demonstration, part of a larger movement that included a general strike with businesses closing in solidarity, also aimed to highlight the detention of airport workers by ICE and demand accountability for an agent who shot and killed a U.S. citizen. The federal crackdown, which local Democrats have labeled an "invasion," was fueled by President Trump's inflammatory rhetoric targeting the state's Somali community. Despite freezing weather, residents have engaged in continuous protests, leading to high tensions and clashes with agents using tear gas and flash-bangs. While Vice President JD Vance visited to "lower the temperature," many locals remain skeptical, feeling they are under siege from the federal government and that their resistance has not yet been sufficient to stop the surge.
On Friday, dozens of clergy members were arrested at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport after kneeling on a road to sing hymns and pray. The arrests were part of a larger, statewide day...
On Friday, dozens of clergy members were arrested at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport after kneeling on a road to sing hymns and pray. The arrests were part of a larger, statewide day of action called “ICE OUT!,” organized to protest the Trump administration’s decision to send thousands of immigration enforcement officers into the Twin Cities.
According to organizers like the advocacy group Faith in Minnesota, the airport protest was also meant to draw attention to airport and airline workers who have reportedly been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on the job. The group is pushing for airlines to join their call for an immediate end to the ICE surge in the state. Police ordered the faith leaders to clear the road, but they didn't resist as they were arrested, zip-tied, and loaded onto buses. While dozens of arrests were seen, organizers believe around 100 clergy members were taken into custody.
The airport demonstration was just one part of a much bigger movement. The day was framed as a general strike, with businesses all over Minnesota—from bars and restaurants to bakeries—closing their doors in solidarity. Despite the freezing weather, workers and residents marched in the streets and held rallies to make their voices heard.
A central demand from the protesters is legal accountability for the ICE agent who shot and killed Renee Good, a U.S. citizen, in her car earlier this month while she was observing ICE activity. The federal crackdown, which Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and other Democrats have called an "invasion," has sparked widespread anger.
Miguel Hernandez, who shut down his Lito’s Bakery for the day, bundled up in four layers to join the protests. “It’s a message of solidarity with our community, that we see the pain and misery that’s going on,” he explained. He also said it was a message to politicians “that they have to do more than grandstand on the news.”
This all started when President Trump ramped up the ICE presence in Minnesota, partly due to fraud allegations involving some in the state's large Somali community. Trump has made inflammatory comments about Somali immigrants in the past, calling them “garbage” and promising to deport them as part of a wider effort to remove immigrants, including asylum seekers and legal residents.
In response, Minnesota residents have been protesting day and night, making noise with whistles and instruments. Tensions have run high, with reports of verbal fights between agents and protesters, and agents using tear gas and flash-bang grenades to break up crowds. The Trump administration says its agents have been harassed and blocked from doing their work.
In an effort to calm things down, senior administration officials, including Vice President JD Vance, visited Minneapolis. During his visit on Thursday, Vance told reporters the administration was “doing everything we can to lower the temperature.”
But many locals aren't buying it. Patty O’Keefe, a 36-year-old non-profit worker, summed up the feeling of many in the community: “We continue to be under siege from the federal government, and it feels like we need to do more because our normal forms of protest and resistance have shown to not be enough yet.”