Feeling some big feels

When ICE was operating far away, it was too easy to look away. But now they’re here in our neighborhoods, on our streets harassing our residents, friends, neighbors, co‑workers. A new resident, Renee Nicole Good, is dead. These images aren’t from 200 miles away. They’re from 15 miles away. From 10 miles away. From 5 miles away.

Target workers, U.S. citizens, forced to the floor and cuffed. An Uber driver standing his ground because he knew his rights. High schoolers and teachers shoved outside of their own school. A pregnant woman dragged from her car. A father arrested while with his little girl, and ICE had no plan to care for her, so she ran. A woman killed because an agent decided pulling a gun was easier than stepping aside.

I’m so mad. And I know I have to watch how that comes out because my people deserve a steady, non-anxious presence from me. I can be an intense person. But right now, all I can offer is the truth: this is horrifying.

ICE and DHS are acting with cruelty and incompetence. They’re not here to “keep us safe.” That line is propaganda. They’re here to retaliate against our governor, and anyone paying attention can see it. If safety were the goal, they wouldn’t be using guns, batons, and pepper spray as intimidation tactics.

What ICE is doing is fear‑mongering. They stand in our neighborhoods armed to the teeth, looking ready to explode at people who have nothing but whistles and potty mouths.

This is Minnesota. We lived through hell six years ago and bare the trauma from it. We learned a lot. We know what real community‑centered policing should look like. We know what actual de‑escalation looks like. We know how to organize, protest, train, and push for change.

Minnesota is calling bull. Our protests are saying, “If you’re here to keep us safe, then prove it.” And by every measure of safety, they are failing. So they should just get out.

(I tried to write this in a pastoral voice. I don’t have that in me today. Maybe by Sunday--with help from colleagues who don’t lose their words when they’re this angry.)

Comments

  1. Cheri DixonJanuary 10, 2026 at 4:28 AM

    Thank you. Truth will win. But right now our country’s leadership is so corrupt.

    ReplyDelete

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