‘Abolish ICE’: Tens of thousands in Minneapolis, across US, protest killing

Tens of thousands of people have marched through ‍Minneapolis to protest the killing of a woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, part of more than 1,000 rallies planned nationwide this weekend against United States President Donald Trump’s militarised anti-immigration push.

The protests on Saturday came after the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, on January 7, which led to outrage and accusations of the Trump administration’s lies about what transpired as video appeared to clearly contradict officials’ statements.

The boisterous crowd chanted Good’s name and slogans such as “Abolish ICE” and “No justice, no ​peace — get ICE off our streets”. Minnesota leaders urged demonstrators to remain peaceful.

Indivisible, a social movement group, said hundreds of demonstrations were scheduled in Texas, Kansas, New Mexico, Ohio, Florida and other US states.

“ICE’s violence is not a statistic, it has names, families, and futures attached to it, and we refuse to look away or stay silent,” Leah Greenberg, Indivisible’s co-executive director, said in a statement.

Steven Eubanks, 51, said he felt compelled to attend a protest in Durham, North Carolina, because of what he called the “horrifying” killing of Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.

“We can’t allow it,” Eubanks told The Associated Press news agency. “We have to stand up.”

Senior Trump administration officials have justified Good’s killing, saying she “weaponised” her vehicle and threatened the life of the ICE officer who shot her dead.

But video footage from the scene showed Good attempting to drive away before being shot.

The incident has renewed scrutiny of Trump’s push to deploy heavily armed law enforcement officers to carry out an anti-immigrant crackdown across the US, with local authorities demanding that ICE agents leave their cities.

The killing of Good came as the US Department of Homeland Security pushes ahead with what it has called its largest-ever immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

‘ICE Out For Good’

Many of Saturday’s protests were dubbed “ICE Out for Good”, with organiser Indivisible saying the rallies aimed to “mourn the lives taken and shattered by ICE and to demand justice and accountability”.

In Minneapolis, a coalition of migrant rights groups called for a demonstration at Powderhorn Park, a large green space near the residential neighbourhood where the deadly shooting occurred.

They said the rally would call for an “end to deadly terror on our streets”.

Reporting from a rally in Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon, Al Jazeera’s Manuel Rapalo said the protesters have been expressing outrage “but overwhelmingly, we hear people say they’re here to demonstrate peacefully.”

“We’re also hearing a lot of calls for justice. What I’m not hearing is too much optimism that there will be justice in this case,” Rapalo said, referring to Good’s killing.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who demanded that ICE leave the city after the deadly incident, said on Saturday that 29 people had been arrested overnight as police responded to continued protests.

Frey stressed that while most protests have been peaceful, those who damage property or endanger others will be arrested.

Minneapolis ​police ‌chief Brian O’Hara said one officer ‌was injured ‌during the ⁠protest response.

Meanwhile, three US lawmakers representing Minnesota attempted to tour an ICE facility in the Minneapolis federal building on Saturday morning but were told to leave after initially being allowed to enter.

US Congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Kelly Morrison and Angie Craig accused ICE agents of obstructing members of Congress from fulfilling their duty to oversee operations there.

“They do not care that they are violating federal law,” Craig said after being turned away.