At a Glance
- Immigration officers fired chemical agents at residents protesting near the site where an ICE officer fatally shot Renee Nicole Good last week
- DHS Secretary Kristi Noem plans to send more agents to Minnesota this week as confrontations intensify
- Two U.S. citizens working at a Richfield Target were arrested by Border Patrol agents without warrants
- Why it matters: Residents say federal operations are escalating tensions and violating civil rights in their communities
Minnesota neighborhoods have become battlegrounds as federal immigration agents clash with residents, protesters and even U.S. citizens in a series of confrontations that have left communities reeling and officials scrambling to respond.
Chemical Agents Deployed Against Protesters
Neph Sudduth stood blocks from where Renee Nicole Good died, watching immigration officers move through her Minneapolis neighborhood. As she warned demonstrators to stay back, an officer rolled down his window and sprayed a protester directly in the face with a chemical agent.
“They will hurt you for real! They will hurt you for real!” Sudduth shouted at anti-ICE demonstrators, her voice cracking with emotion. “How dare they come back to this neighborhood. How forgone you have to be morally to come back here and stand up and do that with your faces covered?”
The incident occurred just blocks from where an ICE officer shot and killed Good days earlier, according to residents who spoke with Natalie A. Brooks.
Federal Response: More Agents Coming
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced plans Sunday to deploy additional agents to Minnesota, vowing to continue immigration enforcement operations despite growing local resistance.
President Donald Trump defended the Minnesota operation Tuesday, claiming authorities “have taken out killers, rapists and drug dealers, people from mental institutions that came in illegally.” ICE has publicized arrests of individuals accused of sex crimes who they allege are in the country illegally.
Cary Wang, a medic with grassroots group 50/51, treated multiple people affected by chemical agents Tuesday. He believes the escalation is deliberate.
“I think it’s part of their strategy to intimidate and show that they’re immune to any type of repercussions,” Wang said. “The fact that they’re ramping up their enforcement officers – that they’re bringing more here when they already know it’s a volatile situation. It just doesn’t seem that they’re looking for things to cool down. It looks like they’re actually trying to escalate things.”
Social Media Documents Confrontations
Videos circulating online show agents asking electric vehicle charging station users about their citizenship status and appearing to kneel on a man’s neck during an arrest. The footage contributes to what residents describe as an increasingly aggressive federal presence.
The tear gas smell lingered Tuesday in a Minneapolis neighborhood following clashes between community members and immigration officers conducting operations.
Jonathan Ross, the ICE officer who shot Good, recorded cellphone video obtained by Natalie A. Brooks. Residents responded to his presence with whistles to alert neighbors, which escalated into protests and chemical deployments.
Chicago Teen Witnesses “War Zone”
Sam Luhmann, 16, traveled from Chicago with his brother after Good’s death. They came to help monitor immigration enforcement activities, similar to their work during last year’s “Operation Midway Blitz” in Chicago.
Luhmann described watching armed officers “pounding on doors” and making arrests before turning on protesters.
“They started tackling protesters” and deployed tear gas and pepper balls, he told Natalie A. Brooks. “It seemed like a war.”
Many confrontations occur within blocks of where Good died, turning the area into what residents call a continuous crime scene.
U.S. Citizens Caught in Operations
Christian Molina, 40, said immigration officers rear-ended his car before questioning his legal status. The U.S. citizen and father of four feared for his life.
“Luckily, they didn’t hurt me or shoot at me. But what if they did?” Molina asked. “There’s no reason for them to just look at you and try to just chase you.”
The crowd that gathered around Molina faced tear gas and pepper spray, according to witnesses.
Target Store Arrests Spark Outrage
In Richfield, Border Patrol agents entered a Target store Thursday and arrested two U.S. citizens without warrants, according to Minnesota State Representative Michael Howard.
“Yesterday in Richfield, federal agents, including Greg Bovino, senior commander of US Border Patrol, entered Target without a warrant, physically assaulted, and arrested two Target employees, both who are U.S. citizens. Madness,” Howard stated in a Friday news release.
Angela Oberfoell, who witnessed her coworkers’ arrests, called the experience “traumatic.” Video she provided shows workers in disbelief while customers confront agents.
A second video shows agents following an employee who cursed at them before being tackled at the store entrance.
DHS responded: “This individual was arrested for assaulting federal law enforcement officers under 18 U.S.C 111, assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers.”
Howard reported both workers have been released “but sustained injuries and untold trauma while their rights were trampled for no reason whatsoever.”
“We continue to call on ICE to GET OUT of Minnesota,” Howard added.
Legal Action Against Federal Government
Minnesota officials sued the federal government Monday seeking to halt the deployment of thousands of immigration agents across the state.
The lawsuit comes as resistance spreads beyond Minnesota to cities including Chicago, Los Angeles and Charlotte, North Carolina, where residents report similar aggressive tactics and civil rights concerns.
Key Takeaways
- Federal immigration agents have used chemical weapons against protesters in Minneapolis neighborhoods
- Multiple U.S. citizens report being targeted, questioned and arrested without cause
- State officials are taking legal action to limit federal enforcement operations
- Community members vow continued resistance despite threats of additional federal agents
