Protests, Policing, and the Fight for Accountability
- Isabella Zumba
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
By Isabella Zumba
2/1/26
Just over the past month, outrage over federal immigration enforcement has intensified after two U.S. Citizens were fatally shot by federal agents during immigration operations in Minneapolis, igniting a wave of nationwide protests and intense public scrutiny. The killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti have not only mobilized demonstrations across the country but have also reignited the debate over the limits and accountability of federal law enforcement. Amid these mounting concerns, reports of children being detained by ICE have further intensified criticism and alarm among activists as well.
In New York City, for example, just this past weekend, thousands marched from Foley Square to Washington Square Park as part of the nationwide strike against what demonstrators describe as an increasingly violent immigration policy. Protesters carried signs reading “ICE Out,” and chanted calls for justice for Good and Pretti, even amid the freezing temperatures within the city. This act reflects the longstanding concern over how immigration enforcement is impacting communities across the United States.
"We demand an end to this violence, an end to murdering our community members, and ICE out of our communities," said a member from the New York Immigrant Coalition. The public rally however was only part of a broader wave of protest actions though: numerous businesses nationwide—like those in New York, California, Maine, Virginia and Arizons—closed in solidarity with the strike, and students in cities within Maine, California, Georgia, Texas, Minnesota, Alaska, Ohio, Utah, Colorado, walked out of school to join rallies. These economic and civic actions were intended to highlight the urgency of combating this politically dangerous escalation of federal enforcement tactics. It shows that all groups of people, adults and children, are using their constitutional right to protest for what they believe in.
The expressions of anger and solidarity in numerous cities across the nation demonstrate how events in Minneapolis have become a catalyst for broader activism around immigration enforcement and our civil rights. For many protestors, the deaths of Good and Pretti underscore a pressing need for transparency, institutional reform, and a reimagined framework for federal law enforcement that protects the rights and safety of all U.S. Citizens.
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