On January 24th, 2026, a 37 year old intensive care nurse by the name of Alex Pretti was murdered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Earlier on January 7th, Renee Nicole Good, a mother of three and a poet, was murdered. On New Years Eve, Keith Porter, a 43 year old father of two, was murdered, by an off duty ICE agent. These three Americans were murdered by what we call our countries Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Good, Pretti, and Porter were gunned down by ICE agents while another 32 died in ICE custody last year, which is ICE’s deadliest year in over two decades. However, there have been many more tragedies, including the wrongful detainment of a five year old named Liam Ramos and his father, and young protestors being tear gassed.
ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is a federal law enforcement agency that was formed in 2003, and was established under the Department of Homeland Security. As stated on the ICE website, their mission is to ‘protect America through criminal investigations and enforcing immigration laws to preserve national security and public safety.’ Many Americans are left confused and question the validity of this mission due to the fact that 73.6% held in ICE detention have no criminal conviction, and many people who are actually convicted have only committed minor offenses, according to TRAC reports.
In the freezing Michigan weather, people from East Lansing, Ann Arbor, West Michigan, and many other cities come out to protest for their rights, with some schools, like Detroit Cass Technical school and Northview High School, even organizing walk outs on January 30th. These protests are happening all across America, and they’re happening daily, but in Minnesota is where we see it worst. “ICE out!” is chanted as people mourn the loss of three beautiful people, and mourn the loss of their feelings of serenity and peace. The peace is actively being disturbed and critics say ICE’s focus on immigration enforcement has led to unjust treatment of communities.
Minnesotan Vesper Averbakh is concerned about the state of his city, and he is scared for his friends who have legally came into the United States.
“Since ICE has been going for everybody, American citizens included, I’ve become increasingly worried about what will happen next,” Averbakh said.
If you are concerned about the state of our country and want to do something to help, consider going out to protests and consider contacting your representatives for a change.
