Minnesota braces for intensified demonstrations as a powerful coalition of labor unions, progressive advocacy groups, and religious leaders calls for statewide work and school walkouts on Friday. The planned protests target U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations that have sparked widespread community outrage following recent confrontations.
The movement gained momentum after the January 7th fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer during an enforcement operation. Since this incident, the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul have experienced continuous daily protests, with federal officers frequently clashing with activists who monitor their movements through digital tracking and street surveillance.
At the heart of the controversy lies the detention of at least four children from Columbia Heights, including five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos. According to school district superintendent Zena Stenvik, masked and armed ICE officers have apprehended students ranging from elementary to high school age, creating what she describes as “trauma taking a toll on our children.”
The case of Liam and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, has become particularly contentious. Though both were in the country legally as asylum applicants according to family attorney Marc Prokosch, they were transported to a family detention facility in Dilley, Texas. Witnesses describe how masked agents took the father from their driveway after returning from preschool, then allegedly attempted to use the child as bait to lure the mother from their home.
Vice-President JD Vance presented a contrasting narrative during his Minneapolis visit, stating immigration officers were pursuing Liam’s father who abandoned his child, leaving officers no choice but to take custody. “What are they supposed to do? Are they supposed to let a five-year-old child freeze to death?” Vance challenged during a news conference.
However, multiple witnesses including school board chair Mary Granlund assert that school officials and neighbors offered to take custody of the child but were denied by ICE agents, despite having legal authorization to assume guardianship in parental absence.
The Department of Homeland Security maintains that Liam’s father was in the country illegally but has not provided detailed evidence supporting this claim. As tensions escalate, community organizations continue mobilizing residents to pressure ICE to cease operations in Minnesota neighborhoods and school zones.