What I Saw at the ICE Out for Good Protests this Weekend
Following the brutal murder of Renee Good, the demonstrations were a show of defiance in the face of the Trump regime's escalating intimidation tactics.
The No Kings rallies last year were joyous, boisterous events that drew millions across the country. Over the weekend, there were more somber and resolute protests that cropped up just days after ICE killed mother and poet Renee Good in Minneapolis.
Thousands turned out more than 1,000 ICE Out for Good demonstrations on Jan. 10 and 11. By now, you’ve seen the videos of ICE agents threatening people and protestors being tear-gassed in Minneapolis. You’ve heard the chilling reports about the military-style checkpoints in the city and agents going door-to-door, allegedly hunting for illegal immigrants.
And at the peaceful rally of about 500 on Sunday in Las Vegas, I counted about 100 law enforcement officials mulling around, many in full riot gear — which seemed like a tad of an overreaction to an event marked by prayers and folk music.
But in spite of these intimidation tactics, thousands of Americans were undeterred. We exercised our First Amendment rights, because there’s nothing more American than that. And if the Trump regime decides to keep coming for those rights, they’ll have a hell of a fight on their hands.
I left the protest more inspired than ever. And we want to hear from you. What were the ICE Out for Good rallies like in your cities and towns? Tag Lincoln Square in your photos and videos on social media!
'No Kings' Protests Draw More than 7 Million across America
The message at the roughly 2,700 demonstrations across the country on Saturday was clear: No thrones. No crowns. No Kings. Ever. And that message was delivered with joy, music, dancing, costumes, and camaraderie.
We went to one protest on Friday in Pittsburgh, in front of the ICE Detention Facility. We had a permit. It was peaceful. No law enforcement showed up, not even ICE. I did not see a single soul looking out of the windows which faced the sidewalk on which we had gathered. Many passing cars honked in support. I went to a second protest yesterday in my near-end suburb, a borough of @ 35,000, the majority of whom are Democrats. Again, no cops, no National Guard, no ICE. It was much larger and again, almost all of the passing cars honked in support of us. We placed hundreds of flowers on a makeshift memorial for Renee. Someone's drone filmed us from overhead. Maybe a news station? The loveliest thing I saw was a little girl of about the same age as Renee Good's son, holding a bouquet of pristine white roses in her mittened hands. (It was blowing snow all day.) No speeches, but poems and some damn clever signs. This is irreverant, but my favorite was the one which said, "I thought ICE was for cocktails, not men with tiny cocks." Silly, but it made me smile on what was otherwise a somber kind of day.
Thank you, Susan, I am glad you are inspired. The day of the shooting and after police have been on regular patrol. When the AG says crime when there is none . He keeps law enforcement busy, that is his way of weaponizing the police. What ever Trump or Vance say, or Noem he gets all fired up and uses tax payers money for his lies, this I feel puts lives endangered when this being done. No police or ambulances for those who really truly need medical attention and or help, incase of a real person who has been robbed or broken into. This shooting saddens me. . Please everyone invest in Lincoln Square. This is a true opportunity for democracy to thrive.