About 30 people held up signs that read “Love Your Immigrant Neighbor” at the Lake Street-Marshall Avenue Bridge in the early morning of Valentine’s Day, aiming to spread a message of love for immigrants across Minnesota.
“We love our neighbors, and our neighbors have rights, and all immigrants have rights regardless of immigration status,” said Ryan Perez, the director of organizing at the Comunidades Organizando el Poder y la Acción Latina (COPAL).
Passing cars and buses honked in support. Upbeat music played in the background.
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Last November, more than 90 Minnesota immigrant advocacy groups formed the Immigrant Defense Network to combat the fears and protect the rights of immigrants. President Donald Trump’s reelection and promises to crack down on immigration spurred the groups to organize, Perez said.
Organizers planned a day of action across the state on Friday including events in the Twin Cities, Rochester, Mankato and Monticello. Immigrant advocates will have a public demonstration in Austin, Minn., on Saturday.
The groups also distributed thousands of Valentine’s Day cards that provided information about the rights that immigrants have when confronted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
In the past two days, Perez said COPAL has been tracking increased activity by ICE agents in Rochester. On Thursday, Perez said he joined other immigrant advocates protesting in downtown Rochester after ICE arrested two Nupa restaurant workers there.
He said that he saw ICE agents targeting a hotel, an apartment building and a restaurant in Rochester.
“There’s a lot of rapid response needed right now, as the threat only gets larger,” said Kevin Huynh, an organizer for Minnesota 8. He was one of the supporters at the bridge Friday morning.
Minnesota 8 distributed Valentine’s Day cards on Thursday in restaurants, grocery stores and coffee shops located in the Frogtown area of St. Paul, he said.
Danielle Matthias, a senior organizer for the Minnesota Freedom Fund, said she is working with the faith-based group Sanctuary and Resistance to Injustice to end the Sherburne County jail’s contract with ICE.
Matthias said the jail has the largest number of beds in the state for ICE detainees.
Over the last year, the jail has had about five ICE detainees at a time, she said. However, the latest report, she said she heard from individuals inside the jail, is that there are 55 ICE detainees.
“That number [of detainees] is growing, with the escalated enforcement,” she said.
Following the early morning rally on the Lake Street Bridge, the Immigrant Defense Network held a news conference at the Capitol.
“We believe at this moment, it is more important than ever to work together on support services, given that immigrant communities are living in fear,” said John Benda, co-chair of Minnesota Interfaith Coalition on Immigration. “Immigrants have rights, and we are coordinating efforts with legal teams to make sure everybody knows this.”
About 500 attorneys and 2,000 advocates have joined the network since November, said Julio Zelaya, director of advocacy for the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota.
“When one group’s rights are stripped away, it’s only a matter of time before another group’s are targeted,” said Fadumo Mohamed of the nonprofit advocacy group Ayada Leads. “Your neighbor’s humanity is your business. My neighbor’s dignity is my business. We are each other’s business.
Many immigrant advocacy organizations are focusing their efforts on policy campaigns that will target bill proposals seeking to eliminate resources for undocumented immigrants, Perez said. He specifically mentioned the HF10 bill that was recently introduced at the Minnesota legislature to ban undocumented immigrants from receiving state-funded social services.
He also said that the Immigrant Defense Network is aiming to reach 20,000 Minnesotans with information on their rights when dealing with federal immigration agents.
