It has been almost two months since the start of Operation Metro Surge, the federal government’s name for their violence in Minnesota. In that time, around 3,000 ICE agents and Border Patrol officers have been deployed in Minnesota, with the majority focused on the Twin Cities metro area.
The reality of the intensity and relentless brutality as a result of that many ICE and Border Patrol agents in Minnesota has been hard to convey to those not living in it.
Many now know about Renee Good and Alex Pretti, two U.S. citizens who were killed by federal agents. Less familiar are the stories of countless immigrants (regardless of legal status) and citizens, including children, elders and observers who have been harassed, detained and injured by ICE and Border Patrol. Teenage citizens have been snatched from their workplace. Observers have had their cars stopped and windows smashed and been detained without cause for hours. A preschooler was kidnapped and sent to a Texas detention center.
The situation is untenable, and Minnesotans need support and solidarity from others. This need prompted Multifaith Antiracism, Change & Healing (MARCH) to ask faith leaders from across the country to come to Minnesota for two days of witness, prayer and action. The invitation and registration went live less than a week before the event. Given the short notice, we thought 200 people might be able to drop everything to heed the call. However, the registrations kept coming in.
On Thursday, Jan. 22, over 600 clergy and spiritual leaders from across the country gathered in a sanctuary in downtown Minneapolis. The multifaith convening included Christians of all kinds, Unitarian Universalists, Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs.
For those of us who have been living under occupation by our federal government for the past two months, it was a particularly beautiful sight. The day opened with singing, poetry and a recognition that we need one another to resist the rising tide of authoritarianism.
A member of our steering committee, Rabbi Arielle Lekach-Rosenberg captured it well for the gathering: “What we are facing in Minnesota right now cannot be met by any single community or tradition alone. This moment will take all of us.”
Following an opening plenary, including teaching on noncooperation and resisting authoritarianism, participants chose between two witness opportunities. One option was to stay and hear from a panel of organizers who are leading in the many and varied manifestations of mutual aid and resistance in the community.
The second option was to go out into Minneapolis. Approximately 200 participants loaded on charter buses and spread out along Lake Street, a major thoroughfare with many immigrant-owned businesses. There have been numerous ICE kidnappings along the street, including from bus stops, stores and restaurants.
Just before they left for Lake Street, these clergy had been given a lesson on documenting ICE activity. Sadly, some had the chance to use what they’d learned. A trio of clergy noticed an unmarked ICE vehicle nearby. When three women walked by to get to their car, two more ICE vehicles drove up, and agents got out. They were joined by agents from the unmarked vehicle and surrounded one of the women.
The clergy started blowing their whistles to warn others. The woman targeted by the agents was able to show documentation, and the agents eventually let her go. Things don’t always go that way. Having proof of citizenship or legal status has not always been honored, and many people have been detained despite such documentation.
After lunch, participants had other opportunities to learn. They took lessons on how to leverage media and storytelling, how to participate in and lead songs and sit-ins, how to form relationships before crisis begins, how to be legal observers, and how to be movement chaplains.
In our closing session, we sang together: “No one is getting left behind this time. We get there together or never get there at all.” And we meant it. We felt the Spirit move as we sang, learned and witnessed together.
MARCH didn’t have a chance to pause and fully appreciate the power and beauty of these two days of witness before federal agents shot Alex Pretti. Some of the clergy who traveled to the MARCH convening were still in town and jumped in to help: They tended to people who were tear-gassed, provided spiritual care, and even kept ICE watch over immigrant church buildings during Sunday services.
In the days since Pretti was shot and killed, there have been shifts within the federal forces in Minnesota, including the demotion of Greg Bovino, the Border Patrol commander-at-large, and an unknown number of agents being moved elsewhere. We pray that the clergy and faith leaders who traveled to Minnesota are more equipped to plant and tend faithful resistance wherever they return to. We know that Minnesota is a testing ground, and communities across the country need to prepare for the possibility that their home will be next.
The MARCH team wants to share lessons in resistance we have learned. We know that Minneapolis is not unique — we’ve learned from Chicago, Portland and Los Angeles and have recontextualized and adapted what we’ve learned for our community. These lessons will need to be adapted again for other cities. We know that resistance must be organized, relational and ongoing. We know that we need to take noncooperative direct action that challenges oppressive systems. We know that truth-telling and faithful witness are crucial. We know that our faith calls us to work toward collective liberation and deep, abiding love.
