MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Protests against U.S. immigration enforcement surged across cities nationwide over the weekend as anger and fear mounted following two high-profile shootings involving federal officers in Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon, prompting calls from state and local leaders for calm even as demonstrations continued to grow.
In Minneapolis, thousands of demonstrators filled streets and parks Saturday to denounce the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer earlier in the week, as well as the wounding of two people by a Border Patrol agent during a vehicle stop in Portland. The Minneapolis march was among hundreds of coordinated protests planned in cities and towns across the country, reflecting a rapidly escalating backlash against the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement campaign.
The city has remained on edge since Wednesday, when Good, a U.S. citizen and mother, was shot while seated in her car during an ICE operation. Federal officials have described the killing as an act of self-defense, alleging that Good attempted to use her vehicle as a weapon. That account has been sharply disputed by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and witnesses at the scene.
“We’re all living in fear right now,” said Meghan Moore, a Minneapolis resident and mother of two who joined Saturday’s march. “ICE is creating an environment where nobody feels safe, and that’s unacceptable.”
Minnesota leaders repeatedly urged demonstrators to remain peaceful, particularly after a protest outside a Minneapolis hotel turned violent late Friday. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said about 1,000 people gathered near the hotel, where some demonstrators threw ice, snow and rocks at officers. One officer suffered minor injuries after being struck by ice, and 29 people were cited and released, O’Hara said.
Mayor Frey emphasized that while most demonstrations had been peaceful, authorities would not tolerate violence or property damage. He blamed what he called outside agitators for inflaming tensions.
“This is what Donald Trump wants,” Frey said, referring to President Donald Trump’s push for large-scale immigration enforcement in major U.S. cities. “He wants us to take the bait.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz echoed that warning, accusing the administration of seeking chaos to distract from the fatal shooting.
“Trump sent thousands of armed federal officers into our state, and it took just one day for them to kill someone,” Walz wrote on social media. “Now he wants nothing more than to see chaos distract from that horrific action. Don’t give him what he wants.”
The Department of Homeland Security has said its deployment of immigration officers in the Twin Cities represents its largest-ever enforcement operation in the region, involving more than 2,000 federal personnel. DHS has maintained that both the Minneapolis killing and the Portland shooting were acts of self-defense against drivers who “weaponized” their vehicles to threaten agents.
That explanation has done little to ease public outrage. In Portland, federal officials said a Border Patrol agent fired on a vehicle during a targeted stop after agents were allegedly nearly run over. Local officials there have said they cannot independently verify DHS’s account and have called for a full investigation.
Across Minneapolis, protesters marched through neighborhoods known for their cultural diversity, carrying handmade signs reading “De-ICE Minnesota!” and “ICE melts in Minnesota,” while chanting against federal enforcement tactics. Families with children joined the march despite sub-freezing temperatures and light snowfall, underscoring the depth of concern among residents.
Connor Maloney, who attended the Minneapolis protest, said frustration with the immigration crackdown had been building for months.
“Almost daily I see them harassing people,” he said. “It’s just sickening that it’s happening in our community around us.”
The anger was not confined to Minnesota. In Durham, North Carolina, Steven Eubanks said he felt compelled to protest after watching news of the Minneapolis killing.
“It was horrifying,” Eubanks said. “We can’t allow it. We have to stand up.”
Indivisible, a national progressive organization formed in response to Trump’s presidency, said hundreds of protests were scheduled over the weekend in states including Texas, Kansas, New Mexico, Ohio and Florida, signaling a broad-based mobilization against federal immigration policies.
Despite the massive demonstration in Minneapolis, federal enforcement activity continued across the city. As protesters gathered in a park roughly half a mile from the neighborhood where Good was killed, an Associated Press photographer observed heavily armed federal officers — at least one wearing a Border Patrol uniform — confronting an individual who had been following them. Two agents raised long guns and ordered the person to stop, issuing what they called a “first and final warning,” before driving away without making an arrest.
Chief O’Hara said Minneapolis police have been responding to calls about abandoned vehicles left behind after drivers were apprehended by immigration officers. In one instance, a car was left running in park; in another, a dog was found inside an abandoned vehicle.
“Immigration enforcement activities are happening all over the city,” O’Hara said, adding that emergency dispatchers have received numerous calls reporting ICE arrests and enforcement activity.
Lawmakers also clashed with federal authorities over access and oversight. On Saturday morning, U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar, Kelly Morrison and Angie Craig attempted to tour the ICE facility inside the Minneapolis federal building. Although initially allowed to enter, the three lawmakers said they were ordered to leave after about 10 minutes.
The representatives accused ICE of obstructing members of Congress from performing their constitutional oversight duties. Their attempt came weeks after a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from enforcing policies that restrict congressional visits to immigration detention facilities. That ruling followed a lawsuit filed by 12 members of Congress who said ICE unlawfully denied them access.
The protests come as the Trump administration defends its sweeping crackdown, which officials say is tied in part to allegations of fraud involving Somali residents in Minnesota. Civil rights advocates, however, argue that the enforcement actions have sown fear in immigrant communities and increased the risk of violent encounters.
While demonstrations in Minneapolis have remained largely peaceful — a stark contrast to the unrest that followed the 2020 killing of George Floyd — tensions remain high. Smaller confrontations were reported Thursday and Friday near the airport, where protesters clashed with officers guarding a federal building used as a base for immigration operations.
As investigations continue into both the Minneapolis and Portland shootings, the protests reflect a broader national reckoning over immigration enforcement, federal authority and the use of deadly force. For many demonstrators, the weekend marches were not only about two shootings, but about what they see as a rapidly expanding enforcement system that has pushed fear and uncertainty into daily life.
Whether the protests will lead to policy changes remains unclear. But with demonstrations planned in hundreds of communities and mounting pressure on elected officials, the unrest signals that immigration enforcement — and the methods used to carry it out — will remain a central and volatile issue in the months ahead.
