Washington Solidarity with Minnesota: Sign-On Statement

Dear Senator Murray, 

In Minnesota, federal immigration agents have been terrorizing communities with impunity. ICE is increasingly operating as an unaccountable paramilitary force, kidnapping people off the street and distributing retribution against community members who stand up for their neighbors, use their freedom of speech to protest, and speak out against this administration’s miscarriages of justice. Unfortunately, ICE’s reign of terror is not limited to Minnesota. They are targeting our communities in almost every state, and Congress must step in. We urge you to speak out against ICE abuses and commit to voting against any additional funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Across the country, we have witnessed the horrific tragedies in Minnesota. We’ve also seen the inspiring unity of neighbors, workers and businesses showing up for each other and calling for ICE Out of Minnesota, legal accountability for all people killed or harmed by ICE including Renee Good, Alex Pretti, Keith Porter Jr. in Los Angeles and Silviero Villegas-Gonzales in Chicago, and no additional federal funding for ICE and Border Patrol.

With this statement, Washington communities express our solidarity with Minnesota, and we call on our senators to join us. Over the last year, Washington has also been deeply affected by abuses perpetrated by ICE. We know that what federal agents can get away with in Minnesota will quickly become precedent for the horrors they can inflict on all our communities.

We stand with Minnesotans in mourning the lives ended and irrevocably changed by ICE violence and abuse of power. While the threats ICE poses to the lives and well-being of immigrant communities are not new, the current immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota represents a frightening new moment in which communities find themselves under siege, unable to participate in education, open businesses, or walk down the street without facing potential questioning, violence, and abduction.

We also stand with Minnesotans in their resolve to protect our neighbors. There is no force large enough, and there are no reprisals brutal enough, to stop communities from taking care of each other. Wherever ICE shows up next, people are learning from Minnesotans’ courageous nonviolent resistance and planning ahead with an eye towards protecting our neighbors. Many Washingtonians are already organizing their communities to mitigate and document the devastating impact ICE has on our communities.

We will do our part to end ICE impunity, and we call on you to do yours. Please vote against additional funding for ICE and CBP and ensure your constituents know you will stand up against abuses from these dangerous and unaccountable federal agencies and for the safety and freedoms of all. ICE Out of Minnesota. ICE Out of Washington. ICE Out of all of our communities.

Sincerely,