Democrats demand ‘masks off, body cameras on’ from ICE operatives
Democrats are refusing to vote on any legislation that funds ICE after the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis.
Small businesses throughout metro Detroit closed on Friday, Jan. 30, as part of a national shutdown general strike to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement after a series of high-profile killings by the agency in Minneapolis and elsewhere.
The Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, the City Bird and Nest shops in midtown, Drifter Coffee in Ferndale, and Sidetrack Bookshop in downtown Royal Oak are among those participating in the campaign encouraging participants to avoid school, work, and shopping.
“ICE has no place in our communities, and we stand with the people of Minnesota and everywhere who are being targeted by this terror,” Sidetrack Bookshop on Washington Avenue said in a Facebook post announcing its closure.
Protests are also scheduled Friday throughout Michigan, including in Detroit, Dearborn, Novi, and Ferndale.
Students at Rochester High School staged a walkout Friday morning; Cass Technical High School students in Detroit planned one for the afternoon.
The actions follow ICE officers’ killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. The agency was involved in the killings of at least six others last year, according to a tally compiled by the liberal American Prospect magazine and based on news articles.
“Every day, ICE, Border Patrol and other enforcers of Trump’s racist agenda are going into our communities to kidnap our neighbors and sow fear,” the national shutdown organizing website reads. “It is time for us to all stand up together in a nationwide shutdown and say enough is enough!”
Other businesses that have announced closures in southeast Michigan include:
- Lost and Found Vintage in Royal Oak
- Full Measure Brewing Company in Detroit
- Library Street Collective in Detroit
- Beara Bakes in Ypsilanti
- Gutman Gallery in Ann Arbor
Businesses are showing support through various means. Detroit café Trinosophes announced on social media that it would open for an evening concert with proceeds going toward the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota.
Others said they would remain open but issued anti-ICE statements. Detroit and Oak Park pizzeria Pie Sci wrote on Facebook that it does not support “the harm caused by current immigration enforcement practices” but will remain open.
“As a small, independent business, closing our doors — even for a single day — would have consequences for only our people,” the post said. “We pay our team a living wage, offer health benefits, paid time off, earned sick time and 401k match. Staying open is what allows us to do that.”
