Twin Ports Comes Together Against ICE

A LOT has been happening in the last week.  The most significant of which was the ICE murder of Renee Good in Minneapolis, and the massive fight back that has risen up since then.  And the Twin Ports has been part of the fight back.

On the day of Good’s murder three different protests took place in Duluth.  The first was the regularly scheduled protest in east Duluth held every Wednesday at noon since the first ICE raid hit our community this past Spring.  That event is organized by Twin Ports Against Weapons Trade.  Then Twin Ports Rapid Response held a protest in front of the Civic Center from 3 to 6pm.  And an ad hoc group of activists held a candle light vigil downtown at 7pm.

Suspecting and increased ICE presence in the Northwoods, rapid response folks have held multiple mobilizations, responding to tips about possible ICE sightings, as well as staking out businesses and institutions that request it.

Friday evening over 100 folks turned out for an evening protest in downtown Cloquet that was organized by Indivisible.

This past Saturday, over 500 folks turned out for a protest in Duluth that was jointly against the U.S. abduction of Nicolas Maduro and the ICE murder of Renee Good.  That protest, which was jointly sponsored by DSA, Anti-Imperialist Action and Northwoods Socialist Collective, assembled at Lake Ave. & Superior St., before marching to the Civic Center via the sidewalks and the streets. That same day, numerous protests took place across the region, largely organized by the different chapters of Indivisible.  Among the communities that held ICE Out of MN protests that day were Superior, Ashland, Hayward, Spooner, Two Harbors, Grand Marais, Chisholm and Grand Rapids.  And then that evening about 100 people gathered at the Hope United Methodist Church in Duluth for a multi-denominational “vigil of mourning and solidarity”.

And then this past Monday evening there was a huge turn out at three immigrant solidarity events.  The first was a student walkout at Denfeld High School.  The second was the monthly Socialism and a Slice forum that the Northwoods Socialist Collective organized.  It was a panel discussion titled “Organizing Against ICE in Our Communities”.  We usually get one to two dozens folks at these monthly discussions, but this one ended up being the largest meeting we’ve ever held in our entire history.  We practically filled the entire basement of the Building for Women – all three meeting rooms, the hallway and the kitchen!  It was impossible to get a head count of the standing room only crowd, but it was well into the triple digits!  And at the same time, just a few blocks away, Duluth City Council chambers were filled with concerned citizens that were there to urge the city to not renew their LexisNexis security camera system contracts, as well as to call out Duluth Police for collaborating with ICE.  Despite overwhelming opposition, the City Council chose to renew the contract.  LexisNexis data has been used by ICE.  At that City Council meeting, which claiming that they are not collaborating with ICE, Duluth’s Police Chief did admit that ICE is operating out of their Arlington Road Public Safety campus.

While this is a run down of some of the events that happen taken place the last couple of days, even more impressive has been the massive mobilization of folks joining rapid response networks and creating neighborhood anti-ICE mutual aid networks.  Tonight Twin Ports Rapid Response is hosting a training that has over 300 folks signed up for – so many that they are turning away people and have had to recruit dozens of volunteers just to direct traffic at the training site.  Every day dozens of constitutional observers are patrolling the streets, checking hotel parking lots and responding to tips.  Almost every neighborhood in the Twin Ports now has a mutual aid networks.  Campus groups are organizing.  The Northeast Area Labor Council – which represents the majority of unions in our region – has joined the chorus calling for ICE out of our communities.  Petitions are being circulated in Superior calling on the County Jail to stop housing ICE detainees.  Labor activists are raising money for workers who have been abducted by ICE.  People are distributing whistles, Know Your Rights Cards and the Twin Ports Rapid Response hotline.  A true groundswell of human solidarity is washing over our communities!  The struggle continues!

~by Adam Ritscher