At the Calvary Baptist Church in Minneapolis, the doors swung open and shut as locals sought refuge from the biting cold on Sunday. The 140-year-old building sits just blocks away from where Alex Pretti, an intensive care nurse, was shot dead by federal immigration agents during a confrontation on Saturday morning.
In the wake of the shooting, which marked the second time in less than a month that a US citizen has been killed by agents in the city, the church has become what locals describe as a haven from the unrest and uncertainty outside.
There was no service here on Sunday. Instead, volunteers and church staff, such as Ann Hotz, who works at the church's daycare centre, handed out coffee, snacks, and hand warmers to those who stopped by. Some were on their way to lay flowers at a nearby memorial for Pretti, while others visited on their way home from protests against the weeks-long federal immigration enforcement operation in the city.
Yesterday, I fell apart, Hotz told the BBC as she helped move cases of water outside. Today I'm here to stand with my community and help our neighbours as they remember Alex and mourn him.
But I do have to say, the helpers are getting really tired, she added. This is exhausting, and so we need there to be a change.
Dean Caldwell-Tautges, the church administrator, expressed that such actions by federal immigration agents have become the new reality for many in the city. He distributed whistles that residents have used to alert others about ICE activity, emphasizing that providing support to the community in this fashion was a necessary moral obligation.
The city of Minneapolis has once again found itself in the spotlight due to national immigration policy debates following the recent death of Pretti. Local protests have erupted as residents call for an end to the newly intensified immigration enforcement operations, maintaining that community members—including U.S. citizens—are being unduly targeted.
During a weekend marked by significant public gathering, mourners came together at the site of Pretti’s death, expressing their discontent with ICE’s operations. They laid flowers, lit memorial candles, and displayed signs with powerful messages aimed at halting the violence and urging a reevaluation of current immigration enforcement strategies.
As leaders from various sectors, including Governor Tim Walz, call for the withdrawal of untrained federal agents in Minnesota, many residents remain uncertain about the future, fearful of further tragedy amidst ongoing tensions over immigration policies.
In the wake of the shooting, which marked the second time in less than a month that a US citizen has been killed by agents in the city, the church has become what locals describe as a haven from the unrest and uncertainty outside.
There was no service here on Sunday. Instead, volunteers and church staff, such as Ann Hotz, who works at the church's daycare centre, handed out coffee, snacks, and hand warmers to those who stopped by. Some were on their way to lay flowers at a nearby memorial for Pretti, while others visited on their way home from protests against the weeks-long federal immigration enforcement operation in the city.
Yesterday, I fell apart, Hotz told the BBC as she helped move cases of water outside. Today I'm here to stand with my community and help our neighbours as they remember Alex and mourn him.
But I do have to say, the helpers are getting really tired, she added. This is exhausting, and so we need there to be a change.
Dean Caldwell-Tautges, the church administrator, expressed that such actions by federal immigration agents have become the new reality for many in the city. He distributed whistles that residents have used to alert others about ICE activity, emphasizing that providing support to the community in this fashion was a necessary moral obligation.
The city of Minneapolis has once again found itself in the spotlight due to national immigration policy debates following the recent death of Pretti. Local protests have erupted as residents call for an end to the newly intensified immigration enforcement operations, maintaining that community members—including U.S. citizens—are being unduly targeted.
During a weekend marked by significant public gathering, mourners came together at the site of Pretti’s death, expressing their discontent with ICE’s operations. They laid flowers, lit memorial candles, and displayed signs with powerful messages aimed at halting the violence and urging a reevaluation of current immigration enforcement strategies.
As leaders from various sectors, including Governor Tim Walz, call for the withdrawal of untrained federal agents in Minnesota, many residents remain uncertain about the future, fearful of further tragedy amidst ongoing tensions over immigration policies.
