A yarn store in Minneapolis has sparked a nationwide protest movement with a red knit hat pattern designed to raise funds for immigrants affected by ICE raids. The 'Melt the ICE hat' was created by Gilah Mashaal, owner of Needle & Skein, and her employee Paul, who drew inspiration from Norwegian resistance caps worn during the Nazi occupation of World War II.
Published on the knitting social network Ravelry, the pattern costs $5 to download, with proceeds going to the St Louis Park Emergency Program (Step) and other immigrant aid groups. Within two weeks, nearly 70,000 copies had been sold, raising over $250,000. Mashaal said she expected only a small group to participate, but the response 'has just been crazy.'
The red hats are part of a broader wave of anti-ICE creative expression online. On the nail art forum r/RedditLaqueristas, a post showing silver calligraphy spelling 'Fuck ICE' on holographic nails went viral. The owner, a Florida fintech worker, said she used a polish called 'Melt ICE' by indie brand Pahlish, which raises funds for the family of Renee Good, a victim of the crackdown.
Other examples include a viral image of a woman with pink nails palming a far-right influencer at a pro-ICE rally, which inspired nail artists to recreate the look. On r/americangirl, a doll holding a sign reading 'Kirsten Larson says FUCK ICE!' became the subreddit's most popular post in a month. Even explicit content on X-rated subreddits featured anti-ICE captions.
Mashaal said the red hat movement aims to reclaim the colour from the MAGA movement: 'Red is the color of resistance. Here’s our chance to take the red back.' The funds raised will be distributed to multiple immigrant aid groups.
