Lila Dominguez, a junior at Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis, was working on an article about an earlier ICE shooting when immigration enforcement agents arrived on her school’s grounds on 7 January. The agents used chemical irritants and detained a staff member, prompting the school to lock down. Dominguez, who started the school’s digital newspaper, later wrote a column headlined ‘ICE Needs To Get Out Of Minneapolis’ that circulated widely online.
Minneapolis Public Schools cancelled classes for two days following the incident and offered students the option to attend virtually through mid-February. The district said it was focused on providing support for students, staff and families affected by fear and anxiety over ICE enforcement. School board chair Collin Beachy called on ICE to ‘leave our kids alone’.
ICE agents have also been active in suburban communities. In the suburb of Crystal, a parent was detained at a bus stop while waiting for their child. The Robbinsdale school district confirmed the detention and said all students boarded the bus safely. Several school districts in the metro area reported lower attendance, with one charter school in Richfield moving to remote learning after attendance fell below 40%.
Students at Roosevelt held walkouts to protest ICE in the days after the shooting. Dominguez said many of her classes have been missing students, making it difficult to focus on learning. ‘Being a student in Minneapolis right now can be really scary,’ she said. ‘The fact that our own government is keeping us from the schools that they provide is scary, sad and angering.’
