(Photo courtesy of Tom Baker/AP Photo) “Vigil honoring Renee Good”
Benjamin Heffner
Connector Editor
On January 7th, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot and killed an American citizen during an immigration raid in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The victim, identified as 37-year-old mother and poet Renee Nicole Good, was in her car with her wife when they were surrounded by multiple ICE officers who screamed at and gave them conflicting orders, with one telling them to “get out of the [expletive] car.”
As Good attempted to reverse and drive away, an officer shot at her three times in the head, killing her instantly.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials, along with Secretary Kristi Noem, said the officer “shot the woman in self-defense” and that Good attempted to ram over the officer with her car, calling it “an act of domestic terrorism.”
Dr. Jarrod Hayes, Associate Professor of Political Science, said that the term “terrorism” has been used ill-defined from the events on September 11th.
“I would imagine if you were to ask most Americans what their conception of a terrorist is, it usually tends to be a foreigner in the context on September 11th.”
At a White House press briefing, Vice President J.D. Vance attacked what he called “the fake news media,” saying that Good was “brainwashed” and “a victim of left-wing ideology.”
He added, “The way that the media, by and large, has reported this story has been an absolute disgrace, and it puts our law enforcements officers at risk every single day.”
Sophomore Chase Allen, a Sound Recording Technology major, disagreed with Vance’s statements.
He said, “I don’t know how you could possibly blame anyone other than ICE. It just goes to show yet again the lack of accountability in the Trump administration.”
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, condemned the incident.
Walz, who recently suspended his re-election campaign for governor following a fraud scandal involving state-funded services, issued a warning order to the state’s National Guard, saying, “We’ve been warning for weeks that the Trump administration’s dangerous, sensationalized operations are a threat to our public safety and that someone was going to get hurt.”
Frey sent a stark message to ICE agents, telling them to “get the [expletive] out of Minneapolis.”
Members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation were also quick to condemn the incident.
Congresswoman Lori Trahan, representing the 3rd Congressional District, including the city of Lowell, said, “Communities are being harmed, and the public deserves the truth. The Trump administration wants us to ignore what we can clearly see with our own eyes.”
Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, representing the 7th Congressional District, attacked Republicans for obstructing a motion that would subpoena all records and footage related to the shooting, saying, “Republicans have demonstrated that they have never cared about law and order or keeping our communities safe.”
Over two weeks later, Border Patrol agents shot and killed ICU nurse Alex Pretti, who was filming law enforcement agents with his phone.
Both Good and Pretti’s killings have stemmed from the ongoing ICE operation “Metro Surge,” described by DHS officials as “the largest immigration enforcement operation ever carried out.”
2,000 agents were sent to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, resulting in over 3,000 arrests and a surge in lawsuits for wrongful detention.
Hayes agreed that the policies being enacted by DHS agents in Minneapolis don’t fit with the Trump administration’s policy agenda, adding “It wouldn’t look like what they’re doing. It would be far more nuanced, far more targeted, done with far greater collaboration with state and local officials who are the ones engaged in an active basis policing criminality.”
