Minneapolis activists’ sit-in at mayor’s office demands stronger sanctuary policy

By Myrka Zambrano and Mira Altobell-Resendez

Minneapolis, MN – On October 28, members of the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) held a rally outside Minneapolis City Hall, demanding stronger protections for immigrant communities. The demonstration culminated in a sit-in at Mayor Jacob Frey’s office, where 11 MIRAC members and supporters refused to leave until the mayor publicly committed to supporting their Real Sanctuary Now campaign.

The campaign calls for a significant overhaul of Minneapolis’s current “separation ordinance” – a law meant to prohibit collaboration between city employees and federal immigration enforcement agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The existing ordinance is insufficient and has repeatedly failed to protect immigrants and the Minneapolis community from federal overreach.

The campaign is a response to the militarized federal raid in South Minneapolis on June 3, during which witnesses reported seeing the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) assisting ICE and other federal agencies.

In response, MIRAC’s Real Sanctuary Now campaign has outlined four key demands to strengthen the law. First, no collusion: no information sharing between local law enforcement and federal agencies; second, no crowd control: no local law enforcement cooperation with ICE, HSI and other federal agencies, including supportive roles like crowd control and police taping. Third, no coverups: no face coverings to obscure federal agents’ identities; federal agents must clearly display their agency association and identify themselves with name plates and badge numbers. And fourth, real consequences: punitive measures for local law enforcement agents or agencies found to be in violation of the city’s separation ordinance.

The sit-in participants arrived at the mayor’s office at 2:30 to deliver hundreds more signatures from MIRAC’s campaign petition to add to the thousand plus that had been brought to the office previously. From this time until approximately 12 a.m., the protesters held strong on their demands and were only removed after being arrested by the Minneapolis Police Department and held at Hennepin County Jail where the final participants were not released until past 7 a.m. the next morning.

Outside City Hall, hundreds of supporters gathered in solidarity with those occupying the mayor’s office. Demonstrators emphasized the urgency of the campaign as the threat of a military occupation is more likely every day. As the sit-in continued throughout the night, participants called on Mayor Frey to meet with MIRAC leaders and commit to publicly endorsing the proposed changes.

Organizer Sophie Breen stated, “In Minneapolis, we saw how Mayor Frey reacted when ICE came to town. Mayor Frey literally got a thank you letter from ICE for his coordination with them on June 3. That is not the kind of leadership we need! We need a mayor who will not hide behind deleted text messages. So, Mayor Frey, if you are not willing to work with us, your time is up. Our students and families deserve better!” The mayor’s office did not immediately issue a statement, and activists say they plan to continue pressuring city officials until their demands are met.

Halfway through the sit-in, a mayoral debate was aired live between Frey and the top challenging candidates Omar Fateh, Dewayne Davis and Jazz Hampton. MIRAC’s demands calling for accountability of ICE agents were specifically named as a topic for the candidates to address.

Frey insisted that the proposed policy changes are impossible to implement, as he claims they would create even more dangerous situations in the event of local police arresting ICE agents who violate city ordinances, citing that “they have bigger guns than we do.” This line of reasoning is congruent with MPD activity under Frey’s administration which includes several high profile police killings of Black community members such as George Floyd and Amir Locke.

Fateh, Davis and Hampton all reaffirmed their support for MIRAC’s Real Sanctuary Now campaign, expressing discontent around how immigration has been handled by Frey since Trump began his second term as president and promising to work more shoulder-to-shoulder with community members who are most impacted. The sit-in was not raised as a topic of discussion during the debate.

For MIRAC, the action represents part of a long-term fight to hold Minneapolis accountable to its claims of equity, safety, and justice for all residents regardless of immigration status.

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