Minneapolis Mayor Condemns ICE Actions, Warns Other Cities Could Be Targeted Next

Minneapolis Mayor Calls on Fellow Mayors to Fight Federal Immigration Enforcement

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey issued an urgent appeal to fellow city leaders at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, warning that federal immigration enforcement efforts currently affecting his city could soon spread to theirs.

“We are on the front lines of a very important battle, and it’s important that we aren’t silenced. That we aren’t put down,” Frey told the assembled mayors. “This is not a time to bend our heads in despair, or out of fear that we may be next, because if we do not speak up, if we do not step out, it will be your city that is next.”

The Democratic mayor described what he characterized as an overwhelming federal presence in Minneapolis, claiming that “thousands of federal agents have descended on a city that has 600 police officers.” He alleged that residents are being “indiscriminately pulled off the street” based solely on their ethnicity.

“Discrimination takes place only on the basis of are you Somali, are you Latino or are you Southeast Asian,” Frey asserted. “American citizens have been yanked away from their homes… solely because they looked like they were from Mexico or Ecuador or Somalia.”

The mayor’s comments come amid heightened tensions over immigration enforcement nationwide, particularly the Department of Homeland Security’s “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis. The operation has become a flashpoint in the broader national debate over immigration policy and federal law enforcement tactics.

Frey claimed the federal presence has made Minneapolis less safe, despite crime being down in “virtually every category” and “virtually every neighborhood” in the city. He argued that the operation has spread fear among families engaging in everyday activities.

“It is less safe when chaos reigns supreme,” he said.

The mayor’s address comes just days after White House border czar Tom Homan visited the Twin Cities to work on what he described as a “drawdown plan” to decrease the federal presence in Minnesota. Homan called his meeting with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison “very productive,” noting that Ellison had agreed to notify Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) when local jails release undocumented immigrants with violent criminal histories.

Homan has also urged local leaders to tone down what he termed “hostile rhetoric,” following recent unrest in Minneapolis that resulted in the deaths of two Minnesota residents, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, in confrontations with federal law enforcement officers.

Frey pushed back against suggestions that his stance was politically motivated. “This is not even about immigration. This is about silencing a narrative or a political position that differs from that of the federal administration,” he said. “This is not a Democratic or a Republican issue. Never once have I made this partisan.”

The mayor also accused the Trump administration of using the Department of Justice “as a weapon,” claiming federal officials were investigating him and other local elected officials “not because we’ve done something wrong, but because we have exhibited one of the core responsibilities that we have as mayors, and that is the core and foundational responsibility to speak on behalf of your constituents.”

The confrontation between Minneapolis leadership and federal immigration authorities highlights the ongoing tensions between local and federal governments over immigration enforcement policies. Cities with large immigrant populations have increasingly found themselves caught between federal mandates and their own community protection priorities.

While attending the conference in Washington, Frey told reporters he did not have a meeting scheduled with President Donald Trump on Thursday, but planned to meet with other elected officials at the Capitol to discuss the situation further.

The conflict in Minneapolis could signal similar tensions in other cities as federal immigration enforcement continues to be a central focus of the current administration’s policy agenda.