In a bold move to stand against the surge of federal immigration agents in Minnesota, labor unions, community leaders, and faith groups are calling for an economic blackout in the state on Friday. The planned action aims to mourn the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old individual shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis earlier this month.
Organizers are urging Minnesotans to refrain from work, shopping, and school attendance on the designated day. The Trump administration has dispatched around 3,000 federal agents to the state, which the government claims is its largest enforcement operation to date, amid a broader crackdown on immigration.
Kieran Knutson, the president of Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 7250 in Minneapolis, described the situation as an “unprecedented and outrageous attack” on the people of Minnesota. “This is just an outrageous acceleration and escalation of violence toward working-class people,” he said.
The CWA, along with other local unions such as Unite Here Local 17, Saint Paul Federation of Educators, and Minneapolis Federation of Educators Local 59, are among the organizations spearheading the planned economic blackout. Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, the president of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, stated that “working people, our schools and our communities are under attack.”
The decision to call for the economic blackout stems from the perceived lack of action by the state government to address the situation. “The government in the state of Minnesota has not offered any path toward stopping these attacks, this violence,” Knutson explained.
The organizers hope that the economic impact of the blackout will prompt a response from the corporate entities headquartered in Minnesota, including Target, Best Buy, UnitedHealthcare, and General Mills. However, none of these companies have yet responded to requests for comment.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has acknowledged the challenges faced by the city’s police force, stating that they are “outmanned and outgunned” in the face of the influx of federal agents. “Can our cops arrest them? From a legal perspective, yes,” he said. “From a practical perspective, to state the reality, it does get kind of hard when they drastically outnumber us, and they have bigger guns than we do.”
The organizers are adamant that the economic blackout is a powerful tool to send a message. “Those of us in the trade union movement understand the leverage and power that our labor has, and we are going to try and use that, because really there’s nothing else left,” Knutson said.
The planned event, which will include a march and rally in downtown Minneapolis, aims to unite Minnesotans in a collective stand against the “unprecedented and outrageous attack” on their communities. As the Trump administration continues to escalate its immigration enforcement efforts, the economic blackout in Minnesota could serve as a powerful demonstration of the power of collective action.
