Saint Paul, MN – In response to recent actions by ICE across the country, members of the Native American Caucus in the Minnesota Legislature – Senator Mary Kunesh (DFL-New Brighton), Representative Heather Keeler (DFL-Moorhead) and Representative Liish Kozlowski (DFL-Duluth) – released the following statement:
“ICE has unleashed unspeakable acts of violence across Minnesota. Now, federal agents illegally detained four unsheltered Oglala Sioux relatives and Red Lake Nation descendant, Jose Roberto Ramirez, as countless community members report being harassed, stopped without cause, and interrogated for documentation. This is lawless abuse of power rooted in systemic racism — and it will not stand.
“Native peoples are Indigenous to this country, existing on this continent for thousands of years before the colonization of this nation – rendering deportation impossible and absurd. Snatching a Native person off the street is not a reckless mistake – it’s a direct assault on Indigenous sovereignty and due process. Native Americans are citizens by law, history, and treaty.
“The detention of Native peoples in Minnesota follows a disturbing nationwide pattern by ICE agents: targeting immigrants and civilians, seizing American Indian persons off the street, ignoring their clear identification as Tribal members, and detaining them by ruthless force. This treatment exposes the cruel irony of Indigenous peoples being treated as outsiders on our own homelands. These aren’t isolated or new injustices—they compound historical trauma at the hands of this federal government, exacerbate intergenerational harm on mental health and cultural identity, and reinforce longstanding mistrust of authority and government that have repeatedly broken its treaty promises.
“Masked militias are waging violence on entire communities. These federal escalations — underscored by the murder of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent — reveal an ongoing pattern of militarized force that Native peoples, Black and Brown peoples, and immigrant communities have long endured. The indefensible actions of masked ICE militia rip apart individual lives and threaten the cultural, social, and spiritual fabric of our Urban Native and Tribal communities. ?We’re sounding the alarms that violence against us, against trans and Two Spirit relatives, and against immigrants threatens everyone’s rights.
“We demand an immediate halt to ICE for good, an end to the discriminatory practices, and a comprehensive, transparent investigation of ICE and its accomplices across the system. Authorities at all levels must recognize and respect the sovereignty of Native Nations, DHS must fully consult Tribal Leaders, and ensure that their citizens and descendants are never subjected to violations of Indigenous rights and civil liberties. We must ensure no one is forced into the indignity of proving their right to exist on their own homelands or subjected to unlawful stops, detentions, or excessive force.
“Nobody is illegal on stolen land. We echo calls from the community to Tribal and urban Native leaders to rise up and declare: ICE is not welcome and has no authority on any Tribal or urban Native lands, businesses, or other entities. We call on every Tribe to establish rapid response policies and protocols regarding ICE activity, and to ensure Know-Your-Rights resources are available to all community members and employees – Native and non-Native. Our existence, resources, and funding may be threatened—but our resolve to resist injustice is non-negotiable.
“We are strongest when we act in solidarity, loudly and clearly, rooted in our identity as the first peoples of this land— the original caretakers who understand what it means to be good relatives. Together, we can and will protect the safety and well-being of our people and homelands.
“Weweni and Wopila Tanka – Liish, Mary, and Heather”