Minneapolis parks continue to address ICE on grounds: ‘Nowhere will truly be safe’
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Federal agents deployed chemical irritants at observers Sunday morning at a Powderhorn Park Recreation Center parking lot, Minneapolis council member Jason Chavez said in a social media post.
According to Chavez, the federal agents were staged in the rec center’s parking lot with multiple vehicles.
Minneapolis Parks and Recreation President Tom Olsen says agents also arrested an observer there. MPR News was unable to verify that with the Department of Homeland Security.
This comes after the board passed a resolution mirroring the the city’s separation ordinance and the mayor’s order around prohibiting ICE from utilizing and staging within parking lots and city spaces.
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The resolution prohibits staging, but what exactly defines “staging” has been an issue throughout the process. Their definition and federal law do not necessarily line up.
“What we’re finding, and I think what you know all municipal governments around the nation are finding, is that the federal law under the Constitutional Supremacy Clause really has a lot of leeway,” he said.
The board doesn’t have authority given to them by federal or state law, or in what could be found by courts, to prohibit ICE from being within the park system.
“We passed that and that is our intention, but as far as our authority, and, you know, the teeth to be able to, prevent them from kind of doing the thing that they’re doing, we’re finding that we don’t have a ton of latitude,” Olsen said.
For incidences where ICE is going past “staging,” the board is collecting documentation for possible legal action down the road.
Olsen objects to how the federal officers are operating. He says that Powderhorn, Theodore Wirth Regional Park and Pearl Park have had higher amounts of ICE presence.
“They are still able to, you know, operate and enforce immigration law within our park system,” he said. “Now, obviously, they're doing more than immigration enforcement, and they're harming constitutional observers and citizens and folks with proper legal documentation alike.”
The board is gathering data to form a map of what he calls “hotspots” of where ICE has been most active, he said. He hopes the map can be shared publicly soon, but says the board does not have a timeline.
Olsen also said the parks board is looking into options to keep the city's parks safe and support those visiting them.
“At this point while Minneapolis is under occupation, nowhere within the city will be truly safe,” he said.
A department of homeland security spokesperson could not be reached for comment on the incident in Powderhorn Park.
— Anika Besst, MPR News
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