Protesters call on Target to speak out against ICE
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Protesters gathered outside Target’s headquarters in Minneapolis on Monday morning, renewing calls for the Minnesota-based company to push back on ICE operations in the state.
Monday is the first day on the job for Target’s new CEO Michael Fiddelke. Protesters said it’s a chance for the company to take a stronger stance against ICE.
“We need companies like Target to use their influence to force the administration to end the occupation of Minnesota and shut down ICE,” organizer Veronica Mendez Moore said.
Protesters handed out flyers to passersby that said “tell Target: stand with Minnesotans! ICE OUT.” They said they want Target to call for ICE agents to leave the state, and to bar federal agents from entering stores without a warrant. Protesters noted accounts of federal agents detaining people, including US citizens, at Target locations around the Twin Cities.
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Doug Mork is a pastor at a south Minneapolis church. He said he wants to see the company align with Twin Cities residents who are pushing back against ICE.
“For years, corporations like Target have been accumulating power and asking for more,” Mork said. “We are asking them… to speak out and use their voice to turn this administration and get ICE out of Minnesota.”
Monday’s rally followed several sit-ins and protests at Target stores in Minnesota, and around the country.
Major companies in Minnesota largely hesitated to make public comments on ICE operations in the state. Last week, several corporations — including Target — signed on to an open letter asking for peace and collaboration between state and federal officials, and for “an immediate deescalation of tensions.”
But advocates say that’s not enough; the letter does not mention ICE or call for an end to the operation.
A Target spokesperson said Fiddelke has sent a note to the company’s employees saying Target is “doing everything we can to manage what’s in our control, always keeping the safety of our team and guests our top priority.”
They also noted Target’s contribution to an emergency fund offering grants to help local small businesses that are struggling during the operation.
— Estelle Timar-Wilcox, MPR News
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