Truth Council testimony recounts allegations of abuse by federal agents during ICE surge
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The Minnesota Truth Council held the first in a series of public meetings Wednesday. The 15-member body is tasked with creating a public record on the impact of the surge of federal immigration enforcement in the state earlier this year. During the operation, agents killed Renee Good, Alex Pretti and wounded Julio Sosa-Celis. Agents also arrested more than 3,700 people.
Court documents show that hundreds of people were illegally detained during Operation Metro Surge and were released by judges' orders.
A large number of people arrested by agents were held at the Whipple Federal Building.
Hanne Sandison is the Director of Immigration Legal Services for The Advocates for Human Rights. She described what she saw in some of the rooms at the holding facility inside the building during the height of the surge.
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"I looked into each room as we walked by. No one had any of their paperwork,” she said. “Everyone I saw was shackled at the ankles, even while in the cell, and even while sleeping. I didn't see anyone who had a blanket, a pillow, a sleeping bag, or a cot. The people I saw sleeping were on the floor, shackled and with no bedding."
Several people who spoke during the hearing pointed to instances of agents targeting people based on their race, ethnicity and country of origin.
“I want to speak to the harm caused by relentless targeting, racial profiling, and pervasive surveillance,” said Sarah Lopez, policy director of Unidos Minnesota.
Lopez said agents were visibly present in neighborhoods that featured Latino-owned businesses in Minneapolis and in cities like Willmar.
“They went into restaurants that are beloved institutions like Hola Arepa and Rectangle, and in Willmar, four agents sat down at lunch at El Tapatio,” she said. “And that evening, after the family closed early, agents followed them out and detained the owners of the restaurant and the dishwasher.”
Like members of the Latino community, Somali Americans found themselves as frequent targets of surveillance and detention by agents. The overwhelming majority of Somalis in Minnesota are U.S. citizens. However, Yusuf Abdulle, executive director of the Islamic Association of North America, said that didn’t protect community members from being targeted.
Abdulle became choked with emotion as he talked about how the President of the United States called Somalis ‘garbage.’
“These dehumanizing words were followed by attacks on the Somali community, especially in the social media — where every Somali became a target."
The Minnesota Truth Council was created by an executive order from Gov. Tim Walz in March.
Retired Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill is the chair of the council. He said over the next few weeks, the group will listen to testimony about Operation Metro Surge and Operation PARRIS — which targeted refugees.
“The whole purpose of the public meetings is to take testimony so that we can prevent the recurrence of unlawful or harmful conduct by federal agents,” he said. “Also, to document the abuses that occurred, and also to document how Minnesotans came together, showed their resilience and showed their support for our neighbors, and how they persevered through both of these operations.”
The council will release a preliminary report around the end of October and a final report in December.
