> Minneapolis police tangled in immigration enforcement action (http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/node/4836) [dynamic thumbnail from cache] (http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/files/Mpls-cops-run.gif) > Minneapolis Police officers run to the back of the Guayaquil > restaurant. > Photo courtesy of Minnesota Immigrant Freedom Network. > By Mary Turck , Special to the TC Daily Planet > U.S. Immigration, Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents struck > at the heart of Minneapolis's Latino community Saturday, with > a high-profile presence and apparent collaboration by the > Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Minneapolis > Police Department. Though law enforcement officials claimed > the operation targeted identified suspects involved in human > trafficking, activists say they also stopped Latino pedestrians, > demanding identification and verification of immigration status. > The high-profile operation sent people running in panic, > emptying some stores in the middle of the week's busiest > shopping day. > Recent raids in Worthington and Willmar have created a climate > of fear in immigrant communities in Minnesota. The Willmar > raid is the subject of a federal lawsuit, based on alleged > violations of constitutional rights by ICE agents who allegedly > forced their way into homes without warrants. Racial profiling > was an issue in Worthington and Willmar, with ICE agents > targeting for investigation those people on the street or in > the workplace who "look Latino." > A community report from the scene comes from Alondra > Espejel?Minneapolis Police Department creates chaos with ICE: > community responds, demands immigration reform now > (http://www.tcdailyplanet.net/node/4830). To view photos of > the operation, visit: MN Immigrant Freedom Network's Flickr > site (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mnimmigrantfreedom/sets/72157600233342311) > . To view videos from the scene, visit: Youtube > (http://www.youtube.com/user/ImmigrantRightsNow) > Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak expressed concern about the > impact of Saturday's events on police-community relations. > My understanding is that the police were contacted in the > morning by the BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension), that > they wanted to execute a warrant involving human trafficking. > Our officers were notified, which I understand is fairly > standard procedure. My understanding was that ICE (U.S. > Immigration and Customs Enforcement) would be there. That's > another thing that we are looking at right now. > The ICE people had jackets that said police on them, which I > am strongly opposed to, and a year ago I formally requested > that they stop doing so. They are not police. They work for > immigration and those different functions have to be separate > to protect all of our citizens. I feel very strongly about > that. We have resisted numerous efforts to change that, and I > will continue to be rock solid on that. > I take this separation ordinance very seriously. I am rock > solid ? the police should be here first and foremost to protect > and serve the people of Minneapolis. Because of what happened > in Willmar and what has happened elsewhere around the country, > we have to watch this very carefully, and ask people to bring > information forward. If police were involved, that violates > our policy. ... The role of the police officer is to protect > and to serve every person who is in Minneapolis. We know that > if there is a fear that reporting something to the police could > jeopardize someone's immigration status, including those that > have legal status, then people will not come forward with the > information that we need to know. We need people to report > domestic abuse, we need them to report gang activity. We have > seen many cases where people are afraid to come forward for > fear that it will jeopardize their immigration status, even > if they are legal immigrants. > Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak acknowledged Sunday that city > officials "are a bit in the dark at this point," but reiterated > that the city of Minneapolis is "absolutely committed to our > policy of separating our police from immigration." > Minneapolis has enacted an immigration separation ordinance, > which says in essence that city police should not ask about > immigration status except when directly relevant to a criminal > investigation. Similar ordinances have been enacted in St. > Paul and in cities across the country. Police departments are > among the strongest advocates for immigration separation > ordinances, which help to establish trust and increase reporting > of crimes by immigrant communities. > While Mayor Rybak insists that his commitment is "rock solid > ? the police should be here first and foremost to protect and > serve the people of Minneapolis," community members are > skeptical. Alondra Espejel of the Immigrant Freedom Network, > said: "Once you have ICE agents discussing plans with MPD in > public, that is collaboration. ... What kind of message does > this send to the community? Actions speak louder than words. > It is too late now, over 200 community members saw the MPD > park next to ICE vehicles, I saw a high up ICE official talking > with BCA and an MPD officer. If that is not collaboration, > then what is? Let's stop passing the buck. The MPD metio la > pata [put their foot in it], ... Unfortunately, all the evidence > we have shows that the MPD, whether they planned to or not, > did cooperate with the ICE operation that day." > Peter Brown of the National Lawyers' Guild said he would be > sending a request for review of Minneapolis police participation > in Saturday's operation to the Minneapolis City Council Public > Services committee. > "We are very interested in getting any information and seeing > any videotapes that anyone has," Rybak said. "We are very > interested in seeing any tapes and reviewing those and seeing > if our officers followed our policy. ... Anyone can reach me > at my e-mail at > [EMAIL PROTECTED] (mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]). > Minneapolis Police Deputy Chief Sharon Lubinski said, "There > are rumors, but we were not there for immigration enforcement." > She said that Minneapolis police were called in on Saturday > by the BCA, which was serving "serious warrants that were not > immigration violations." As of Sunday night, no official > information was available on how many arrests were made, by > what agencies or on what charges. > On Sunday, activists gathered again at Lake and Bloomington > to protest the previous day's operation and, in particular, > the apparent participation of Minneapolis police in an immigration > enforcement operation. Individuals who had been present on > Saturday described Minneapolis police and ICE agents conferring > on plans, chasing people and apparently working closely together. > The recently-organized Community Raid Response Committee, > summoning its members by text messaging, arrived Saturday > shortly after ICE vehicles and Minneapolis police assembled > in the parking lot of St. Paul's Lutheran Church at 28th Street > and 15th Avenue. Perry Bellow-Handelman reported that Minneapolis > police officers and ICE agents appeared to be conferring on > plans, and then proceeded to Lake and Bloomington. Committee > members followed ICE agents and police throughout the next > four hours, as they moved through the neighborhood. A crowd > of activists and community members, which grew to about 200 > over the course of the day, observed, protested, distributed > literature advising people of their rights, videotaped and > photographed the ICE and police operations. > At Lake and Bloomington, the co-owner of Guayaquil restaurant > discovered the building's back door was open and went into the > alley to find out who had opened it. Police patted her down > for weapons, and told her they had a warrant but refused to > show it to her. (Later in the day, officers showed a warrant > to the second co-owner of the restaurant.) The owner reported > that officers arrested two customers and four people from the > apartments above the restaurant. As seemed to be the case > throughout the day, it was unclear whether the arrests were > made by ICE or BCA agents. Maria Belen Power, another witness, > reported that Minneapolis police joined in chasing someone in > the alley. The owner of the grocery next to Guayaquil said > Minneapolis police also chased someone across his rooftop. > Other witnesses reported arrests at buildings at 30th and > Grand, 31st and Pleasant, and 25th and Pleasant, and a search > of an apartment at 32nd and Cedar, where agents found no one > at home but carried away boxes of material. Law enforcement > officers from the Minneapolis Police Department, the Minnesota > Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and ICE all participated in > some way in the operation, and it often was unclear which > officers were making arrests. > Patrick Leet, an immigration activist, who was arrested Saturday > by Minneapolis police, characterized the operation as "terrorizing > the community" and as "a full, frontal attack ? to come to > Lake and Bloomington on a Saturday afternoon, taking people > out of their homes." > Immigration-related raids have increased across the country > during the past five months, with accompanying increases in > arrests and deportations. According to a local immigration > attorney, "ICE has many more agents and dollars to carry out > these actions than they used to and they will spend those > dollars and employ their agents to do what Congress and this > Administration have charged them with doing. The cold reality > is that ICE now has those agents hired, trained, detailed to > Bloomington, MN, and they are not leaving." > submitted: May 20, 2007 - 11:43pm
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