Civil Rights Coalition Press Conference Today (3PM) — ICE Violence, Political Repression & Target Boycott
PRESS RELEASE – EMBARGOED
Civil Rights Coalition Press Conference: Political Repression, ICE Violence & Community Resistance
- Hennepin County Government Center — Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Thursday, January 29, 2026 — 3:00 PM CST
Minneapolis, MN — Representatives from the Racial Justice Network, Black Lives Matter Minnesota, Black Lives Matter Twin Cities, CAIR Minnesota, and Communities United Against Police Brutality, alongside leaders of the national Target Boycott Coalition, will hold a press conference today at 3:00 PM CST at the Hennepin County Government Center.
The coalition will confront the political persecution of peaceful protesters, the unchecked expansion of ICE power under the Trump administration, the lack of accountability for the federal killings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, and the launch of year two of the nationwide Target boycott.
“This moment represents a dangerous escalation in the criminalization of dissent,” said Nekima Levy Armstrong, civil rights attorney and founder of the Racial Justice Network. “Chauntyll Allen, William Kelly, and I are facing trumped-up charges not because we committed crimes, but because we challenged federal brutality and exposed the authoritarian conduct of the Trump administration. These arrests are political retaliation — designed to intimidate organizers and suppress resistance. We will not be silenced.”
Issues to Be Addressed
- Unjust Arrests & Political Targeting of Protesters
Speakers will lead by addressing the unjust arrests of Nekima Levy Armstrong, Chauntyll Allen, William Kelly, and Satara Strong-Allen following a nonviolent, peaceful protest at Cities Church in St. Paul to call attention to ICE Pastor David Easterwood and his role as acting director of the ICE field office in Minnesota. These arrests reflect a broader national pattern of criminalizing peaceful protest, targeting high-profile organizers, and weaponizing the legal system to suppress opposition to federal enforcement abuses.
The coalition will demand the immediate dismissal of all charges against peaceful protesters targeted for exercising their constitutional rights.
- Escalating ICE Militarization in Minnesota
Under the Trump administration’s federal enforcement surge, Minnesota communities have experienced an influx of heavily armed federal agents and aggressive ICE operations that have escalated tensions, endangered civilians, and normalized militarized policing tactics in residential neighborhoods and public spaces.
- Killing of Renee Nicole Good
On January 7, 2026, ICE agents shot and killed Renee Nicole Good, a Minnesota resident who was observing federal enforcement activity. Despite the death being ruled a homicide and widespread public outrage, there has been no meaningful accountability, arrests, or transparent disciplinary action.
- Killing of Alex Pretti & Federal Disinformation
On January 24, 2026, federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse and U.S. citizen who was documenting ICE activity. Initial claims by the Trump administration portraying Pretti as a violent threat were later contradicted by eyewitness testimony and video evidence, exposing a familiar pattern of official misinformation used to justify lethal force.
- Target Boycott Enters Year Two
February 1 marks the second anniversary of the nationwide Target boycott, co-founded by Nekima Levy Armstrong, Jaylani Hussein, and Monique Cullars-Doty. The boycott was launched in response to Target’s rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments and the company’s perceived accommodation of ICE operations, including concerns about federal agents staging near or on Target-owned properties.
“The Target boycott exists because corporations cannot be allowed to profit while enabling state violence,” said Jaylani Hussein, co-founder of the Target Boycott Coalition. “When Target rolled back its DEI commitments and created conditions that made its stores welcoming terrain for ICE operations, it sent a clear message about whose side it was on. Year two of this boycott is about demanding corporate accountability and building economic pressure that cannot be ignored.”
Speakers
- Nekima Levy Armstrong — Founder, Racial Justice Network; Civil Rights Attorney, Co-founder, Nationwide Target Boycott
- Chauntyll Allen — Co-founder, Black Lives Matter Twin Cities
- Satara Strong-Allen — Co-Leader, Black Lives Matter Twin Cities
- Monique Cullars-Doty — Co-founder, Black Lives Matter Minnesota; Co-founder, Nationwide Target Boycott
- Jaylani Hussein — Executive Director, CAIR MN, Co-founder, Nationwide Target Boycott
- Michelle Gross — President, Communities United Against Police Brutality
Coalition Demands
The coalition will call for:
- Immediate dismissal of all charges against peaceful protesters
- Independent investigations into the killings of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti
- Criminal accountability for federal agents who used deadly force
- An end to militarized ICE operations in Minnesota
- Corporate accountability from Target and other companies enabling federal enforcement activity
EMBARGO LIFTS: January 29, 2026 at 3:00 PM CST