New Future

By Unicorn Riot August 28, 2025August 28, 2025

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — On Thursday, August 28, a protest was called by a collection of groups in Minnesota demanding “ICE Out” of Minneapolis and a “real sanctuary city for immigrants now,” and for Mayor Jacob Frey to “stop sabotaging the Roof Depot deal” as well as “no millionaire-backed election meddling” on the event flyer.

The ongoing Roof Depot redevelopment project at 27th Street and Minnehaha Avenue has been a hot subject in recent years in Minneapolis – see our recent report for the full rundown.

ICE raids have been a key subject in recent months as well. City Auditor Robert Timmerman said that the June 3 federal agent raid at Las Cuatro Milpas didn’t violate the city’s “separation ordinance.” The raid included ICE Special Response Team agents. Unicorn Riot found that raid was the splashy debut of a local “Homeland Security Task Force.” It caused an immediate protest, which got confronted with Minneapolis Police Department crowd control tactics. Days later, 27-year-old local poet Isabel Lopez was arrested in St. Paul as she left a press interview, and was subjected to government and corporate media messaging that conflated her federal assault charges with the drug investigation that ostensibly spurred the flashy June 3 police action on Lake Street.

The Minneapolis mayor’s race has been one of the contentious local elections in years. The local Minneapolis Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party unit endorsed Frey’s challenger, State Senator Omar Fateh (DFL-MN62) at a July 19 city convention. The state party’s Constitution, Bylaws & Rules Committee revoked that endorsement on August 21, saying there were too many flaws in the process. (An electronic balloting system didn’t execute correctly, but a final visual vote by holding up cards temporarily clinched victory for Fateh.) Other DFL elected officials condemned the party’s revocation, including U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (DFL-MN5), two state senators, five state representatives, three Hennepin County commissioners, five city council members and a school board member.

Groups mentioned on the flyer include the Climate Justice Committee, Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC), the Anti-War Committee, Bikers Riding Against Police Brutality (BRAPB), MN50501, Minnesota Workers United, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Taking Back Pride Coalition (TBP), MN Abortion Action Committee (MN AAC), Twin Cities Coalition for Justice (TCC4J), Black Lives Matter Twin Cities Metro and the 5th Congressional District Green Party.