ICE agents are terrorizing my community, and scaring away my customers.
Shontay is a small business owner in Minneapolis, MN. After ICE agents killed two innocent people in her community, she knew she couldn’t just stay home. In sub-zero temperatures, she went out, grabbed some snacks, and joined her local protest. She distributed food and hand warmers to the protestors, and refused to back down, even when wind chills made it feel like -50°F out.
What she saw from the ICE agents occupying her community was disgusting, and predictable. Agents mocked and taunted protestors, and gave them the middle finger. They drove by recording protestors, clearly trying to menace and intimidate them into going away. She saw the opposite behavior from her fellow protestors: solidarity, support, encouragement, kindness, compassion, and determination.
As a small business owner, she’s seeing her profits dry up thanks to the Trump administration. ICE’s thug tactics are scaring away customers and workers, and she’s seen other businesses in her community close up shop. And even before the ICE occupation, Trump’s broader economic downturn was already eating into her business.
With the legacy of George Floyd still recent, Shontay knows that her community is no stranger to tragedy. But throughout these tragedies, it has also shown resilience, and a refusal to let injustice and state violence take place with impunity. She and her fellow protestors will be here as long as it takes.