[[link removed]] Weekly Digest
Weekly Digest
Letter from an Editor | January 31, 2026
Dear John,
Another devastating killing during the Trump administration’s mobilization of ICE and Customs and Border Protection agents in Minneapolis this past week. Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse at a Veterans Affairs hospital, was shot ten times while attempting to protect a woman who was being shoved and pepper-sprayed by border patrol agents.
The brutality we’re seeing is a “horrific illustration of what unfettered power does in the hands of leadership that celebrates and demands violence, especially from men,” writes author and extremism researcher Cynthia Miller-Idriss in Ms . this week. She highlights how ICE’s latest “wartime recruitment” push has targeted male-dominated spaces, and places where violence is the norm: gun shows, military bases, people who shopped for tactical gear and UFC fights.
“This is how men who cannot tolerate a woman’s disrespect put her in her place: with violence or the threat of it,” she continues. “The shootings of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent and Alex Pretti by Border Control—coming on the heels of a dozen other deaths of detainees over the past months—are a predictable outcome of the institutional norms and social hierarchies the administration is valorizing.”
Undeterred, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Minneapolis to protest and to continue recording ICE and CBP agents’ actions, and providing early warning systems to neighborhoods where agents are roaming. Hundreds of demonstrations are scheduled to take place across the country this weekend, with organizers holding a nationwide strike Friday, and 50501 calling for an “ICE Out of Everywhere National Day of Action” today. ( Click here [[link removed]] to find an event near you.)
The numbers we’re seeing in the streets, not just in Minneapolis but in major cities and states all around the country, are echoed in the polls. Overall approval of Trump’s immigration policies is the lowest its ever been in his second term, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. Fifty-three percent disapprove of the job Trump is doing on immigration, and a majority of Americans—58 percent—believe the ICE crackdown has gone too far.
This feels like a turning point. The courage and determination of the people of Minneapolis is showing the rest of us how to resist authoritarianism, and is inspiring people around the country to take action and stand up. To the people of Minneapolis, and all those standing in solidarity, we’re with you. Keep fighting.
Onward,
[[link removed]]
Kathy Spillar
Executive Editor
P.S. — If you want to learn more about the new misogyny behind the rise in violent extremism on the right, join us on February 18 for a discussion about Miller-Idriss’s new book Man Up: The New Misogyny & the Rise of Violent Extremism at the Ms. HQ. The discussion is free and open to the public, RSVP to join us in person here [[link removed]] or sign up to join the livestream [[link removed]] .
This Week's Must-Reads from Ms.
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How Misogyny and White Nationalism Converge in ICE Enforcement [[link removed]] The Trump Administration’s Misogyny Isn’t Exclusive To—Or Deadly Only—To Women [[link removed]]
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‘She Rubbed Me the Wrong Way’: Why Trump Punished a Woman Head of State for Saying No [[link removed]] ‘I Needed to Know I Was Not the Only One’: Talking Honestly About Pregnancy Loss and Reproductive Grief [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Tune in for a new episode of Ms. magazine's podcast, On the Issues with Michele Goodwin, at MsMagazine.com, [[link removed]] Apple Podcasts [[link removed]] or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Pregnancy loss is devastating. Yet despite how common it is, the grief experienced after pregnancy loss remains largely unspoken, shrouded in silence and shame. How do you support someone who’s gone through such an unimaginable loss? In this episode, Dr. Goodwin is joined by two special guests to delve specifically into how creative expression and clinical care can offer support to those affected by pregnancy loss.
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U.S. democracy is at a dangerous inflection point—from the demise of abortion rights, to a lack of pay equity and parental leave, to skyrocketing maternal mortality, and attacks on trans health. Left unchecked, these crises will lead to wider gaps in political participation and representation. For over 50 years, Ms . has been forging feminist journalism—reporting, rebelling and truth-telling from the front-lines, championing the Equal Rights Amendment, and centering the stories of those most impacted. With all that’s at stake for equality, we are redoubling our commitment for the next 50 years. In turn, we need your help, Support Ms. today with a donation—any amount that is meaningful to you [[link removed]] . We are grateful for your loyalty and ferocity .
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