Friend, MAGA is trying to turn our attention away from ICE’s indefensible occupation of Minnesota, but the daily incidents of injustice and indecency in my neighborhood, my city, and my state continue.

Alberto Castañeda Mondragón, a legal immigrant, was pulled from his car in St. Paul by ICE agents, thrown to the ground, handcuffed, and beaten repeatedly in the head with a steel baton. Once detained, they beat him more. They attacked Alberto so violently that he initially couldn’t remember he had a daughter, and still suffers from major memory loss.

The ICE agents involved claimed he ran headfirst into a brick wall. This disgusting lie was easily disproven by medical exams and the doctors and nurses who gave him emergency care. Days later, it was revealed that the arrest was completely unlawful in the first place:

Javier Abreu-Vasquez, who also entered the US legally, was disappeared by ICE in Rochester, Minnesota while delivering groceries as part of a community aid effort through his church. Witnesses said his car “was rammed and a window was broken” when he was detained.

Javier, a recent recipient of a kidney transplant, was denied his life-saving kidney medication for four days while in ICE custody, despite his pleas for help from his family, his attorney, and local officials. It’s a miracle Javier is still alive right now, and I pray for his health now that he has access to his medication.

I’m sure you remember Liam Ramos, the little boy in the blue hat from the Minneapolis area who was used as bait by ICE to try to detain his family, who is in the US with an active asylum claim. The good news is that Liam and his father were recently released from ICE custody, and my friend and colleague Rep. Joaquin Castro accompanied them from Texas to Minnesota to reunite them with their community.

Joaquin Castro, Ilhan Omar, Liam Ramos and his Father

The judge who blocked their deportation and ordered their release called DHS’s treatment of the family as driven by "perfidious lust for unbridled power”. But that decision hasn't stopped the administration from continuing to try to deport this family to this day, in what is being described as a clear case of retaliation — Liam Ramos exposed the depravity of this administration, and they’re looking for revenge.

Aliya Rahman is a US citizen from South Minneapolis and disabled woman with autism who has suffered a brain injury. She was driving to an appointment at the traumatic brain injury center when she got stuck in a traffic jam caused by ICE vehicles.

As she tried to navigate her way around, an agent yelled, "Move, I will break your f'ing window." She was given conflicting threats and instructions until suddenly the glass of her passenger side window was shattered. She yelled "I am disabled!”, and an agent responded, "Too late."

An agent pulled out a large knife, cut off her seatbelt, threw her face-first into the ground and leaned on her back. Aliya says shooting pain went through her head, neck and wrists. They handcuffed her and carried her facedown through the street by her cuffed arms and legs. She was detained and denied medical attention.

Aliyah Rahman Arrested by ICE

I’m linking the full video of her testimony below, and I urge everyone to watch it:

I’m proud of Aliya for speaking out and sharing her experience, both with her arrest and what she saw inside the Whipple ICE facility in Minnesota.

And I’m proud of everyone in Minneapolis who is showing incredible courage by standing tall against this tyranny and the thugs who are patrolling our streets.

I share these stories because I know the right-wing dominated media won’t. Because I know shining a light on this administration’s fascist violence is the fastest route towards accountability. Because growing our movement to defeat the far-right is exactly what they fear.

As we continue this work, if you would like to support both our efforts on the ground in Minneapolis and our efforts to combat ICE in Congress, chip in to my campaign today. Your donation helps us keep up the fight and make sure there are no more heart-wrenching stories like these.

DONATE HERE

In solidarity,

Ilhan Omar