America’s largest labor movement says ICE is a danger to ‘innocent working people’

• The AFL-CIO says ICE raids in Minnesota are putting "innocent working people in danger."
• A group of local unions is encouraging residents to skip work, school, and shopping on January 23.
• Federal law enforcement officers are in Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge.

The AFL-CIO, the country's largest network of labor unions representing some 15 million workers, says ICE is a threat to workers.

"The Trump administration's militarized immigration enforcement is putting innocent working people in danger," the AFL-CIO said in a post on X on Saturday. "America's unions have your backs."

A group of local unions in Minnesota, meanwhile, has endorsed a planned statewide economic blackout in response to ICE actions in the state.

The Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, which is affiliated with the AFL-CIO, first announced its endorsement alongside other regional bodies on Friday.

"The Minnesota labor movement is united against the violent ICE occupation of our beloved cities that has directly impacted union members, our workplaces and our families," the group said in a press release.

Dozens of community, faith, and union groups are organizing the Day of Truth and Freedom, a call to action asking Minnesotans to avoid work, school, and shopping on January 23 to pause the economy. There will also be a rally and march in downtown Minneapolis at 2 p.m. local time.

"We will gather with family, neighbors, and community to show Minnesota's moral heart and economic power," organizers said in a Facebook post.

Organizers listed several demands, including that ICE leave Minnesota and that federal funding for ICE be scrapped in the upcoming congressional budget.

The Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation told Business Insider that ICE's presence is disrupting residents' daily lives.

"Working people from across sectors — hospitality, healthcare, education, custodial, construction, public works — are being targeted," the group said in a statement.

Thousands of ICE officers have descended on Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge, launched on December 1. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a press release earlier this month that the operation was targeting criminal activity among immigrants in the state.

"Under President Trump, we will expose and deliver accountability for the rampant fraud and criminality happening in Minnesota. You won't steal from Americans or break our laws and get away with it," she said.

The Trump administration has said it is specifically targeting cities like Minneapolis that have passed so-called "sanctuary" laws that prevent city resources and police from supporting federal immigration agents.

Many residents, meanwhile, have criticized the tactics that federal agents are using to locate and detain individuals.

Tensions in the state skyrocketed after ICE officer Jonathan Ross fatally shot Renee Good, a 37-year-old American citizen from Minneapolis, on January 7, leading to a wave of protests and outcry.

Days later, Minnesota's attorney general — on behalf of Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the state — filed a lawsuit against Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, seeking to end the operation.

"As a result of this surge, municipalities have been forced to divert local law enforcement resources away from their normal public safety duties, emergency responder resources have been strained, schools have been forced into lockdowns and closures, businesses have been forced to close, and the rights of Minnesotans have been violated time and time again," a press release from the Minnesota Attorney General's Office said.

Homeland Security said officers have arrested over 2,500 individuals during Operation Metro Surge so far.

Correction: January 17, 2026 — An earlier version of this story misstated that the AFL-CIO had endorsed the January 23 economic blackout in Minnesota. It has so far not publicly expressed a position.