Protesters denounce immigration workplace raid in St. Louis Park, MN
St. Louis Park, MN – Dozens of immigrant rights supporters gathered to protest on March 5 in the inner-ring suburb of Saint Louis Park outside Hardcoat Inc., an aluminum finishing business. Last week immigration officials swarmed the Hardcoat building at West Lake Street and Taft Avenue and detained seven immigrant workers.
The protest was called by the Immigrant Defense Network, a large network of organizations that was formed in Minnesota after the presidential election.
At the protest, a statement was read by a family member of one of the detained workers, and members of COPAL, MN8 and MN Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) spoke.
In the last two weeks there were also immigration raids at workplaces in Duluth and Rochester, Minnesota. Speakers at the protest emphasized that the ICE operation at Hardcoat and in other parts of Minnesota shows the reality of Trump's attacks on immigrants – they are going after workers, not criminals.