On Monday, in below-freezing temperatures, a peaceful march moved through Center City Philadelphia as hundreds of people gathered in support of Minnesota communities and in response to federal immigration enforcement actions and recent fatal encounters involving federal agents in Minneapolis. Protesters walked with signs and chants, forming a steady procession through the city while organizers framed the event as both solidarity and mobilization.
The rally also served as a call to action for a general strike scheduled for Friday, with organizers urging participation in the nationwide effort. Gabby Ballard, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation and Black Radical Christians, connected the Philadelphia gathering to organizing efforts in Minnesota and encouraged people to support the strike. Among the marchers was Philadelphia teacher Jyoti Laverack, who described the event as energizing and grounding, explaining that it connected daily community work to a larger national cause.
The demonstration followed the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse and U.S. citizen, who was killed by federal agents in South Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) initially claimed that Pretti approached law enforcement officers with a handgun. That version of events has been disputed by sworn witness statements and bystander video reviewed by CBS News, which shows Pretti holding a cellphone, not a gun.
An initial DHS report to Congress, obtained by CNN and CBS News, states that two federal officers fired their weapons. The report, produced by Customs and Border Protection’s initial investigation, explains that CBP personnel attempted to take Pretti into custody, that he resisted, and that a struggle followed. During the confrontation, a border patrol agent repeatedly shouted that Pretti had a gun. About five seconds later, one agent discharged a CBP-issued Glock 19, and a CBP officer discharged a CBP-issued Glock 47. The document does not state whether one or both gunshots struck Pretti. It records that a firearm taken from him was later “subsequently cleared and secured” in a border patrol agent’s vehicle.
The same report outlines what occurred before the shooting. A CBP officer confronted two female civilians blowing whistles and ordered them to move out of the roadway. When they did not move, the officer pushed them. One of the women ran toward a man later identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a U.S. citizen. The officer attempted to move both individuals from the roadway. When they did not comply, the officer deployed oleoresin capsicum (OC) spray toward both of them.
In Philadelphia, many demonstrators also referenced the killing of Renee Nicole Good, carrying signs honoring both victims and calling for accountability. Kari Kling, a special education teacher, said fear has spread among her students, coworkers, and friends, particularly among immigrants and non-White communities. She said the Minnesota events have intensified concerns about safety during federal enforcement actions.
Some participants were attending their first protest. Andrew Tamagni, of Philadelphia, said he believed the country failed to grasp the seriousness of what is happening and criticized what he described as public dishonesty surrounding deaths caused by authorities. Nearby, Patrick Flynn carried an upside-down American flag, a recognized international signal of distress, and described the crowd as a physical display of opposition to what he views as unaccountable government power.
Local officials responded as well. On Tuesday at 10 a.m., Philadelphia City Council members Kendra Brooks and Rue Landau are scheduled to introduce the “ICE OUT” legislation package, which would restrict how city agencies interact with federal immigration enforcement.
As federal operations continued in Minnesota on Tuesday, the DHS report confirming that two agents fired at Pretti became public at the same time Donald Trump signaled he may begin reducing the surge of ICE and other federal agents in the state. Public reaction intensified as multiple videos circulated online showing aggressive enforcement actions by federal agents.
One video posted Tuesday shows agents surrounding a crying woman holding a young girl while they detain her relative. As she pleads in Spanish, onlookers shout protests, including the line, “Do not shoot him!” Another recording shows armed agents deploying multiple rounds of teargas near residents who shout that children are present at a preschool. In a separate clip, an agent is seen sitting in his car, threatening an onlooker, ending the exchange with, “I erase your voice.”
Another video shows an ICE agent attempting to enter Ecuador’s consulate in Minneapolis. A consulate staff member ran to the door and blocked entry, telling the agents they were not permitted inside. Ecuador’s minister of foreign affairs formally protested the incident with the U.S. embassy in Quito, demanding that such incidents “not be repeated.”
Anger has also grown following the detention of a five-year-old Minneapolis boy, alongside the killings of Pretti and Renee Good. At the Minnesota state capitol on Tuesday, school superintendents, teachers, and parents spoke about the effects of ICE raids on schools. Peg Nelson, an elementary teacher in the district where Ramos was detained, said students are afraid to attend school, and absenteeism has not been this high since COVID. Mary Granlund, chair of the Columbia Heights school board, described residents waking up to abandoned cars left running with doors open, and said raids were ongoing and families needed help bringing children home and repairing community harm.
Later Tuesday, Trump defended his administration’s actions and said a “big investigation” would examine Pretti’s killing, stating he would personally monitor it and wanted it to be honest. He also defended Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who faces calls from Democrats to resign or be impeached over immigration operations and the department’s response to the deaths of Pretti and Good. Trump said he would not fire her and stated that the border is totally secure.
Noem labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” after his death without evidence and used similar language about Good, describing the shooting of Good as an appropriate response to an “act of domestic terrorism.” Renee Good was unarmed in her car, and video evidence shows she was attempting to steer away from the agent before being shot three times.
The administration has justified its immigration operations by claiming they target “large-scale fraud schemes” tied to deporting undocumented immigrants involved in serious criminal activity. Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday, Trump claimed—without evidence—that fraud in Minnesota totaled about $19 billion, adding that the figure should be tripled or quadrupled.
On Monday, the White House stated that Trump does not want people hurt or killed on U.S. streets but will not retreat from efforts to deport what it calls “violent criminal illegal aliens” from Minnesota. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt briefed reporters after the killing of nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday, stating it was the second fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen in Minnesota this month. She attributed the circumstances to what she described as resistance by Democratic leaders in Minnesota.
Video verified by Reuters contradicts the administration’s claim that agents fired in self-defense after Pretti approached them with a handgun. The footage shows Pretti holding a phone as agents wrestle him to the ground, followed by officers removing a firearm stored near his waistband after he was subdued, moments before he was fatally shot. Pretti was a licensed gun owner. Leavitt said Trump would not abandon his deportation agenda, called for Minnesota leaders to turn over undocumented immigrants in jails and individuals with active warrants or known criminal histories, and urged Congress to pass legislation ending sanctuary-style policies in some cities.
