Protesters in the United States have launched a nationwide “no work, no school, no shop” strike in response to President Donald Trump’s deportation push.
Friday’s strike, organized by a series of activist groups, comes in response to the killing of two Americans by immigration enforcement officers in Minnesota this month and builds on a statewide strike last week.
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On Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it would launch a civil rights investigation into the January 24 killing of 37-year-old Alex Preti by a Border Patrol agent.
But it has not yet investigated possible rights violations for 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good, who was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer on January 7.
U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, who represents Minneapolis, was among the lawmakers pushing for Friday’s walkout.
“I stand in solidarity with all those participating in today’s general strike against ICE’s terrorist activities,” Omar wrote to X.
“You are changing the world,” she said.
civil rights investigation
The killings of Good and Preti came on the heels of the Trump administration’s flood of immigration agents to Minnesota, specifically targeting alleged fraud in the Somali-American community.
The deployment comes amid a broader deportation movement, with observers saying they are witnessing immigration officials using dragnet techniques to achieve dramatically increased detention quotas.
Border Patrol Chief Tom Homan, officially dubbed the “border czar” by the White House, promised earlier this week that enforcement efforts in the state would continue, but said increased cooperation with local authorities could lead to “shrinking the border.”
On Friday, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that his office is conducting a civil rights investigation into Pretty’s killing, saying, “We are looking at everything to determine what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened.”
The statement came as a number of Trump administration officials, who initially falsely claimed that Preti had brandished a gun at an immigration officer before he was shot, confirmed that the FBI would take over the investigation into the shooting from the Department of Homeland Security.
Blanche did not provide details on why the department did not launch a civil rights investigation into Goode’s killing, saying only that the department is not involved in all law enforcement shootings and that there must be circumstances that are “worthy of investigation.”
Trump officials quickly labeled Goode a “domestic terrorist” who had tried to run over ICE agents when he was shot. Video analysis of the killing showed Good was trying to flee from officers in his car when he was killed.
Federal authorities have prohibited local and state authorities from conducting their own investigations into the killings.
“Dissent is democratic.”
On Friday, protesters gathered at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where they planned to march to the White House.
“I think this shows how many people are against this and how this is endangering our country,” one student told Al Jazeera.
“I think for us all to come together and speak out against this shows the government that we don’t agree with this and we’re not going to let it go on like this,” she added.
Meanwhile, Arizona and Colorado were among the states that canceled school in anticipation of mass absenteeism. At Groves High School in Birmingham, Michigan, dozens of students headed home after morning classes.
“We came here to protest ICE and what they’re doing across the country, especially in Minnesota,” Logan Albritton, 17, told The Associated Press. “It’s not right to treat our neighbors and Americans this way.”
Protests were also planned in major cities such as Atlanta, Georgia, and Portland, Oregon, where Mayor Mark Dion called on people to voice their discontent.
“Dissent is democracy. Dissent is American. It’s the foundation of our democracy,” Dion said.
Some businesses, shaken by the snowstorm that hit the eastern United States last week, have found other ways to show their opposition to the government’s actions.
In a social media post, Otway Bakery in New York said it would remain open and donate half of its profits to the New York Immigration Coalition, a local nonprofit.
In a post on X, New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani called the strike a “direct challenge to ICE brutality.”
“Your courage is an inspiration to the world. Power is with the people. We are in solidarity with all those who are striking,” he said.
Duchess Harris, who teaches American studies at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, said in an interview with Al Jazeera that public pressure could change the administration’s approach even if all else fails.
She pointed out that the Justice Department is about to open an investigation into Preeti’s murder as evidence.
“I think history teaches us that moments like this can be deeply divisive, or they can be a tipping point for reform, and sometimes division comes before reform,” Harris said.
“If you study the history of the United States, I think you’ll see that we’ve only benefited from resistance,” she said.
