Sín hielo, porfa
How to cope and take action when your city is under siege by the government (again)
Unless you live under a rock, you’ve likely heard about the occupation of Minneapolis by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arm of Homeland Security via its “Operation Metro Surge.” 2,000 ICE officers have descended upon our city, with more expected to arrive soon. They are primarily young, white men with little education and training, and even less control over their emotions. This was exemplified by the slaying of 37-year-old Renee Macklin Good on Jan. 7.
I won’t even get into the heinous conspiracy theories, bullshit justifications, and misogyny being spewed about what she “did to deserve this.” Countless experts, ex-cops, and ex-military have reviewed the video and said it was completely unjustified, but if you watch the video, that feels painfully obvious. No one who was trying to protect their neighbors from state-sanctioned domestic terrorism and legalized racial profiling should ever end up dead.
Local news outlet WCCO recently released an interview with retired deportation agent Eric O'Denius, who has two decades of experience. O’Denius said, “The arresting of a U.S. citizen is my biggest concern,” and in the wake of Good’s death, many have mobilized.
What O’Denius called “the one sin that you really need to be careful about” has been committed over and over again as ICE is scooping up citizens acting as legal observers as they monitor the harassment of Black and Brown people for their immigration status without justification. This is not conjecture; it happened less than two blocks from my home yesterday.
ICE is not fucking around, but neither is Minneapolis. Despite increasing physical violence and intimidation tactics, the community is showing up. From food drives to grocery runs for neighbors to driving folks safely to and from their jobs, there are so many options for taking action…and for some, the wealth of possibilities can feel debilitating. There is no right way to do all of this, but I do think there are several unhealthy ways, and I want to save you a bit of trouble based on what I’ve seen.
Let’s break it down.
Slowing the fuck down: rest and resilience
Everyone wants to do something RIGHT! NOW! and I’ve had more than a few conversations with friends and loved ones who were concerned about “not doing enough.” I find myself treading VERY LIGHTLY in conversation about this one. I have noticed a pattern of feelings like rage and sadness, often paired with white guilt, that increased the desire or motivation to act immediately.
While I can completely understand this desire, what I remember from 2020 was people going way too hard out of the gate and burning out. Many experienced compassion fatigue and slowly drifted into the background. Not only can reactivity eventually spur withdrawal, but it can also lead to sloppiness. It creates increased risk for those acting and, via transferance, can leave the vulnerable parties they are seeking to serve in compromised or unsafe positions. Often, these are BIPOC people and other marginalized individuals who know exhaustion well; unable to pull back in the same way as those benefiting from positions of power and privilege, those of us with intersecting marginalized identities are left to handle it with already depleted energy levels.
BIPOC people know a lot about resilience, and not by choice. The violent systems that many are beginning to see are the ones we’ve had to look over our shoulders for in what is known as “The United States” since 1492. This cultivation of resilience reserves is a double-edged sword, and sometimes feels like an ugly “benefit” of systemic intergenerational trauma. When the heat cranks up due to yet another abuse from the structures of the United Hates of Amerikkka, I experience a reaction of emotional compartmentalization shared by many other BIPOC people I’ve spoken with. Freaking out or breaking down is not helpful. It can even be dangerous when done publicly, even in its temporary catharsis. It is a weak spot in the daily-applied emotional armor that is too easily exploited by those seeking to cause harm.
It is a privilege to feel safe when one walks out of their door.
Maybe someday I’ll know it.
Until then, it’s essential to keep working to honor our emotions without letting them drive us, and to slow down enough to allow the “bigness” of them to have their moments without judging them. I must let the feeling(s) pass so I can actually do something. Find healthy ways to let off steam from your emotional pressure cooker. Emotional regulation and pacing are not only important but also essential. And resting is, too.
I say this as much to myself as to anyone reading this: Move your body, stretch, eat, drink water, sleep, hug your pets/kids/partners/pals, take your meds, go to therapy! We cannot forget to take time to restore ourselves, both solo and in community. Don’t skip events that feel safe, would fill you up, and feel nice; we cannot forego joy in this moment. Denying ourselves gentle moments out of guilt is not productive.
Look up and practice ways to regulate your nervous system; we are all on high alert. If self-flagellation or arbitrary external pressure drives us into going too hard, we are bound to run ourselves into the ground. Take care of yourself so we can take care of each other for the long haul.
Capacity must define action
It's fine to look to others for inspiration on how to take action, but be cautious about comparing your input or judging another’s. We can’t know who's on the streets blowing whistles, donating where, doing groceries for their neighbors, or volunteering their time. Some people feel obligated to virtue signal because we unfortunately live in a world that wants to qualify someone else’s actions. But, for many, this work is private for safety or simply because they do not feel the need to blast it out. We all have different abilities and capacities.
When friends have said, “I’m not sure I’m doing enough,” I have asked, “But what is enough? Who’s giving you a report card on that?” I’m asking people to be very real with themselves about their capacity, and I recommend coming up with several options based on that day-to-day threshold. This is something I am still learning from adapting to my ADHD diagnosis. I recommend having plans for A, B, and C days.
What can you do when you’re on your A-game, full gas, and have all of the energy in the world?
What are reasonable actions on a “normal” or B day?
How can you find lighter-duty things for days when you’re more depleted on a C day?
And, if you don’t currently understand your capacity, I’d suggest beginning by investigating that.
I urge y’all to look at yourselves and seek out what your talents are, even if they are still in development.
Some parents bring their kids to protests, and some parents stay home to watch the kids while a buddy or partner attends. Many artists and crafters are making things to share for free with those in need or who support anti-ICE sentiments, or selling items to donate to local legal defense funds, nonprofits, or charity orgs. Seek out a variety of vetted ways to help, especially when they are BIPOC-led. Support food drives, make signs before marches, offer services to help vulnerable people get to work, take a language class, etc.
Connect! Get to know your neighbors! We need to overcome the MN passivity and learn to be direct, to reach out, and to take effective action. We also must learn how to ask for help.
Can you babysit for a neighbor who’s tracking ICE? Make food? Signs? Organize anonymized data? Document ICE raids? Blow a whistle? Round up at your co-op? Put together first aid kits? Offer to be a proxy or scheduler for pals who may be more overwhelmed with appointments? Translate? Solutions do not always require boots-on-the-ground actions, but go off if you can, fam!
And, one of the easiest and most important things we can all do right now is make sure we’re sharing accurate information.
Truth vs. fiction in the time of AI
It is deeply irresponsible to share bad information. It incites more fear. It lands people in deadly detention centers. It is worse to get defensive and not correct misinformation when someone is offering accurate information. Stay humble for the greater good of our community.
As a refresher, misinformation is bad information due to a lack of information, vs. disinformation, which is the intentional spreading of bad information.
Wading through bullshit AI videos, contending with bad actors planting seeds of doubt and spreading conspiracy theories and disinformation is more than enough with which to contend. We have to hold ourselves to a higher standard when sharing information; otherwise, we risk being just as sensationalist and harmful as those who intentionally spread bad information.
Review the CRAAP test guidelines to gauge information before hitting share. While this is usually intended for writing papers, I still reference it regularly. Here are the most relevant pieces for social media sharing, adapted from Cal-State U, Chico via the University of Chicago:
C - Currency
The timeliness of the information:
When was the information published or posted?
Has the information been revised or updated?R - Relevance
The importance of the information for your needs:
Does the information relate to your topic or answer your question?
Who is the intended audience?A - Authority
The source of the information:
Who is the author/publisher/source/sponsor?
What are their credentials or organizational affiliations?
Are they qualified to write on the topic?A - Accuracy
The reliability, truthfulness, and correctness of the content:
Where does the information come from?
Is the information supported by evidence?
Has the information been reviewed or refereed?
Can you verify any of the information in another source or from personal knowledge?P - Purpose
The reason the information exists:
What is the purpose of the information? Is it to inform, teach, sell, entertain or persuade?
Does the source make their intentions or purpose clear?
Is the information fact, opinion, or propaganda?
Are there political, ideological, cultural, religious, institutional or personal biases? (This will be a hard one to avoid, but at least consider it, please!)
While we should not become suspicious of everything we see, we should at least retain a healthy degree of curiosity about its source when engaging with media, social or otherwise. We owe it to one another to do our due diligence before hitting the share button.
There is no end in sight for the mess our government has put us in once again. We have to take care of each other.
To recap:
Slow down! Clearer heads prevail. Rest! This is a marathon, not a race. Find ways to cultivate resilience reserves.
Figure out tangible actions based on your day-to-day capacity.
Fact-check before sharing. Make sure things aren’t AI.
And finally:
Please act with the utmost intention and listen to those negatively impacted when something doesn’t land. I work on this daily, imperfectly, and remain committed to it.
Join me!
We got this. Let’s fuckin’ go.
Note: At the time of publication, a new incident involving an ICE agent shooting a person in North Minneapolis was reported on 1/14/26. The story is still developing.
I love my city. I hate this system. Be safe, y’all. I love you.
Natalia, once again you have proven yourself to be a thoughtful, thought provoking and eloquent writer. Thank you for good advice and helpful information as we move forward during these horrific days. 💕