Mason M, Minneapolis, MN
I work in a small restaurant, and ICE terror is forcing my coworkers to strategize for our own protection. At work today, ICE vehicles were reported about 10 blocks away. One of my coworkers gave me a whistle. We locked all the doors except for the front, where a coworker stood on the lookout.
Everyone was on high alert, including the customers. Some shared information and strategized with us, and offered their assistance if anything happened. A coworker barricaded chairs. The owner of the restaurant threw a fit, but his “concerns”—for “business as usual”—were easily disregarded.
Now, I imagine this scene being repeated at restaurants all throughout Minneapolis and Saint Paul. While the inflammatory surge of ICE in Minneapolis has become the center of national attention, distracting from important events on a global scale, these events are also bringing many workers into action in their own workplaces. The needs of employee security often directly contradict corporate interests. I don’t think raising class consciousness was Trump’s intention with “Operation Metro Surge,” but it is a direct result of his continual and escalating attacks on the working class of our city.