MINNEAPOLIS – Democratic gubernatorial candidates Tim Walz and Erin Murphy joined in a protest in Minneapolis weekend, calling for no borders and to “abolish ICE.”
On Saturday, an estimated 7,000 protesters gathered in downtown Minneapolis for the “Families Belong Together” protest to push back on the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Walz, a U.S. Representative, and Murphy, a state representative, marched alongside the protesters. Walz’s running mate Peggy Flanagan also participated.
Despite President Donald Trump already having signed an executive order to prevent families from being separated at the border, many protesters held signs calling for the end to family separation. Calls to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were also prevalent throughout the march, and some protesters called for the elimination of national borders all together.
Murphy tweeted a picture holding a sign that read “#ShutSessionsDown and #AbolishICE. Murphy acknowledged she would have no ability to dissolve ICE if elected governor of Minnesota, but promised to “fight like hell” to “insure [sic] that our state isn’t doing Trump’s bidding.”
As Governor, I won’t be able to #AbolishICE. But I will fight like hell to protect immigrants, amplify their voices and make real changes to insure that our state isn’t doing Trump’s bidding.
We can’t live with this broken system.#FamiliesBelongTogether pic.twitter.com/cFHvN8FGcj
— Erin Murphy (@epmurphymn) June 30, 2018
Walz also failed to acknowledge Trump’s executive order to keep families together, writing on Facebook that it was “moving to join thousands of Minnesotans today to tell the Trump Administration that families belong together.”
GOP-endorsed candidate for governor Jeff Johnson called out Murphy and Walz for their participation in the rally, noting that advocating for the elimination of ICE is “not only dangerous, but reckless.”
“‘Abolish ICE’ is a play by Democrats to pull on the heartstrings of the American people and Minnesotans, but don’t be fooled,” Johnson wrote on Facebook. “Getting rid of a law enforcement agency dedicated to securing our borders is not only dangerous, but reckless.”
“We are a state that has compassion and a welcoming spirit, but all immigrants must come here legally,” Johnson added.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim Pawlenty also weighed in on issue, calling Murphy and Walz “out of touch politicians.”
“Make no mistake, I strongly oppose these dangerous proposals,” Pawlenty wrote.
The protest did not turn violent, but it did block the flow of traffic in Minneapolis, as well as prevented the Metro Transit light-rail from being able to run to downtown Minneapolis. CAIR and Navigate MN were some of the organizations supporting the protest.
