(The Center Square) – Democrats in Wisconsin are joining others from across the country in criticizing or condemning ICE after last week’s deadly shooting in Minneapolis.
Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, who is running for governor, sent a letter to Wisconsin’s members of Congress asking for ICE operations to be suspended.
“The [Trump] administration’s agents should be investigated, charged, and held fully accountable. In this country, no person can be above the law, especially not a public official who abuses their power,” Roys said.
She also called ICE agents a “violent, untrained, unaccountable paramilitary force” and she called them “armed vigilantes who are assaulting our freedoms.”
Roys’ view on ICE is similar to the views from The Milwaukee Democratic Socialists of America, which called for ICE to be abolished.
“We need to keep our communities safe from the masked agents empowered by our right-wing government to act belligerently without consequence,” Milwaukee DSA co-Chair Andy Barbour said.
One of Wisconsin’s tribes, the Oneida Nation, on Sunday said while it has talked about keeping ICE and its agents off tribal lands, said it’s not possible.
“The Oneida Nation does not welcome ICE agents onto our reservation. However, it is not possible to ban them from the reservation – as much as their actions are condemned,” the tribe said in a Sunday press release. “It is important that while we go about our lives, when confronted with ICE agents and the appalling enforcement activities, that we do not increase tensions and manage situations in a calm manner. Should anything arise regarding ICE agents, we have asked Oneida Police Department to assist members in ensuring interaction is lawful and that proper documentation is presented. Our goal is to keep members safe during these escalating troubled times.”
Other Wisconsin Democratic leaders, including Gov. Tony Evers, have condemned the shooting in Minneapolis.
