Organizers demanded ICE out of their communities – and also wanted to honor Renee Good, the woman shot and killed by an ICE officer in Minneapolis.
HOUSTON — Demonstrators across the country took to the streets Saturday following the shooting death of Renee Good, who was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
In Houston, a few hundred people gathered outside City Hall Saturday afternoon, chanting, cheering, and holding signs as they spoke out against ICE and its enforcement actions.
“They’re attacking our immigrant communities. They’re attacking the working class,” said one of the speakers at the event.
Organizers said the demonstration was planned specifically in response to Good’s death. She was shot and killed on Wednesday by an ICE officer. Her face and name appeared prominently on signs throughout the crowd.
Nancy Neal, a Houston resident, said the shooting motivated her to attend the protest. She brought a sign she made that read, “Renee Good, ICE Bad.”
“When I saw what happened in Minneapolis, it just really kind of shook me up, so it’s just kind of a play on her name, that, you know, her last name being Good, and I don’t think that ICE is good for the country,” Neal said.
The Trump administration has maintained that the ICE agent involved in the shooting acted in self-defense.
“We will always be protecting ICE, and we’re always going to be protecting our Border Patrol and our law enforcement,” President Trump said.
Protesters in Houston, however, said they worry similar violence could happen locally.
“Tomorrow, it might be you, it might be me. I don’t think Renee Good woke up that morning thinking it was going to be her, so you can’t wait until it affects you, you can’t wait until it’s your next-door neighbor,” Pasadena resident Sara Gonzales said.
Organizers said the protest was also meant to denounce ICE operations at the local level and pressure city leaders to respond.
“We want to send a message to the Houston city leaders that very much says, we are not happy with our federal government right now. We are not happy with our state government right now. Do something. Say something,” ‘Uncle Eagle,’ one of the organizers, said.
Participants said their goal is to push for ICE to be removed from communities nationwide and to honor Good’s memory.
“To immediately label this woman a domestic terrorist basically sends a signal that anybody that’s against this administration is an enemy, and that’s not the country that I want to live in, and that’s the country that I want for my children,” Houston resident Christian Capdeville said.
Several Houston police officers were also present at the protest to monitor the crowd and ensure safety. There were no reports of violence or any arrests during the demonstration.