Union nurses horrified by Minneapolis shooting, demand ICE out of communities and justice for woman’s death

National Nurses United (NNU), the country's largest nurses union, today expresses horror, sorrow, and condemnation following the fatal shooting by ICE in Minneapolis, Minnesota, issuing the following statement.

Union nurses across the country today mourn for a woman in Minnesota killed by federal agents in the latest escalation of violence from the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed an unarmed woman identified in news reports as Renee Good. NNU continues its demand to remove immigration enforcement agents from communities and demands justice for her death.

Armed federal agents on our streets and in our communities, not immigrant workers, are the biggest threat to our collective safety. Increased militarization of our neighborhoods actively endangers public health. These agents intimidate everyday people from going about their lives, whether that's taking their kids to school, going to work, or coming to our hospitals. It's an unacceptable situation that has created a public health crisis as people avoid seeking care. Nurses go into this work to take care of people and cannot stand by while violence and harm comes to the same people who come through our hospital doors.

In cities across the country, people have been harmed and killed as targets of this fascist immigration crackdown. As nurses, we believe in a world built on care, not harm. Armed secret police are no way to improve our society. Today's tragic incident is only the latest example of how ICE, Border Patrol, and other immigration enforcement agencies use violence. Tragically, we fear it won't be the last unless something is done.

Nurses reject any ICE presence at our health care facilities and will be holding our employers responsible for ensuring that we can continue to take care of our patients. Nurses know that federal agents bring fear and panic to everywhere they go, from neighborhoods to hospitals. We will not be intimidated by this administration and will always stand up for our patients.

Nurses affirm our belief that no human is illegal. We remain in steadfast solidarity with immigrant communities and will continue to advocate for them and for all our patients. Our hospitals and our communities must remain sanctuaries for immigrants, not be the site of armed intimidation.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.