In moments of crisis, Minnesota’s hunger-relief community has always acted together, and this moment is no different. As fear and uncertainty spread through the neighborhoods we serve, food insecurity leaders from across the state have come together to affirm the statement below, calling attention to the urgent and growing harm we are all seeing.
“Since the start of Operation Metro Surge in early December, the presence of thousands of federal ICE agents has brought chaos and violence to the communities we serve, leaving a growing number of our neighbors—including U.S. citizens—too afraid to leave their homes.
People are stranded and hungry. This cannot continue.
Minnesota is fortunate to have a strong and resilient hunger-relief network, especially in times of crisis such as this. However, with so many Minnesotans staying home for fear of being racially profiled, unlawfully detained, separated from their families or worse, we have had to scramble to find new ways to get emergency food to where it’s needed most. Minnesotans have shown up to keep one another fed. Yet at every turn, ICE has made it harder to get food to hungry neighbors, including by following volunteers doing food deliveries, standing outside food shelf entrances, staging from our parking lots or near our facilities, and, in at least one instance, detaining a volunteer. This is on top of the impact on child hunger from missed school meals.
Let us be clear: every Minnesotan—indeed, every human being—deserves to eat. That should not be a controversial statement, and it certainly isn’t a political one. As nonpartisan, nonprofit organizations, we represent a wide variety of viewpoints, beliefs, and life experiences. What we all share is a deep commitment to ending hunger in our communities, and every day that this federal operation continues moves us further from that goal.
For the above reasons, and out of deep concern for our neighbors, we stand united in calling for an immediate end to the surge in federal immigration activity in our state so that we can safely deliver food to neighbors in need and ensure that they can freely attend school and access healthcare and other lifesaving services without fear. Operation Metro Surge is hurting our neighbors, it is making us less safe, it is further dividing our communities, and it is making it harder to get food to Minnesotans in need. Our communities deserve better than this.”
