Did protestors in minnesota tell black ice members that they were "race traitors"?
Executive summary
No reporting in the assembled sources documents protesters in Minnesota calling Black ICE members "race traitors"; coverage instead records protesters interrupting a church service with chants like "ICE out" and "Justice for Renee Good," social-media posts accusing a pastor of coordinating ICE activity, and federal arrests and investigations tied to those disruptions [1] [2] [3]. Claims that protesters used the specific slur "race traitors" are not substantiated in the provided pieces, though there are documented confrontational verbal accusations and rhetoric aimed at ICE-affiliated clergy and officials [1] [2].
1. What the protests actually involved: chants, church interruption and arrests
Reporting across PBS, Reuters and other outlets describes a group of anti-ICE activists who interrupted a service at Cities Church in St. Paul, chanting "ICE out" and "Justice for Renee Good" and livestreaming the disruption on the Black Lives Matter Minnesota Facebook page, actions that culminated in at least three arrests linked to the church protest [1] [2] [3]. Video and social-media posts by activists such as Levy Armstrong framed the mission as exposing a pastor’s alleged connection to ICE operations, with protesters publicly questioning the pastor’s compatibility with ministry if he oversaw enforcement actions that harmed community members [2].
2. What officials and outlets documented: investigation, legal response and differing frames
The Justice Department opened investigations related to disruptions at the church and broader protests, and federal prosecutors announced arrests of prominent activists tied to the church action, while a federal judge elsewhere limited ICE tactics in Minnesota amid broader litigation by the ACLU alleging mistreatment of protesters [4] [3] [5]. Mainstream outlets reported the protesters’ messages as aimed at ICE and specific officials — not as deploying the particular epithet "race traitors" — and national voices including the administration framed the events as criminal disruptions of worship, prompting threats of prosecution [1] [6] [3].
3. Where the "race traitor" claim would fit and what evidence is missing
None of the cited coverage contains the phrase "race traitors" directed at Black ICE members; instead, journalists documented accusations such as calling a clergy member “involved in evil” and chanting anti‑ICE slogans during a worship interruption, and activists’ public posts criticizing an ICE-affiliated pastor’s role in enforcement actions [2] [1]. Because the available reporting does show hostile rhetoric and direct confrontation, it is possible the specific slur circulated in other forums or private exchanges, but that specific claim is not supported by the sources provided here — a factual limitation this analysis must acknowledge [1] [2].
4. Alternative viewpoints and hidden agendas in the coverage
Media outlets and officials offered competing framings: protesters and Black Lives Matter Minnesota described direct action as a moral response to alleged ICE violence and a call for accountability, arguing protests were necessary to stop harm [1] [4], while church leaders and their supporters portrayed the disruption as intimidation of worshippers and children and urged legal remedies [2] [3]. Political actors and federal law enforcement emphasized criminality and public-safety concerns in ways that align with a tougher enforcement stance; conversely, civil-rights groups and the ACLU pushed back against aggressive ICE tactics and framed enforcement as racially biased, an implicit agenda that shapes how the protests are described [5] [1].
5. Bottom line and reporting limits
The verified record in the provided reporting shows confrontational anti‑ICE rhetoric, a church disruption with chants against ICE, livestreamed accusations of an ICE-affiliated pastor’s culpability, arrests, and federal investigations — but it does not provide evidence that protesters explicitly told Black ICE members they were "race traitors," so that precise claim remains unverified within these sources [1] [2] [3]. Further confirmation would require primary footage, transcript evidence, or additional reporting that explicitly captures the alleged phrase being used toward Black ICE personnel.