Axis of Anarchy: Minnesota anti-ICE ‘shutdown’ backed by DSA, Communists, unions, CCP-tied network

A collection of far-left activist groups — including the Democratic Socialists of America, major labor unions, explicitly Communist groups, and a CCP-linked protest network — have all organized a strike scheduled for Friday which aims to “shut down” schools and businesses statewide in Minnesota in an effort to push ICE out.

The planned shutdown was announced early last week — "ICE Out of MN: Day of Truth and Freedom" — include plans for a large-scale march in Minneapolis and a day of "no work, no school, no shopping."

The radical Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), the left-wing BreakThrough News media outlet, and the Manhattan-based Marxist revolutionary People’s Forum are all involved in either promoting or organizing the Minnesota shutdown effort. Just the News previously reported on how these and other radical activist groups have leadership links or financial ties to a funding network backed by wealthy businessman and self-avowed communist Neville Singham. 

The GOP-led House Oversight Committee voted this month to subpoena Singham for information about this sprawling activist network. The Freedom Road Socialist Organization, the Revolutionary Communists of America, and the Twin Cities chapter of the Communist Party USA — all avowedly Marxist groups — are also listed as co-sponsors of the Friday protest.

The DSA — which helped propel Zohran Mamdani to Gracie Mansion in NYC — including the national organization and the local Minnesota chapter — are listed as backing the anti-ICE effort scheduled for Friday.

Major labor unions such as the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) are listed as co-hosts of the shutdown effort, while the United Auto Workers (UAW) also endorsed the strike.

Reaction to Renee Good tragedy

The shutdown planned for Friday comes in the wake of an ICE agent shooting and killing anti-ICE protester Renee Good after she drove her car at him earlier this month, and a day after Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on Thursday the arrests of anti-ICE activists who interrupted Sunday services at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The “ICE Out Now” website appears to be the main organizing hub for the Friday shutdown effort, listing details about the protest effort and providing the co-hosts and co-sponsors of the event.

The ICE Out Now site laid out the plans for the Friday shutdown, describing it as “a unified statewide pause in daily economic activity” including “no work (except emergency services),” “no school,” and “no shopping or consumer spending.” The site said that “the demands of Minnesotans” included that “ICE must leave Minnesota now,” that “the officer who killed Good must be held legally accountable,” and that there should be “no additional federal funding for ICE in the upcoming budget.”

Shortly after the shutdown was announced, Minneapolis Public Schools announced that school would be closed on Friday “for a teacher record-keeping day.”

The Minnesota-based Bring Me The News media outlet is keeping a running tally of the hundreds of businesses in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and elsewhere in the state which are allegedly participating in Friday’s shutdown.

Singham network spins up to try to shut down Minneapolis

The Singham-linked network appears to be playing a role in organizing Friday’s protests.

PSL’s Twin Cities chapter is listed as a co-sponsor of the shutdown effort. PSL tweeted on Saturday that “business owners across Minneapolis are ready for the January 23 statewide shutdown in Minnesota” and declared: “NO WORK. NO SCHOOL. NO SHOPPING. ICE OUT NOW!”

The socialist party tweeted on Sunday that “community members, workers, and business owners told us about why they are participating in the January 23 statewide shutdown against ICE in Minnesota” including that "we are shutting down on January 23 to support our immigrant communities and to keep ICE out of Minnesota!"

PSL said on X on Tuesday that “today, millions of people across the country are walking out of school and work to protest the one-year anniversary of the Trump administration” and that “on Friday, January 23, the people of Minnesota will hold a historic shutdown.” The socialists said that “it's not enough to be angry — we must be organized!”

“Minnesotans are clear! ICE IS NOT WELCOME HERE! Momentum is growing for the state-wide shutdown on January 23rd to demand ICE OUT!” PSL tweeted that day. “Across the Twin Cities, people are united in opposing Trump's racist immigration agenda and ICE's attacks on our communities.”

The socialist party on Thursday also declared “solidarity with the people of Minnesota as they prepare for a bold, historic shutdown on Friday, January 23! Karina Garcia joined New Yorkers this week in protest of the one-year anniversary of the Trump regime 2.0 and to demand an end to ICE terror once and for all. Minnesota reminds us that we have the power to shut down not just Trump, or shut down ICE, but to shut down the whole system!”

Garcia was PSL’s unsuccessful vice presidential nominee in 2024 in the race against Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.

BreakThrough News early last week tweeted that “more than 5 schools and 600+ students have joined the third consecutive day of walk outs in the Minneapolis area” and claimed that “students are demanding ICE leave Minnesota and are preparing to join a city-wide shutdown on Jan. 23.”

"Get ICE out of Minnesota!" the outlet tweeted on Tuesday, saying on X that “as MN prepares for a historic economic shutdown on Jan. 23, community members, workers, and organizers speak out on why this moment is crucial for the future of their communities.” The video shared by the outlet featured PSL signs. One of the protesters in the video said, “We built this shit, you know what I’m saying? We made this from the ground up. We can take this shit down and take it back.”

Counting on Somali support in Minnesota

The Singham-linked outlet shared a Wednesday livestream of “Somali business owners” in Minneapolis “announcing their participation in the January 23 statewide shutdown.” The video prominently featured Somalis waving PSL signs.

The outlet also shared clips from the Somali press conference to promote the Friday shutdown, and said that “they are joining labor unions, students, and workers across Minnesota in a coordinated call for a national day of action against ICE.”

The outlet also shared a Thursday livestream of “Asian business owners at Hmong Village” in St. Paul “announcing their participation in the January 23 statewide shutdown.”

The People’s Forum on Tuesday tweeted, “HAPPENING NOW! New Yorkers are pledging to SHUT IT DOWN this Friday in solidarity with the statewide shut down in Minnesota. NYC JOIN US: Friday 1/23, 4PM in Union Square.” The video featured protesters holding PSL signs.

“STAND WITH MINNEAPOLIS! ICE OUT FOR GOOD! Join us this Friday at 4pm in Union Square as we stand in solidarity with Minneapolis in their statewide shutdown demanding an end to ICE terror!” the forum tweeted that day. “Together we will make it clear that we refuse to allow for Trump to use ICE and the military to murder and brutalize Immigrant, Black, Indigenous, and working class communities across the nation.”

Attempts to make it a national event

The post also tagged the ANSWER Coalition — which is also linked to the Singham network — as well as the 50501 movement and the 50501 movement’s New York chapter.

50501 — which stands for “50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement” — is a protest organization and mobilization network that helps organize street demonstrations nationwide. Indivisible says that it “drives coordinated campaigns, powering the grassroots Indivisible movement to defeat the rightwing takeover of American government” and acknowledges that it “was founded in response to Trump’s election” as it claims that “an alliance of white nationalists and the ultra-rich have been actively working to further undermine democracy.”

50501’s Minnesota chapter is also listed as a co-host and a co-sponsor of the Friday protest effort.

Communist groups play key part in organizing Minnesota shutdown

A number of avowedly Communist parties are also helping organize the shutdown effort Friday. The Twin Cities chapter of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization is listed as a co-host and co-sponsor of the shutdown effort. The organization posted on Wednesday, “ALL OUT FOR JANUARY 23RD! NO WORK. NO SCHOOL. NO SHOPPING. … ICE OUT OF MN!”

The socialist group describes itself as “a national organization of revolutionaries fighting for socialism in the United States” and says that it is “recruiting and building towards the creation of a new Communist Party based on Marxism-Leninism.” The shutdown co-sponsors also include the Revolutionary Communists of America and the Twin Cities chapter of the Communist Party USA.

The revolutionary Marxist group said this week that “the idea of a citywide general strike has seized the imagination of a growing layer of the population.” The group declares that “our immediate task is to combine revolutionary agitation and propaganda to energetically build communist cells in every workplace, industry, trade union, campus, and neighborhood.”

The American Communist party tweeted on Tuesday about their intention to “close [Minneapolis] stores” on Friday. The group says that it is “guided by Marxism-Leninism.”

The Communist propaganda outlet People’s World, which is a successor to the Communist Daily Worker newspaper, is also playing a role in promoting the Minnesota shutdown. The outlet tweeted last week that “a labor-community coalition is calling for residents to refuse to work, shop, or go to school for one day” and published an article promoting the anti-ICE protest. This week, the outlet tweeted about the “Statewide Shutdown in Minnesota planned for Jan. 23 to expel ICE” and wrote a piece claiming that the protest was “responding to an invasion of their neighborhoods by thousands of ICE agents.”

The Labor Commission of the Communist Party USA on Wednesday tweeted that “the call for the statewide shutdown is broad, linking traditional trade union action with the fight against police and federal repression” and that “many residents say that the assault in Minneapolis is just another spearhead of a broader conspiracy to impose a fascist dictatorship” as it shared a People’s World article.

The Chicago Club of the Communist Party USA also repeatedly promoted the shutdown by sharing articles by People’s World.

The DSA is also assisting with the anti-ICE efforts planned statewide in Minnesota. Twin Cities DSA is listed as a co-host of the shutdown effort, and the DSA’s national organization and its local Minneapolis chapter are listed as co-sponsors of the protest.The DSA’s local chapter on Tuesday shared a lengthy Instagram post encouraging followers not to show up for work on Friday and to protest ICE instead.

“Taking off work can be hard, even when there aren't fascist ICE agents terrorizing our streets,” the DSA said. “But no matter what your employment situation is, we're here to help you organize your workplace and participate in the strike on January 23rd—whether that means navigating non-union management or educating your friendly yet uninformed boss on why they should shut down for the day.”

The DSA’s New York City chapter said this week that “NYC Stands with Minneapolis - Abolish ICE! Trump is terrorizing our communities, and big corporations are profiting. Workers and students across the nation are walking out in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors across the country.”

The poster graphic shared by the DSA showed it was being joined in its efforts by PSL, the People’s Forum, and the Communist Party USA, among multiple others.

Minnesota labor unions jump into the shutdown action

A number of major Minnesota labor unions have also officially endorsed the Friday shutdown effort. The Minneapolis Federation of Educators 59, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1005, and the SEIU Local 26 are all listed as co-hosts of the Minnesota shutdown effort.

The Minnesota American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the ATU 1005, the Communications Workers of America Local 7250, the SEIU 26, and independent labor union Trader Joe's United are also listed as co-sponsors of the event.

A video shared Monday by the Labor on the Line — also listed as a protest co-sponsor — featured local labor union leaders declaring their support for the shutdown, including a keffiyeh-wearing David Stiggers, the president of ATU Local 1005, Greg Nammacher, the president of SEIU Local 26, and Natasha Dockter, the first vice president of the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers Local 59.

The Minnesota AFL-CIO issued a long statement on Tuesday endorsing the Friday protest. “The Executive Board of the Minnesota AFL-CIO, the state’s federation of more than 1,000 affiliated local unions, voted to endorse Friday’s Day of Truth and Freedom as Minnesotans stand together against ICE’s occupation of our communities and the unconstitutional detention of countless innocent Minnesotans including a significant number of union members,” the labor union said.

Minnesota AFL-CIO President Bernie Burnham also claimed in a statement that “ICE’s continued occupation, actions, and tactics are harming communities throughout Minnesota and making us all less safe” and that “on Friday, union members will join with our fellow Minnesotans to reject fear and speak with one voice as we call for ICE to leave our state, no additional funding for ICE, legal accountability for ICE’s killing of Renee Good, and for Minnesota’s large corporations to stop cooperating with ICE.”

The United Auto Workers (UAW) also tweeted on Wednesday that it “stands in solidarity with the people of Minnesota, including hundreds of UAW members, who are standing up and fighting back against the federal government’s abuses and attacks on the working class.” The UAW claimed that “it is the working class that makes society run, and it is the working class that can shut it down if need be” and that “on January 23rd, working class people will demonstrate that power in Minnesota, and the UAW has their back.”

Collection of other leftist activist groups also pushing for anti-ICE shutdown

A number of the Indivisible movement’s various local Minnesota chapters are also listed as co-sponsors of the Friday shutdown.

Indivisible says that it “was founded in response to Trump’s election” as it claims that “an alliance of white nationalists and the ultra-rich have been actively working to further undermine democracy.” The No Kings Coalition in Minnesota — part of the broader anti-Trump No Kings leftwing movement — is also listed as a co-sponsor.

Other co-sponsors of the Friday shutdown effort include the Bernie Sanders-inspired Our Revolution group’s Twin Cities chapter, the Twin Cities chapter of Black Lives Matter, the Green Party of Minnesota, the leftist and anti-Israel Jewish Voice for Peace, and the Women’s March of Minnesota, which is also listed as a co-host of the effort.

The impact of the anti-ICE Friday shutdown in Minnesota remains to be seen, but it comes with the backdrop of federal prosecutors on Tuesday serving subpoenas to at least five top Minnesota Democrats — including Gov. Tim Walz — as part of the DOJ’s investigation into the obstruction of the Trump administration’s illegal immigration crackdown in the state.