More than 200 Tulsans gathered in downtown Thursday night to protest the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis Wednesday.
Demonstrators gathered outside 15 W. 6th St., which houses the offices of Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin. Mullin has publicly defended ICE’s actions during the shooting.
Protesters carried signs decrying ICE and calling for an end to agents’ presence in Tulsa and other cities across the U.S.
“No human is Illegal,” read one sign. “Resist ICE,” read another.
Many of the demonstrators joined with chants. “No ICE. No KKK. No Fascist USA,” some shouted. “What do we do? Stand up and fight back. When immigrants are under attack!” others said.
Several protesters banged small drums. Cars passed by honking their horns in support.
“The spontaneous and quick gathering of over 200 Tulsans in less than 24 hours since the murder of Renee Good indicates how strongly people feel about the overreach and abuse of power, including murder on the part of ice in our communities,” Linda Allegro, a Tulsa community organizer, told the Flyer.
“This type of mobilization should be taken seriously by our government, that we the people will not tolerate such a breach (and) abuse of power,” she added.
Similar protests occurred in cities across the country. In Minneapolis, residents held a vigil near the spot where Good, a U.S. citizen, was killed while driving near the scene of an ICE operation.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the shooting was reckless and called for ICE agents to leave Minneapolis.
“We’ve dreaded this moment since the early stages of this ICE presence in Minneapolis,” said Frey in a statement. “This was a federal agent recklessly using power that resulted in somebody dying.”
President Donald Trump has said the agent reacted in self-defense.
The presence of ICE agents has caused fear among Tulsa’s Latino community. Residents have reported increased immigration enforcement in east Tulsa, a hub of Hispanic life. Fear of deportation has driven some Tulsans to apply for citizenship in Mexico, especially for their children.
John Croisant, a Tulsa Public Schools board member and a Democratic candidate for Congress, condemned the shooting.
“ICE should not have murdered Good,” he said.
Standing across the street from Thursday’s protest, he praised the initiative. Croisant has called on Congress to investigate the killing.
Mullin, whose office drew the protest, said Good’s fatal shooting was “unfortunate,” but he ultimately supports the action the officers took Jan. 7.
“The officer responded with lethal force,” Mullin said. “If the question is if he is legally within his authority to use lethal force? Absolutely.”
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