At the Feb. 9 meeting, Fridley residents continued to urge the council to take action in response to ongoing immigration enforcement in the city.
Concerns included the public safety department’s use of Flock cameras and requests that the council declare Fridley a sanctuary city, adopt an ordinance restricting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from operating on city-owned property and follow steps taken by neighboring suburbs.
Public Safety Director Ryan George reiterated his earlier statement on the department’s immigration policy and said Fridley was not sending any Flock camera data to the federal government.
“If you’re afraid, we understand,” George said. “If you call us for help, we will do everything we can to help you and your family. If you feel marginalized, we understand. You matter, and you are a vital part of what makes Fridley great.”
Sarah Schreiner, a resident and school board member, said the community was under siege.
“For over two months, we have watched ICE agents, often unidentified, often masked and often acting without regard for due process…(terrorize) our neighborhoods,” Schreiner said. She said that on Jan. 29 she responded to an alert about ICE activity on her street and was on the phone with a constitutional observer who watched Fridley police arrive, speak to agents, look inside their vehicle and leave while honking her horn a block away.
According to Schreiner, the Fridley Police Department did not speak with the observer, check on her or show concern for her safety.
Schreiner said that when she arrived, she encountered four masked men in a silver SUV who drove toward her in reverse.
“For the next hour, I had to act as a shield, following them to ensure that students getting off of a school bus…could reach their front doors safely,” Schreiner said. “When I tried to go home, I drove down my street to see them parked out front of my house. They rolled down their windows, took out their phones and they waved at me tauntingly.”
Schreiner said the council’s silence was “deafening,” adding that the city needed leadership.
“You have the power to protect people who live here. The question is, do you have the courage?” she said.
Resident Jennifer Nelson said federal immigration enforcement actions would leave behind shattered public trust.
“But you and I will all still be here,” Nelson said. “And what you do now can determine how easy or how hard it is going to be to rebuild that trust when that day comes.”
Nelson encouraged the council to expand its immigration resources website, referencing additions made by Columbia Heights, including complaint forms for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, information on constitutional rights and consultation with neighboring cities such as Hilltop.
Resident Jennifer Tuder said that beyond the immediate urgency, she was concerned about economic impacts.
“I don’t know how much we’re losing up here, I don’t know if we’ve done that kind of research or study…We know that small businesses are started by immigrants. Overwhelmingly,” Tuder said.
Tuder said some businesses were closing and facing labor shortages.
Avonna Starck, a school board member who said she was speaking as a resident, discussed her involvement in the Police Advisory Group. She said the chief at the time formed the group because she did not want Fridley to experience the same issues Minneapolis was facing at that time.
“And he really sought out people that didn’t have trust or compassion in, or like, the police,” Starck said. “And I really appreciate that that was how this organization was created.”
Starck said the group spent months sending texts and emails seeking communication with the department but had been shut out. She also said the group held a meeting earlier this year where members expressed support for Fridley police.
Resident Amalia Gonzalez said she is the daughter of an immigrant and that the issue is personal to her. She said she had been patrolling near the high school to help ensure students were safe.
“They shouldn’t have to come up to me and say, hey, thank you for being here,” Gonzalez said. “…Because we have no safety for these kids that are being followed to and from school.”
Nick Kroger, who said he has volunteered for the city, runs the parade and is a member of the Lions club, said the council members are human.
“I know this is an incredibly exhausting period of time for everybody,” Kroger said. “And, very frankly, these are demands and orders coming from the President of the United States. And a lot of the action that we’re being asked to take, we’re putting ourselves head to head with probably a top five most powerful person in the world.”
Kroger said there should be more discussion about booking protocols and whether to impose a moratorium on renting public facilities. He also suggested the city consider hiring more officers.
“The world doesn’t stop turning because ICE is in our neighborhoods. It sucks,” Kroger said. “Very honestly it sucks. But does it make sense for us to find ways to offer more support during the particular times of need like school drop off and pick up, where we can say, let’s offer additional expense.”
Another resident said the city does not control the Flock database and that a private company does. He said people might be alarmed by how such data can be used.
Resident Valerie Rolstad said immigrants should not have to live in fear of engaging in activities that white Americans can do daily.
“We have neighbors, St. Anthony Village, that is a sanctuary city,” Rolstad said. “Here’s a very good thing to do, is to become a sanctuary city.”
Kjell Ferris asked what police could do if ICE agents broke the law, such as swapping license plates or engaging in dangerous driving. He also asked whether it was illegal for an ICE officer to pose as another occupation and what the council would do if ICE tried to purchase a detention center in the city.
During the informal status report, Council Member Patrick Vescio thanked residents for speaking on behalf of those who could not attend.
Council Member Luke Cardona said he was thankful for actions taken by the school district to support families, staff and students.
“We are truly living in a crisis, I don’t think anybody has denied that once,” Cardona said. “And there’s a crisis right here in Fridley, right? And so, I want us to all hopefully come together and work toward what we think is best for our folks here.”
Council Member Ann Bolkcom thanked the Fridley police chief and city staff for their responses.
“We need to work on this together,” Bolkcom said. “The people that live in our community, that work in our community, we continue to have discussions.”
Mayor David Ostwald said he understood that not everyone would be satisfied with his actions.
“That’s the way it goes, and I understand that,” Ostwald said. “But I’d like you to know that we do work very hard. I’ve spent more time working with staff in city hall the last couple of months than I have probably my regular job and talking to my own wife, so to say that I’m not doing anything, we’re not doing anything, is wrong.”