How has your day-to-day life in the Twin Cities been impacted by recent ICE activity?
I noticed my life shifting the most on January 11, when my husband texted “CALL ME” while I was at work. He had heard that ICE was going door-to-door in nearby neighborhoods; he’d also heard that they were looking for Hmong and other Asian people in particular. I’m Korean American, and our kids clearly look Asian. I started to panic.
I didn’t have time to explain the difference between an administrative warrant and a judicial warrant, and ICE would not really care if we stood up and demanded to see a judicial warrant anyway. I told my husband to bolt all the doors and not to open them for anyone. He did that, along with turning out the lights and closing the blinds.
When I got closer to home, I asked our neighbor—who also happens to be the pianist at my church—if he could meet me when I parked and walk me to my house. That was a defining moment for me.
