WINONA, Minn. — Several hundred angry but peaceful demonstrators lined all four corners at Central Park and spread several deep down the block. They were unhappy, very unhappy, with President Trump’s assignment of 2,100 deportation agents to Minneapolis. The slaying of a woman by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Monday was specifically what ignited the Winonna demonstration. Carol Bromeland, an organizer, said Winonans were “terrified” at Trump immigration enforcement practices. Since taking office in January, his agents have rounded up 70,000 people for deportation. Winona, population 25,000, is a city that celebrates its immigrant roots, mostly Polish and Germans. At the Saturday demonstration there lots of chants. The crowd returned over and over to Matin Luther King Jr.’s civil rights anthem “We Shall Overcome.” A drummer’s incessant beat reinforced the crowd’s resolve. Cow bells clanged. The only counter-protestor was a coatless man with an anti-abortion poster that seemed out of touch with the thrust of the anti-ICE demonstration. Dozens of drivers on busy Main and Broadway streets honked support of the event’s theme. There was no police presence, none needed, although a black squad car made an occasional pass. Winona police policy for large gatherings is to be alert for safety or traffic issues and a possible medical emergency.

2026 01 10 WNA ice protest scaled - Winona Journal

Chilly, windy afternoon. Anti-ICE demonstrators defied unfriendly weather to object to President Trump’s escalating attacks on Minnesota. The man focus: Reckless immigration policy enforcement. Other demonstrations were occurring in the Twin Cities, Rochester, LaCrosse and elsewhere in he nation. Images: Andy Frank