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By Sam Stevenson
Associate News Editor
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Student groups are calling for a nationwide walkout on January 30, urging "no school" participation as part of a broader anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) campaign following fatal shootings in Minneapolis.
Newsweek contacted the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for comment via email outside regular business hours.
Why It Matters
The student-led effort stems from a national shutdown campaign calling for "no work, no school, no shopping" to protest immigration enforcement and the deaths of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, with organizers urging coordinated walkouts and after-school protests nationwide.
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Walkout guidance circulated by Somali and Black student organizations in Minneapolis frames the action as part of a nationwide shutdown demanding "ICE out for good," citing the killings of Good and Pretti by immigration enforcement agents as catalysts.
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What To Know
The National Shutdown website calls for a day without school, work or commerce on January 30, saying protesters in the Twin Cities have "shown the way" and urging people to "stop funding ICE."
Earlier student walkouts this month that protested immigration enforcement tactics and the fatal shooting of Good in Minneapolis drew national attention and prompted additional demonstrations.
An extensive guide released by anti-ICE activists provides step-by-step instructions for organizing school walkouts, including outreach, media planning and coordination with local protests later in the day.
"Walkouts are not actually spontaneous; they require intention and dedication from leaders like YOU to make them happen. Take the following steps as quickly as possible before Friday," the three-page online handbook said.
It added: "If your administration refuses to sanction the walkout, don't let that stop you. You are standing up on the right side of history!"
The guide includes links to download social media graphics that serve as calls to action for students to publicize the event among their peers.
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Organizers advise creating flyers, forming group chats, meeting with supportive teachers and administrators, recording short videos of the walkouts, and sending content to a listed movement email to amplify the action.
They wrote in the guide: "Recruiting the largest number of students and teachers possible will expand the impact. Make sure to stick together during the walkout!"
The National Shutdown site urges participants to pledge and register actions, and it lists among its endorsing groups student associations at the University of Minnesota, labor organizations and civil rights organizations.
Last week, students in multiple cities participated in walkouts protesting ICE actions, with local reports documenting school-based demonstrations and student statements about community safety and immigration enforcement.
In Cleveland, Ohio, Haley Torres, a junior at Garrett Morgan, led chants through a megaphone as she and her classmates marched out of school.
She told Signal Cleveland that their American government class had studied past protests before crafting the chants for their own walkout.
"As our class, we pride ourselves on leadership and understanding when something is wrong, understanding when something is becoming a tyranny," she said.
"For me, personally, I come from a family of immigrants. I understand the struggle, and seeing people without basic human rights, without due process, it's very heartbreaking," Torres added.
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Local coverage also reported a student walkout in San Antonio over ICE's presence, reflecting the spread of school-based demonstrations beyond Minnesota.
Broader protests under the Free America Walkout banner took place on January 20, marking the first anniversary of President Donald Trump's second inauguration.
Organizers of the upcoming national shutdown connect the January 30 actions to opposition to ICE funding in Congress, urging people to abstain from commerce and attendance to pressure policymakers.
DHS has said agents fired in self-defense in the Pretti shooting on January 24. Local officials and family members have disputed the claim that he brandished a gun.
Meanwhile, although Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem characterized Good's shooting as a tragedy, she defended the actions of ICE agent Jonathan Ross, who fired the fatal shots.
"Our officer followed his training, did exactly what he's been taught to do in that situation," Noem said, alleging that Good "attempted to run a law enforcement officer over."
Local leaders in Minnesota, such as Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, have strongly disputed this framing of events.
"Having seen the video myself, I want to tell everybody directly: That is bulls***," he said, adding, "To ICE, get the f*** out of Minneapolis."
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What People Are Saying
The National Shutdown website said: "The people of the Twin Cities have shown the way for the whole country—to stop ICE's reign of terror, we need to SHUT IT DOWN. On Friday, January 30, join a nationwide day of no school, no work and no shopping.
"The entire country is shocked and outraged at the brutal killings of Alex Pretti, Renee Good, Silverio Villegas González, and Keith Porter Jr. by federal agents. While Trump and other right wing politicians are slandering them as 'terrorists,' the video evidence makes it clear beyond all doubt: they were gunned down in broad daylight simply for exercising their First Amendment right to protest mass deportation."
The National Shutdown student walkout guide said: "Somali and Black student organizations in Minneapolis are calling for a shutdown on Friday, January 30th, after the execution-style murder of Alex Pretti by immigration officers. They're asking people across the country to support the call."
It added: "This week, after Alex's murder and while Congress is debating giving ICE even more money, it's time to take our movement to the next level. ICE has kidnapped our neighbors and classmates; they do not make our communities more safe. We demand ICE out for good!"
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin previously told Newsweek: "Attacks and demonization of ICE are wrong. ICE officers are now facing a 1,300 percent increase in assaults. Illegal aliens that ICE is deporting broke our nation's laws. DHS is a law enforcement agency, and it will continue to carry out immigration enforcement for the safety of Americans who have been victimized by rapists, murderers, drug traffickers, and gang members.
"President Trump campaigned on immigration enforcement, the American people voted for it, and Secretary Noem is delivering. For illegal aliens in the country, the safest and most efficient option is self-deportation. Through the CBP Home app, illegal aliens can self-deport and receive financial and travel assistance. President Trump and Secretary Noem have a clear message to illegal aliens: LEAVE NOW."
What Happens Next
Organizers are set to proceed with January 30 walkouts and after-school protests, urging students to coordinate locally and send photos and videos to central organizers to document participation.
The White House said DHS and the FBI would examine the Pretti shooting and that U.S. Customs and Border Protection would conduct an internal review, with further details to be determined.
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