Yet again, a new video shows ICE agents unlawfully confronting a U.S. citizen and demanding “proof of citizenship” as she simply walks through her own Minneapolis neighborhood.
In the footage, a woman is surrounded by ICE agents wearing masks.
One of them says, “Do you have ID? If not, we’ll have to put you in our car and ID you.”
That threat is illegal on its face.
She responds calmly: “I’m a U.S. citizen.”
The agent immediately insists she produce identification anyway.
She correctly states that she is not legally required to carry ID while walking near her home. No law obligates citizens to carry papers, and ICE cannot detain someone without reasonable, articulable suspicion that they have committed a specific crime.
At that point, the agents escalate the encounter.
They begin questioning her about her birthplace.
She replies, “Minneapolis is my home.”
The agents claim they are performing an “immigration check” and repeat the question. That is not a lawful justification for detaining someone. Citizenship is not determined solely by birthplace, and ICE has no authority to conduct random street interrogations of people who are not suspected of immigration violations.
When she again refuses to hand over ID, one agent threatens, “We’re going to put you in our car then.”
That is a direct threat of unlawful detention.
She responds, “I should be able to walk around at 3 without being afraid for my life.”
Instead of backing off, the agent again demands identification and again presses her about where she was born. She repeats, clearly and accurately, “It doesn’t matter where I was born. I’m a U.S. citizen.”
The agent then tries intimidation, warning her that lying about citizenship could lead to federal charges, despite having no evidence she was lying and no legal basis to continue the stop.
Only after she repeatedly refuses to comply with an illegal detention do the agents finally leave.
This was not legitimate law enforcement. It was a fishing expedition built on intimidation, fear, and the false assumption that Americans must carry papers simply to exist in public.
If masked federal agents can threaten to seize a U.S. citizen off the street for refusing to answer questions they have no legal authority to ask, the issue is no longer whether rights are being violated.
The real question is how long the public is expected to tolerate it.
