Protest songs against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Alex Pretti
Many musicians have writtenprotest songs againstImmigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during thesecond Trump administration, particularly in the wake ofOperation Metro Surge, an ongoing effort on the part of ICE and sister agencies that has sent over 3,000 agents of theUnited States federal government into the state ofMinnesota. In the course of Operation Metro Surge, federal immigration agents shot and killed U.S. citizensRenée Good andAlex Pretti, which drew significant protests from the public. Minnesotan musicians were largely the first to write anti-ICE protest songs, followed by musicians across the United States, including famous acts likeBruce Springsteen and theDropkick Murphys. Twenty-first-century technology, includingsocial media andartificial intelligence, significantly affected the way the anti-ICE songs were created, recorded, and distributed compared to past protest songs.
Starting in January 2026,[1] thousands of agents of theUnited States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – particularly ICE andCustoms and Border Protection (CBP) were sent to theTwin Cities in Minnesota with the stated purpose of arrestingundocumented immigrants. 3,000 agents have been deployed in total in what was termed Operation Metro Surge. On January 7, agents shot and killed 37-year-old motherRenée Good; on January 24, agents shot and killed 37-year-old nurseAlex Pretti. Both were U.S. citizens. TheTrump administration described Good as an "assassin" and Pretti as a "domestic terrorist"; video analyses have shown that Good was attempting to drive away from the agents when she was shot in her car, and though Pretti had a gun, he never attempted to use it and was disarmed before being shot.[2][3][4]
Operation Metro Surge and the killings of Good and Pretti have drawn significant protest,[2] including frommusicians. Many have spoken out against ICE and Metro Surge at live events, on their social media accounts, and at in-person protests; many have also writtenprotest songs.[5] By and large, Minnesotan musicians started writing and releasing songs first, followed by other musicians across the United States. However, some non-Minnesotan artists, likeJesse Welles ofArkansas, were part of the early wave of songs.[3] Many of the songs are under two minutes and align withfolk music.[6] The same day Pretti was killed, Bruce Springsteen says he wrote "Streets of Minneapolis", which criticizes Trump as a "king" using a "private army" and his administration for telling "dirty lies" about Good and Pretti's deaths.[2] Prior to Operation Metro Surge, Dropkick Murphys frontmanKen Casey had criticized other punk musicians for not speaking out more against ICE and the administration.[7] Some songs with lyrics criticizing ICE were already in progress or released before Metro Surge, includingZach Bryan's "Bad News",[2][8][a] Jesse Welles's "Join ICE",[9] and "Ice Too Cold to Thaw" by David J & the Resistance.[10]
Protest songs have a long history;[3] Springsteen himself wrote many over decades.[2] They are largely grouped into two categories: those that focus more on communicating the problem (like "The Times They Are a-Changin' ") and those that are meant to be sung by crowds during rallies (likefreedom songs of thecivil rights movement). Most ICE protest songs have been the first type. Protest songs that are sung live at protests, however, help with morale and affirm the innocence of the crowd, which music professor Noriko Manabe says makes the comparatively aggressive agents "look completely ridiculous". While protest songs are not new, 21st-century technology significantly reshaped the speed at which the ICE protest songs were created, recorded, and shared among the general public. Within days of Good's death,Jeremy Messersmith had written, recorded, and submitted "Fuck This" toMinnesota Public Radio. Then, he had people submit their own additions to the song, instruments and vocals, to release a "Community Choir Edition" with over 70 added tracks. One song, "Minnesota Anthem", was createdwith artificial intelligence.[3]
This is adynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help byediting the page to add missing items, with references toreliable sources.
.jpg)