SerpApi.Org
At the Alex Pretti memorial, people who accepted an award for their courage are calling on the U.S. Congress to take a stand.
“Community courage cannot replace congressional action our elected officials cannot continue relying on ordinary citizens to stand between neighbors and abusive government power,” said Natalie Ehret, the founder of Haven Watch.
Ehret was one of four Twin Cities residents who accepted the 2026 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in Boston, representing the people of the Twin Cities. She accepted the award alongside Carolina Ortiz with COPAL, Imam Yusuf Abdulle with the Islamic Association of North America, and Zena Stenvik with Columbia Heights Public Schools.
The four of them held a press conference Wednesday morning to address the recent deaths of two men who were fatally shot by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents this month.
“We ask this question who is responsible for holding ICE and the Department of Homeland Security accountable when they exceed their constitutional authority?” Abdulle said.
“I was so angry to see the recent killings of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero,” Stenvik said.
Stenvik said the United States is a “country of laws.”
“When people are hired to be in positions of authority, it comes with a higher standard of accountability,” she said. “In schools we teach kids to follow the rules, and when a child does not follow the rules they go to the principal’s office, we call their parents, we enforce school policies. Simply put, I’m here today asking the congressional delegation to do the same to hold ICE and CBP accountable for following the rules as written in statute and following the Constitution.
The letter was addressed to all of Minnesota’s congressional delegates. As of 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the letter hasn't been sent, so congressional lawmakers can't comment on something they haven't seen.
Ortiz said this letter is a first step. The four of them have been working together since they received the award in Boston and will continue to work together.
“We also have an incredible amount of responsibility to make sure that we continue to choose courage. And being up here, it's not easy. Continuing to speak up is not easy, but we have to do it. And I think that that is part of our shared responsibility,” she said.
