- Mon Jan 26, 2026 1:44 pm
#104681
I suspect that for many people, Minnesota conjures up images of Fargo - friendly, polite people in small towns, homespun good neighbourliness, and lots of snow.
It seems that the Somalian born population in the state is based largely in the twin cities (St Paul and Minneapolis). This might have been an attracting factor for ICE - all nice and gathered in one place already. They may have factored in the Minnesotan reputation for amicability and interpreted it as weakness or cowardice. "Hur hur, who's gonna stop us? Marge fuckin' Gunderson?" and so on.
Also, it's winter, Minnesota is cold, they may not have expected public resistance, overlooking that Minnesotans are used to this. And it's near to Chicago - another midwestern Democrat outpost. "Watch and learn, Windy City"?
So in summary, I think they chose what they thought would be a soft target, a least in part to warn other, more stereotypically violent parts of the US of what to expect if they resisted. Evidently they didn't watch Fargo (the film or TV series) all the way through.
As the actress said to the bishop, rabbi, imam and priest
"My eyes have seen the glory, I'm a born again Atheist!"