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Despite that, not much was happening in Minneapolis in December 2025, when Le Monde visited the city, a few days after the first deployment. Swept by polar vortexes, with temperatures regularly dropping below -20°C, the snow-covered streets were largely deserted. People moved from their homes to their cars, from their cars to work, and reversed the same route in the evening. Downtown, walkways connecting the buildings allowed people to get around without ever having to step outside.

Some business owners openly showed their support for the Somali community. Restaurants and stores belonging to the diaspora displayed a legal notice that read: “Private property, no ICE access.” After the first arrests of migrants, some residents began to organize to monitor and document the activities of the federal police, coordinating via groups on the Signal messaging app. Activist networks already existed in Minneapolis. After George Floyd was killed in 2020 following his arrest by police, the city became the epicenter of the massive anti-racist social movement that shook the US that year. A few activists also began regularly protesting outside the Whipple Building, the federal building where those taken into custody were brought. There were dozens of them in December 2025.

There were not many more people present when Le Monde returned in January, after the death of Good. At most, around 100, holding signs, playing music and wearing costumes. Many were regulars, with a few newcomers each day. Nothing insurmountable, it would seem, for a well-trained police force, even though the federal agents were clearly not very experienced in crowd control. Several times a day, they deployed, made contact, fired tear gas, and carried out arrests – sometimes absurd ones, like the forceful arrest of a man dressed as a fox who was guilty of… dancing.