From Solidarity to Survival: Why We Are Calling to Get ICE Out for Good
The following is excerpted from a letter to the editor which was published in The Independent of Stow & Bolton on January 15, 2026, authored by Haidee LeClair, Lancaster, Steering Committee Nashoba Indivisible, Mass50501 member, and LUCE volunteer.
Although we are just days into the new year, there has already been a staggering escalation of state-sanctioned violence. From aggressive foreign intervention to lethal domestic enforcement, the first week of 2026 has signaled a dangerous shift in the use of state force. On January 3, the US military conducted an extrajudicial strike against Venezuela, capturing and extracting its leader. Then, the ongoing domestic crisis reached a breaking point with the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis at the hands of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on January 7, 2026.
The death of Renee Nicole Good isn’t an isolated tragedy; it’s the predictable result of an agency operating with total impunity. This killing follows incidents of violence and government disinformation that have occurred across the nation over the past twelve months. The statistics paint a grim picture of 2025 as the deadliest year in decades for ICE. While Renee Nicole Good’s death has sparked national outrage, she is part of a broader, devastating pattern of loss. In the last year alone, over 30 individuals have died in ICE detention, and several others have been killed during street operations. Many others have died due to medical neglect, physical abuse, and excessive force within the shadows of the detention system. These people were friends, family members, neighbors, caregivers, students, and farmworkers. They were human beings who deserved to live without the constant threat of violence.
In Bolton, over 175 residents from Bolton and surrounding towns gathered on Saturday, January 10, 2026 to transform their grief into action. Holding candles, they heard stories of families torn apart, holding a moment of silence not just for the national headlines, but for the neighbors whose names are often left out of them. Although there has not yet been a significant surge of ICE activities in Massachusetts, many residents expect agency presence to increase as it has in New Orleans, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and Chicago, with the same deadly repercussions.
As we face the year ahead, we must remember that change comes from those who refuse to look away. We need to witness what is happening in communities across the country. To record it, to share the video, to tell the true stories. We need to speak out, and to come together to protect the vulnerable and bear witness to the violence our government is committing every day in our name.
For more information on Nashoba Indivisible, which covers the towns and area surrounding Bolton, Clinton, Harvard, Lancaster, and Sterling, please see their website.
As residents gathered in Bolton, over the weekend of January 9 - 11, others similarly came together in their communities all across Massachusetts. Mass 50501 helped guide people toward their local events and cosponsored PSL/DSA’s No War at Home, No War Abroad protest at the State House in Boston, culminating in a march to LUCE’s Justice for Renee Good protest. Nationwide, there were over 1,000 planned protests and vigils in response to Renee Nicole Good’s murder and the violence perpetrated by ICE and DHS. Wherever you ended up this past weekend, your presence mattered. We hope you found strength in solidarity. We stand with you, and we stand together.
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