Jerrod Baetsch of West Fargo, North Dakota, stands with an American flag upside down, a sign of distress, on the Veterans Memorial Bridge over the Red River in Fargo on Jan. 10, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)
By: Jeff Beach
FARGO (North Dakota Monitor) – Hundreds of North Dakotans joined rallies in three cities over the weekend to protest the shooting death of a Minnesota woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent.
In Fargo, an estimated 500 people gathered for a demonstration organized by Red River United Indivisible.
Jerrod Baetsch stood with an American flag upside down — a sign of distress — as a north wind blew in the face of protesters lining a Red River bridge connecting Fargo and Moorhead, Minnesota.
“To stay at home felt useless,” Baetsch said of joining Saturday’s protest of the shooting of Renee Good, a mother who was killed Wednesday by Jonathan Ross, an ICE agent in Minneapolis.
The demonstrations follow thousands of ICE agents deployed to neighboring Minnesota. Good’s wife, Rebecca Good, told the Washington Post they were supporting neighbors before the ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good. Video of the incident shows Renee Good’s vehicle blocking traffic and ICE officers approaching the vehicle, with one officer ordering her to exit her vehicle. Ross fired as Good pulled the vehicle forward.
Baetsch said any actions by Good in her vehicle did not justify the use of deadly force.
The crowd observed a moment of silence for Good after gathering near a Statue of Liberty replica on the Fargo end of the Veterans Memorial Bridge.
Speaking to the crowd, Colby Montigue of Fargo, urged people to continue to protest, organize and run for office.
“This doesn’t stop until we do the work,” said Montigue, a member of the Red River Valley Democratic Socialists of America.
Minnesota officials announced Friday they’re collecting evidence in an investigation of the shooting and are asking the public to submit information.
In Bismarck, demonstrators lined Boulevard Avenue on Sunday to rally outside the Capitol during an event called ICE Out for Good.
Cherie Schumacher, a volunteer organizer for Missouri River Indivisible, said there were a lot of hateful comments made on social media ahead of the Bismarck event, to the point that “it was actually kind of scary to go.”
Most people driving by had positive responses, Schumacher said, except for someone who drove by and fired what she described as foam BBs at participants as the event was ending. Schumacher said she was hit in the shoulder and someone else was hit in the back.
“They were just these little tiny foam things, so there was no harm to us,” she said. “But it’s sending a message anytime someone points anything at you to target you.”
Another event was held Saturday in Grand Forks, with the Grand Forks Herald reporting a crowd of about 150 people.
The North Dakota Human Rights Coalition was among groups that condemned the killing of Good last week.
“We urge residents to contact their representatives to demand oversight of federal enforcement actions, protections for freedom of speech and the right to protest, and policies that prioritize life, dignity, and community-based safety,” the organization said in a statement.
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