Interfaith leaders gathered Thursday afternoon in south Minneapolis for a rally in response to a shooting involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers that left 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good dead Wednesday.
Together, the faith leaders demanded that ICE withdraw from Minnesota and called for federal accountability
Rabbi Tamar Magill-Grimm, senior rabbi at Beth Jacob Congregation in Mendota Heights, joined other Jewish clergy and faith leaders at a press conference held at the vigil site on Portland Avenue near East 34th Street, where they were surrounded by several members of the media and a large crowd of vigil attendees.
After a speech by Imam Mowlid Ali of Abuubakar Mosque, and amid chants of “ICE out now,” Rabbi Tamar Magill-Grimm approached the microphone near the memorial site.
Somber and visibly moved, she paused before addressing the crowd.
“I don’t know if I have ever felt this heartbroken and this proud at the same time,” Magill-Grimm said. “I am so proud to be a part of the Minnesota faith community. Look around. Look at these people.”
Applause and cheers rippled through the crowd as a helicopter and drones whirred overhead.
Magill-Grimm continued:
“My tradition teaches that human life is so sacred, so valuable, that preserving life takes precedence over all the laws in the Torah.”
“That’s right!” an audience member shouted.
“What we witnessed yesterday was an absolutely senseless and tragic murder of a wife, a mother,” Magill-Grimm said.
“Murder!” the crowd chanted in unison.
“A caring neighbor, Renee Nicole Good, who should have been tucking her son into bed last night, just like I was tucking in my two kids,” Magill-Grimm said. “It goes against everything it means to have a safe and free society—one where neighbors look out for each other, and officers obey the law and protect people, not harm them.”
She then issued a call to action:
“We need peace and security in our streets, and we need it now.”
“Yes!” the crowd cheered.
“We need accountability, and we need it now. We need the FBI to release evidence to Minnesota law enforcement – and we need it now.”
Earlier Thursday morning, Superintendent Drew Evans of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension issued a statement, confirming that while the BCA was initially involved in the investigation, the FBI was taking over.
The Minneapolis memorial site where Renee Nicole Good was shot by an ICE officer on Jan. 7, 2026. (Genevieve Parker/TC Jewfolk)
“We expect the FBI to conduct a thorough and complete investigation and that the full investigative file will be shared with the appropriate prosecutorial authorities at both the state and federal levels. The BCA remains fully committed to our partnerships to build public trust in use of deadly force investigations. If the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI were to reconsider this approach and express a willingness to resume a joint investigation, the BCA is prepared to reengage in support of our shared goal of public safety in Minnesota.”
On Wednesday, following the fatal shooting, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirsti Noem issued a statement defending the ICE agent involved.
“We’re going to continue to do our work. The act we saw today of using a vehicle to try to kill an officer and his colleagues is something that every politician, every elected official, everyone in this country should be able to rally around and say is wrong,” Noem said. “Sanctuary cities and sanctuary states that protect individuals who do that should no longer be allowed. Domestic acts of terrorism like this will not stand.”
Rabbi Magill-Grimm closed her remarks at Thursday’s faith vigil with Oseh Shalom, adding: “In my tradition, we teach that when somebody has died, the appropriate thing to say to the family in mourning is that their memory should be for a blessing. We will continue to fight so that Renee Nicole Good’s memory be a blessing and her death not be in vain. We will continue to fight for the sacred value of human life.”
Organization statements
Since the shooting that killed Good, several Jewish community organizations released statements. We will continue to add to the list as they are sent.
Temple Israel
Once again, all eyes are on our city. Today’s ICE-related shooting has left our city shaken by violence and fear. A young woman is dead; a family has been left shattered.
I am heartbroken by this tragic loss of life. In this moment of sorrow, Mayor Frey has encouraged us to “Respond right now to bring our best versions of ourselves… [to show] the kind of courage, bravery, love, and compassion that makes Minneapolis, Minneapolis and that makes America, America.”
Judaism teaches us to pursue peace and justice in our world. The prophet Isaiah reminds us, “You will be called repairer of broken walls, restorer of streets to live in.” This is a time for unity, a time to draw strength from community and from the enduring wisdom of our tradition.
Temple Israel remains a place of safety, support and belonging. If you or your loved ones are in need of guidance, our clergy team is here for you. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us.
As always, Temple leadership and our security team remain in close contact with local authorities and security partners. I am grateful for the many seen and unseen measures that allow us to gather safely as a community.
We give thanks for the city of Minneapolis—for its rivers and lakes, for its neighborhoods and streets; for sacred communities gathering to seek the welfare of the city, for the people who call it home and those who are finding their way here.
May God bring healing to our city and our country in the days to come.
Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman
Jewish Community Action
“History never repeats itself, but it often rhymes.” It’s a quote shared not just to allow us but spur us into immediate action.
There are no more than 2000 ICE agents operating in Minnesota.
A beloved community member was killed through a car window.
Entire groups of people are facing blame for allegations still under investigation.
Families are being forced to build emergency plans in the event a parent or caregivers detained by ICE.
As Jews, many of us grew up hearing stories of our grandparents. Stories of papers demanded of a secret police and cruel politics. Of doors being knocked on and then barged into. Of loved ones leaving and never coming back.
These words, too, were not shared at our childhood meals and synagogue services to frighten us, but to prepare us for this very moment. Our history is not meant to be forgotten. It is not meant to sit neatly on a museum shelves or be tucked away in old family albums.
We are meant to carry it.
We are meant to learn from it.
And we meant to act because of it.
Our path forward is never clearly laid out for us. Our resistance ahead will and must exist on the spectrum. It will be as vibrant as the people that make it up.
We will continue to evaluate risk, lean on relationship, and build the future we want with the neighbors we love.
NCJW Minnesota
National Council of Jewish Women Minnesota (NCJW|MN) unequivocally condemn the reckless abuse of power by an ICE agent that led to the death of a Minnesotan, and U.S. Citizen. This tragic loss reflects profound disregard for human life and demands immediate accountability, transparency, and justice. This tragic loss of life has deeply shaken our community and stands in stark contrast to the values of dignity, safety, and justice we uphold for all people.
NCJW|MN stands with the family and loved ones affected by this loss, and with all Minnesotans who are grieved and alarmed by the escalation of force in our communities. We reaffirm our commitment to justice, accountability, and to building systems that protect, not harm, every member of our diverse state.
Beth Jacob Congregation
After today’s senseless loss of life, I desperately want to offer some words that are comforting, yet honest. By now you probably know that it takes time for me to process these kinds of events. And meanwhile my kids are hanging on me, wanting extra hugs as they sense my profound sadness mixed with anger. Unfortunately, I had a premonition that something like this was going to happen. That’s why I haven’t been encouraging people to go out there. I was really hoping I would be proven wrong.
As I continue to process the events of the day, I feel more motivated than ever to find safe ways to help, to ensure that Renee Nicole Good’s (z”l) death not be in vain. There are opportunities for bringing people groceries, guarding doors of safe buildings, writing to our elected officials. These are being shared in our BJC Doing Tzedek chat groups. They have been lighting up with ways to show up for our neighbors who are scared right now. If you’re not in one of the groups, please consider joining. Most of these efforts need to remain under the radar, so the chat groups are really the best way to learn about them.
Our broader Twin Cities community is mobilizing and organizing, and gathering to mourn and speak out – because even when we are feeling despondent, that’s just what we do for each other.
We will need each other over these next few days. If you need a quiet space, the shul is available. If you need a listening ear or hug, please reach out to me. For now, I need to put my kids to bed – what Renee Nicole Good (z”l) should be doing tonight.
May Renee Nicole Good’s family find comfort after this tragic loss and may we all make sure that her memory is a blessing.
St. Paul Jewish Federation
We are horrified by the loss of life and by the pain and fear that spread through our community.
When a life is taken, it affects all of us. Many are left feeling grief, anger, confusion, and a deep sense of vulnerability. In moments like this, words can feel inadequate, yet silence can feel even harder.
Our Jewish tradition teaches that each life holds inherent dignity and worth. When even one life is lost, an entire world is diminished.
In times of tragedy, we are reminded that we share this place and this moment together. We live as neighbors, and our well-being is tied to one another’s. Our humanity calls us to respond with compassion.
David Kaplan, CEO of the St. Paul Jewish Federation:
“Moments like this call us back to our shared humanity. Each person’s life has value, and each of us has a responsibility to care for one another with dignity and compassion. Especially when there is pain and fear, we must hold one another with care.”
Rabbi Lynn Liberman, BCC, Jewish Community Chaplain at the St. Paul Jewish Federation:
“Our tradition teaches that the gift of life is given by God, with each of us created b’tselem Elohim, in the image of the Holy One. Because of this, every life is sacred, and the preservation of life is among our greatest responsibilities.
“In the spaces and places where we live, we do so together as neighbors. Each of us is a holy being, carrying a shared responsibility to protect the dignity and well-being of one another. There is no greater purpose than to pursue peace and dignity throughout the course of our lives.
“I pray for peace – shalom – now and always.”
The St. Paul Jewish Federation stands with all who are hurting. We remain committed to showing up for our community with compassion, spiritual care, and connection, especially in moments of profound loss.
May the memory of Renee Nicole Good, z”l, be a blessing. May our collective grief move us toward greater humanity.
Adath Jeshurun Congregation
If only we could find the right words. Instead, our hearts break and fill with dread, fear, and terror as news and facts continue to unfold. What we do know is Renee Nicole Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent in South Minneapolis. What we do know is a family and community are turned upside down. What we do know is we are a community of faith that will respond.
We respond with prayer, a commitment to act as community, and a commitment to pay attention to the well-being of our fellow Minnesotans. Many Adath members are attending vigils and trainings and volunteering to show up the best we can for one another and our neighbors. Our faith may inspire us in different ways, but we are united as Adath by our responsibility to care.
Mount Zion Temple
We are reaching out to you, our Mount Zion community, in this moment of communal tragedy. Yesterday, Renee Nicole Good (z”l), a South Minneapolis neighbor, was shot and killed by an ICE agent in a residential neighborhood in the middle of the day. We will hear many words in the days and weeks to come – words of shock, words of anger, words of fear, words of hope.
As your clergy, we want to find the “right” words to share with you, words that will touch you in the ways that you need, knowing that each person may need something different. Whatever you are feeling, what we can say is that we are here for you, that Mount Zion is a safe place for us to be together, to be present to the moment, and to support one another.
We each have different capacities and ways to respond.
If you are moved to act, we encourage you to connect with our Tzedek Committee by attending the upcoming Zoom meeting this Sunday or connecting with our co-chairs, Diana Dean and Amy Rapoport.
If you are moved to pray, we share these words from the Minnesota Council of Churches, with whom Mount Zion has many shared values and a long history of partnership.
A Prayer for Peace
Holy One—
Source of life and love—
We grieve a life lost in Minneapolis
And we hold close the family now walking through sorrow.
Draw near to them with comfort and peace.
You did not create your children to live in fear.
You formed us for dignity, safety, and care for one another.
Turn our hearts away from violence and division
And back toward justice, compassion, and wisdom.
Guide our leaders to act from conscience, not fear,
And remind us of our shared humanity.
Strengthen us not only to pray for peace,
But to live it—
Protecting the vulnerable, welcoming the stranger,
And choosing love over hatred.
Until justice and peace embrace,
Keep us faithful.
Amen. May it be so.
—Elder Suzanne Kelly, CEO, Minnesota Council of Churches
And if you are moved to hold each other close, hug each other tightly, and remember the power of hope, we encourage you to join us for Shabbat services.
In moments like these, we want to make sure that you know your clergy are here for you. If you feel the need to talk, please contact any of us so that we can try to offer some comfort.
Sending chizuk, strength, as we pray and work for a better future.
Beth El Synagogue
“If there is a needy person among you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand… rather, you must freely open your hand and lend whatever is sufficient for the need.” Deuteronomy 15:7-8
Events of the last week have left me horrified and saddened. I know many of us were distraught to learn that Renee Nicole Good z”l was fatally shot by an ICE agent. I hope that a thorough investigation will bring justice and accountability, as so many of us seek answers after this shocking event.
What I do know is this: Jewish tradition instructs us over and over again to protect the most vulnerable in our midst. As we approach Shabbat, I offer this prayer:
Ribbono Shel Olam,
Grant protection to those who are vulnerable,
strength to those who stand beside them,
and sound judgement, integrity, and compassion to those entrusted with keeping our communities safe.
May we uphold the sacred responsibility to care for the stranger and the vulnerable.
And may our city be a place where all people know safety, dignity, and peace.
Rabbi Matt Goldberg
Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas
In this week’s Torah portion, Shemot, God hears the cries of the oppressed Israelites in Egypt and calls out to Moses through the form of a burning bush.
Today, here in Minnesota, cries of the oppressed can be heard, too. They come from all those who grieve the tragic loss of Renée Nicole Good, fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on Wednesday morning in front of her partner and horrified neighbors. And they come from all those feeling fear and outrage as federal agents have increased their efforts to detain immigrants, acting with new violence and brutality as they do so.
Many of my fellow Minnesotans have been frightened to leave their homes. They are not going to the jobs they rely on to afford their basic needs, or attending worship services. Parents are scared to send their children to school. Schools, daycare centers and businesses are afraid to open, as ICE makes arrests on their doorsteps. Community members who have been eager to help are now fearful, in the wake of Good’s killing, that they, too, may be targeted, harassed, or even killed.
My own child’s elementary school moved recess indoors to protect vulnerable students and staff who are worried about their safety from ICE.
In Shemot, God calls to Moses to usher in an era of change for the Israelites desperate for relief from fear, violence and vicious retribution. Moses hesitates, asking “who am I” to take on this monumental task? God assures him that he is not alone, because God will be with him throughout the journey.
As we enter this Shabbat, with the tragedy of Good’s death fresh in our minds, we must commit ourselves to hearing the cries of all who suffer among us. That is the first step toward healing and repairing the brokenness that so many now feel.
That repair will be a monumental task. But like Moses, we are not called to do it alone.
In fact, we must not try to. Instead, we must focus our efforts on building bonds in the face of terror — not letting that terror break our connections to one another.
The Jewish sages taught that, for our ancestors, sinat chinam — baseless hatred — led to internal fracture, civil war, the destruction of both Jewish Temples, and our people’s forced exile from the land of Israel. Their warning is not abstract. It reminds us that societies collapse not only because of external threats, but also because of the consequences of unmitigated internal rage.
—
What’s needed to correct our dangerous path?
First, a strong pushback against those voices who have issued incomprehensible personal attacks against Good since her death. Too many federal officials and media personalities have not only failed to express empathy for a life lost, but also used her death to inflame polarization.
Our state desperately needs calm and clarity. Our leaders and our citizens must forcefully affirm that Good’s death was needless and tragic, and that we will not go along with attempts to rewrite that truth.
As part of this affirmation, we must call on the federal government to allow the professional and nonpartisan Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to fully participate in the investigation of Good’s death. No matter what findings are ultimately reached, the investigation’s credibility relies upon it being done in partnership with state and federal officials.
This event has proven what many of us already knew: the ongoing surge of more than 2,000 ICE agents into Minnesota is counterproductive to restoring public safety and public trust. Minnesotans desperately want to return to normalcy. We want to feel safe in going to school, to work, and to spend time with family and friends. ICE has brought fear and anxiety into our lives, not peace or justice. The surge must end.
Our country’s immigration system has been broken for decades. Congress has at points come close to reaching bipartisan, consensus-driven, comprehensive immigration reform, but political polarization has made such compromises all but impossible to reach.
We must redouble our efforts to build an immigration system based upon respect for the rule of law, compassion, and an understanding of the vital role that immigrants play in strengthening our society as a whole.
We urge our community to exercise compassion for the vulnerable in the days ahead. As Jewish Americans, we have a long and proud history of supporting immigrant communities — remembering that we too were once strangers in a strange land. Not just our ancestors in ancient Egypt, whose anguish this week’s Torah portion recounts, but also here, in the U.S. We must reinvigorate that commitment — for the sake of Good’s memory, our immigrant neighbors, and the health of our whole society.
We also ask our fellow Minnesotans to treat members of law enforcement, and the men and women of our Minnesota National Guard, with patience and kindness. The officers of the Minneapolis Police Department, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, Minnesota State Patrol, the FBI, and the other branches of law enforcement are our friends, neighbors, and partners. They deserve our thanks and respect for the very challenging work they do to keep all of us safe.
As we enter Shabbat, we commit ourselves to hearing the cries of all who suffer among us. We are here, as your partners in advocacy, education, and security, working together for a safe, thriving, and just Minnesota.
With prayers for a Shabbat Shalom.
Rabbi Jill Avrin
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