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Hundreds gathered at Embarcadero Plaza in San Francisco on Saturday afternoon to express solidarity with Minnesotans in response to the killing of 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti by a federal agent in Minneapolis earlier today.
Pretti, an American citizen who worked as an intensive care nurse, was shot by a Border Patrol agent in an incident that was filmed and posted to social media. The shooting happened amidst widespread protests in the Twin Cities following the killing of Renee Nicole Good, who was shot in her car by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer on Jan. 7.
A protestor holds a sign reading “R.I.P Alex Pretti”, in reference to the man killed by a federal agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. Photo by Béatrice Vallières.
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“Today, the violence of this fascist administration is rearing its ugly head, attacking our communities, and we must stand up,” an organizer told the crowd during the rally. The protest was called earlier Saturday by Bay Resistance and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, among other organizations.
Eleanor Brown, who attended the demonstration, said she’s been “glued to her TV” since seeing a video of Pretti’s shooting on Instagram this morning. “All day I’ve been wishing I could do something,” she said.
Lorrene Ritchie (left) and Eleanor Brown (right) attended the anti-ICE protest at the Embarcadero Plaza on Jan. 24, 2026. Photo by Béatrice Vallières.
“I think no place is safe. And if we let it happen in Minneapolis, it’ll happen here and happen anywhere,” Lorrene Ritchie, another protester, said. “So it’s incumbent upon all of us as U.S. citizens to fight for the rights of everyone, even if we’re not directly involved.”
Ritchie, an emeritus faculty member in nutrition at U.C. Agriculture and Natural Resources, added she was also protesting against President Donald Trump’s broader policies, including cutting funding for scientific research and moving away from evidence-based nutritional guidelines.
A protestor holds a sign reading “When will you be kidnapped?” at the anti-ICE protest at the Embarcadero Plaza on Jan. 24, 2026. Photo by Béatrice Vallières.
The rally featured speeches from organizers with several groups, including the Party for Socialism and Liberation and the Palestinian Youth Movement. Organizers called for the abolition of ICE and urged community members to join local ICE response networks.
Protesters then marched downtown, chanting slogans like “ICE is not welcome here” and “Donald Trump has got to go.”
A crowd of San Franciscans gathered at the Embarcadero plaza to protest against ICE on Jan. 24, 2026. Photo by Béatrice Vallières.
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