As ICE activity intensifies, some Somali students lower their profile

Somali American college students are carrying passports and IDs to class as fear spreads across Twin Cities campuses amid intensified ICE activity and inflammatory political rhetoric.

While some colleges have issued guidance, others have stayed largely silent, leaving students to navigate safety through group chats, word-of-mouth warnings and online videos.

On a recent weekday morning, a University of Minnesota student slipped her passport card into her wallet before heading to class. Born in Minneapolis and a U.S. citizen, she said she never considered carrying proof of citizenship until the past week.

“Make sure to always carry your passport ID with you,” Cho said her dad told her. “You never know what’s going to happen. It can happen to anyone at this point.”

Cho is a freshman at the U who asked to be identified only by her nickname out of concern for her safety. The Minnesota Star Tribune confirmed Cho’s identity through an in-person interview and reviewed her online presence. She commutes from her family’s Minneapolis home to the U, and she and her five siblings — all U.S.-born citizens — now carry identification wherever they go. When they leave for school or work, the family sends updates throughout the day and hopes they all make it home safely.

“Honestly, it’s really scary,” she said. “I’ve been going to classes, but I stay indoors. I’m afraid to participate in everyday activities, hang out with friends or anything. Even going to work, just driving, is anxious, because it’s that constant fear of being stopped and harassed.”

That fear deepened this week, students said, when ICE detained a student on Augsburg’s private campus and two bomb threats followed, and when a Somali American citizen was tackled and detained in Cedar-Riverside despite saying he had his ID.

Formal communication from colleges, students say, has been uneven. Minnesota State’s system office has not issued any statements about ICE operations, though several of its campuses have acted independently.

Bratlie said students should not assume institutions will always act as their first line of protection. He urged students to keep copies of important documents and know their rights because there may be situations “where the university is going to protect itself first.”

Normandale Community College reaffirmed privacy protections and outlined what to do if approached by federal agents. Minneapolis College sent messages acknowledging “escalating fear and distress,” detailing its protocol for handling ICE visits, and reminding students that their information cannot be released without a subpoena.

The University of Minnesota urged students to learn their rights and highlighted access to immigration legal services, including three full-time immigration attorneys in Student Legal Services.

Cho said the most consistent guidance has come from their own communities, with Somali, African and Asian students advising and supporting one another.

Public health advocate and U instructor Amira Adawe, who mentors dozens of Somali American students across Minnesota, said communication gaps across campuses have deepened students’ sense of vulnerability.

When students came to her asking what to do, Adawe urged those who live on campus at the U to return to their residence halls. “And those who don’t live at the university — just drive home, just go,” she said.

She said her organization the Beautywell Project is hosting a “know your rights” training on Saturday to help Somali students at Twin Cities colleges understand how to respond if approached by federal agents.

Bratlie urged students approached by ICE to stay calm, document what happened and film encounters when possible.

“They should do what makes them feel comfortable and safe,” he said, adding that carrying a passport or ID is understandable given the recent detentions of citizens.

For Cho, the last week of her first college semester looks nothing like she imagined. She avoids certain areas of campus, no longer lingers outside with friends and heads directly home after class.

“Even if you’re a citizen, the fear of being detained — that sort of trauma — stays with you,” she said.

At Augsburg University, freshman Iman, who is using a nickname out of concern for her safety, said she hasn’t changed her class schedule but is more cautious walking alone. The Star Tribune also confirmed her identity through an in-person interview.

“I just carry my ID,” the U.S. citizen said. She saw the first videos of ICE activity on TikTok. She and her friends are “watching our surroundings more than we usually would.”

She worries about a growing narrative that casts Somali Minnesotans, many of whose families fled civil war and have built businesses, careers and new roots here, as criminals.

Iman, who grew up in Minnesota and whose parents are naturalized citizens, said the atmosphere has shifted sharply. “We’re not scared, but we’re watching our surroundings more than we usually would,” she said.

As winter break approaches, both students hope for a return to normalcy — but expect it will take time.

“This hasn’t changed my plans for the future,” Cho said. “It’s added a few more obstacles.”