A federal agent speaks to detained demonstrators outside the Whipple Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S., January 8, 2026. REUTERS/Brian Snyder
A Minnesota mom went from not being that concerned about the second administration of President Donald Trump to being an activist in less than a year.
In a collection of interviews with Minnesota Public Radio, observers of federal agents told their stories about violence and intimidation.
Mother of three Michele was too scared to give her full name to MPR out of fear for her family's safety. She recalled that her brother, a 20-year military veteran, died suddenly last year. Before he passed, she said he was sounding the alarm that Trump would begin targeting people.
“He was convinced that Mexicans and trans people would be targeted. I was more on the side of, ‘Hey, we have to be calm-headed, and it’s only going to be four years,’” Michele said. “Now I have to eat my words because we’re just seeing all this stuff unfold, and everything he was always ranting about has happened.”
In 2024, she made a resolution to be more active in causes she cares about. That meant being a community observer, who can film incidents with federal agents and serve as witnesses if they commit crimes.
Elizabeth also asked that she not be identified to protect herself from retribution. In a group message with her husband, grandma and sister she wrote, “If I am killed doing this, throw my body at the White House, martyr the shit out of me and raise hell. Do not be sad. Do not think I would do anything differently. I would do it over and over again — this is too important to sit down and shut up and not do anything.”
In the suburbs, she told MPR, there aren't the huge collections of people that show up or come outside when federal agents show up in a neighborhood. Most of the community observers are women, the report said. In Elizabeth's case she and another person patrols the burbs together, but most ride around alone.
“We are alone — it’s two petite women in our vehicles," she said. “Many of us have encountered bullies our entire lives. Over the last decade, we've watched other people be bullied, and I think that turns you into somebody that, even if that bully is wearing full tactical gear, I'm not interested in laying down for you.”
An unfamiliar SUV was spotted sitting outside of her home a little over a week ago. She began recording and the SUV pealed out, racing away. She got the tag number and gave the information to the local police. However, they found out that the license plate belongs to another car.
It's a tactic that federal agents have used recently despite it being illegal. The state’s Driver and Vehicle Services have demanded agents stop doing it.
Since Tom Homan has been on the scene, Elizabeth told MPR nothing has changed. Not once have the federal agents tried to de-escalate a situation. In fact, she said, the agents have gone from mocking observers to "aggressively pursuing" them.
“I think they’re getting angry that we’re winning and the country is rallying around us,” Elizabeth said. “We’re so organized and we act with such integrity. They don’t want to admit they feel threatened by us.”