The latest in a ongoing collective of musicians expressing their outrage, Katy Perry has called on her fellow citizens to oppose the funding of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, following agent raids in cities across America as part of President Donald Trump’s pledge to crack down on illegal immigration.
On Monday (1.23,) following the fatal shooting of nurse Alex Pretti by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the superstar singer/songwriter took to Instagram to urge her 201,000,000 social media followers to take a stand against the ICE initiative.
Supported by several images, Perry declared, “Turn anger into ACTION”, “Who: You, the power is in your hands.” “What: Call your senators.” “We have until Friday, January 30th to block $10 billion (on top of the $75B that’s already been funded) from going through to ICE,” she continued. “Where: Call (202) 224-3121. Why: Because it’s time to turn anger into action.”
Additionally, the 41-year-old included a script that people can use when calling senators:
“I’m calling to urge you to filibuster the upcoming Homeland Security Appropriations Bill. I’m sick of watching lawful citizens and noncitizens being arrested at their jobs, assaulted at peaceful protests, pulled out of their vehicles, blinded by munitions, and getting shot and killed by ICE.” “We will be watching your vote – and we will remember.”
The second American citizen murdered by the ICE operation in Minnesota, Pretti’s assassination follows Renée Good who was shot by an agent on January 7 while in her car, with Trump and law enforcement officials defending the shooting, alleging the officer acted in self-defense.
In response to the back-back shootings, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Governor Tim Walz have called on Trump to end ICE’s presence in the city, and on Monday, the 79-year-old US president took to his Truth Social platform, confirming that he had been having discussions with local leaders, stating:
“I just had a very good telephone conversation with Mayor Jacob Frey, of Minneapolis. Lots of progress is being made! (Trump’s border tsar) Tom Homan will be meeting with him tomorrow in order to continue the discussion. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” the
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Cosmopolitan UK