By Kolby LaMarche

Dozens of demonstrators gathered near City Hall Park and at the federal court house on Thursday to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen and mother of three, by an ICE agent in Minneapolis the previous day.

The rally, organized by groups including Migrant Justice, the Vermont Coalition for Palestinian Liberation, Indivisible Vermont, and affiliates of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, began with speeches in the park before participants marched up Church Street to the federal courthouse. 

Organizers projected “Justice for Renee” onto the building facade as the crowd chanted demands for ICE to “leave Vermont” and called for greater accountability in federal enforcement operations.

Good, described by family and friends as a compassionate poet, writer, wife, and devoted mother who had recently moved to Minneapolis from Kansas City, was shot while seated in her maroon Honda Pilot SUV during an ICE enforcement action on January 7. 

Federal officials stated that ICE agent Jonathan Ross, a 10-year veteran, acted in self-defense after Good allegedly weaponized her vehicle to ram the agent. 

However, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rejected that account after reviewing available footage, calling it “bullshit” and urging ICE to depart the city. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz declared January 9 as “Renee Good Day” and criticized the FBI-led investigation for limiting state access to evidence.

In Burlington, speakers including Alyssa Breda of the Vermont Coalition for Palestinian Liberation and Will Lambek, translator, of Migrant Justice condemned masked federal agents, expanded ICE budgets, and related local concerns such as a federally-contracted data center in Williston, which is now beginning a hiring process. 

Vermont lawmakers this session have introduced a bill requiring ICE agents to unmask during state operations in light of recent events and to increase transparency.

Vermont State Treasurer Michael Pieciak addressed the crowd, directly accusing federal authorities of murder in Good’s death. 

“She’s not going home to live her life because our government murdered her,” Pieciak stated. 

The demonstration remained peaceful, with no arrests reported by Burlington Police. 

It marked the latest in Burlington’s recent history of downtown anti-ICE activism, particularly during heightened federal enforcement under the current administration. 

In spring 2025, the detention of Palestinian activist and Vermont resident Mohsen Mahdawi during his citizenship interview in Colchester sparked multiple rallies outside the federal courthouse on Church Street. 

Hundreds, including lawmakers and University of Vermont students, demanded his release, culminating in a major April 30 event where a judge ordered his freedom pending no removal from Vermont. 

Those actions built on weekly “Bearing Witness” vigils and contributed to broader “No Kings Day” protests in June 2025. Other protests have been held at Burlington Airport, and the Burlington City Council. 

Thursday’s rally was part of a nationwide wave of over 1,000 events mourning Good and protesting ICE tactics. Follow-up “ICE Out For Good” demonstrations continued across Vermont on January 10 and 11, including in Fairfax and other communities.

According to limited information posted by both groups like Migrant Justice and by ICE report less than 200 people have been detained or arrested by federal agents in Vermont. No specific data on Burlington exists.