Denver, CO – Today, the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition issued a statement of alarm and solidarity, condemning a brutal and connected pattern of state violence that has marked the first week of 2026, spanning from acts of international war to lethal domestic repression.
“The events of this past week are not isolated incidents,” said Karen Orona, Communications Manager at the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition. “They are interconnected threads in a fabric of state violence that targets vulnerable communities at home and abroad. We are witnessing a dangerous escalation that demands immediate public scrutiny and accountability.”
The timeline of violence reveals a systemic pattern:
The year began with U.S. military strikes in Venezuela, resulting in mass casualties and the kidnapping of the nation’s president. This act of aggression abroad immediately threatens Venezuelan Coloradans without permanent status, who now face potential deportation into a destabilized and violent situation.
This pattern of violence was mirrored domestically on that same day, January 2nd. The Colorado Rapid Response Network confirmed an ICE detention in Mancos, Colorado. A woman was apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during an unlawful traffic stop while she was en route to a medical appointment. When her community gathered for a peaceful protest at the Durango ICE facility, demonstrators reported violent dispersal tactics. While protestors engaged in a nonviolent sit in, they were pulled, dragged, pepper-sprayed at point blank range (including in the face and genitals), threatened with tasers, and forcibly removed.
“Our responders and observers in Colorado will gather to debrief and review our practices. We will continue to practice our right to bear witness and educate the public on ICE’s activities, as well as every person’s human and civil rights. We embody our deepest values – fairness, due process and civic engagement to protect each other and our democracy. We will continue to speak truth to power, to build systems of mutual aid and to work towards a country where our resources are invested in healthy communities, strong ties and access to basic human rights of shelter and food. We reject the politics of death and division.” said Jennifer Piper American Friends Service Committee, part of the Colorado Rapid Response Network.
Concurrently, multiple organizations from the Shut Down GEO Campaign have uncovered a public health crisis and inhumane conditions at the for-profit GEO Group detention center in Aurora, Colorado. A widespread, unidentified illness is spreading among detained immigrants who are being systematically denied medical exams and testing. This is a clear case of deliberate medical neglect, compounded by overcrowding beyond each pod’s capacity.
This pattern of disregard for life culminated on January 7, when ICE agents shot and killed Renee Nicole Good, a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis. She was originally from the Colorado Springs area. We stand in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis and Colorado Springs as we mourn the loss of this community member.
“This is a connected system of violence.” Added Orona. “From foreign bombing and illegal detention to medical torture and murder, each event demonstrates a hierarchy of violence that dehumanizes immigrants, people of color, and those who stand in solidarity with them. The violent suppression of peaceful protesters in Durango and the killing of a woman in Minneapolis makes it unequivocally clear: the state intends to operate without witnesses or opposition.”
The coalition demands:
- ICE agents who kill or brutalize people in our communities, like the agent in Minnesota, must be investigated, held accountable and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
- A response from Governor Polis and other Colorado elected officials on how they plan to protect Coloradans from escalating violence and intensified militarization.
- Independent medical access, testing, and care for all individuals being held at the GEO Aurora facility.
We stand in unwavering solidarity with all victims of this week’s violence. We will continue to document, protest, and mobilize. Our communities are watching, and we will not be silenced.