What Minnesotans are saying about Trump's immigration crackdown

For days, the people of Minneapolis have been expressing outrage over the shooting death of Alex Pretti at the hands of federal agents conducting an immigration crackdown in the city.

Some of them have spoken to CBC News correspondent Katie Simpson and producer Yasmine Hassan about their reaction to the shooting, as well as U.S. President Donald Trump's move to send more than 2,000 Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) officers to Minnesota.

Here is what a few of them have had to say.

Ashley Watson, a former member of the U.S. military, says she is proud of her country but that the Trump administration does not reflect the American people.

"I've seen ICE in our streets on a regular basis for months now. Our community has been terrorized by them," said Watson.

She brought a U.S. flag to the vigil outside the Veterans Affairs hospital where Pretti had worked as an ICU nurse.

Watson says she hung the flag to appear backwards, in keeping with Army regulations that require the flag patch on a uniform's right shoulder to give the effect of flying in the breeze as the soldier moves forward into battle.

"It's my protest to ICE and it's my encouragement to our community," Watson said.

"So the stars and stripes are going forward because we're going to be pressing on and we're going to win this," she said. "We're going to get through this; I know we are."

Joel Lueders was also standing outside the hospital where Pretti had worked.

"I just had to come out here because I have so much anger and sadness inside me," Lueders said. "I know other people feel the same way."

He held a sign bearing one word: "Hope."

"I hope cooler heads prevail," Lueders said. "Set immigration aside; this is all about enforcement that's just been done completely wrong."

Lueders was asked for his message to people outside of the U.S.