American citizens, Luxembourgish people who have spent time in or have family in the US, and other concerned individuals took turns to address the crowd with messages of hope and solidarity. The chants, speeches, and protests went on for an hour on Monday evening, with individual attendees as well as organisations showing up with flags, banners, and music.
This demonstration comes in the wake of two killings by the federal law enforcement agency, both of which have been widely viewed and analysed on social media, and have caused alarm and outrage internationally: Three weeks after Renee Good was shot dead by ICE agents, another citizen Alex Pretti was killed. These deaths come amidst other killings, kidnappings, and violence enforced by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Under the name of ‘Solidarity Protest with the People of Minnesota’, the event was attended by about 40 people, and had developed quickly and spontaneously, with a call to attend making its way around social media only the night before.
“This was organized by people that were concerned about the situation in the US and in particular the situation in Minnesota and Minneapolis, and with the execution of two persons the last three weeks”, said Raquel, one of the organisers and an activist with Luxembourg’s Rise for Climate group. Representatives from Amnesty, Dei Lénk, and other organisations were also present.
“Given that it was organized a day in advance, it has been a very good response”, she added. The importance of speaking out was further defined by the organising group: “Our future is bound together to the people around us and in particular, the US has a very important role in our politics and economy in Europe.”
One participant, Jacky, previously lived in the US for five years, and shared that she had been active in protests and movements there. “I have friends of my own who are protesting in Minnesota, who are protesting around the country, who are getting arrested, who are getting beaten up”, she said, “so that is why it is important for me to be here”.
Pointing to Luxembourg’s history, she added: “Especially as Luxembourgish people that know what occupation looks like, that know what extrajudicial killings look like, we need to be here and need to remember that if international law doesn’t stand, Luxembourg usually doesn’t stand for much longer either.”
While the event drew the attention of Luxembourg police and embassy security who gathered and at one point stepped in to speak to organisers, the event was largely observed silently, and allowed to continue without interruption.
