A Hermantown Middle School in northern Minnesota is under fire after an eighth-grade geography lesson included instructional materials that alleged U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) employs “tricky and violent tactics,” according to a parent who shared the documents with Defending Education.
The materials, published by Defending Education, show a PowerPoint presentation asking students: “In what ways do people think the ICE agents have ‘gone too far?’” One slide labeled “tricky & violent tactics” cited examples such as incomplete paperwork, agents wearing masks, and deaths in custody. Additional slides referenced arrests, detention conditions, and videos about ICE operations, some offered for extra credit.
District leaders stated that the lesson aligns with state geography standards requiring students to explore current events and political systems shaping different regions. Nicole Neily, founder of Defending Education, condemned the materials as “biased” and full of falsehoods, stating: “It’s bad enough that this biased lesson is replete with falsehoods—but [for] the school principal to defend such garbage truly adds insult to injury.”
The controversy emerged in 2026 amid heightened attention to ICE operations in Minnesota. The state has seen large-scale arrests of migrants accused or convicted of serious crimes, including homicide, sexual offenses, and drug trafficking. Operations are being wound down following violent protests over the shooting deaths of two anti-ICE activists.
Supporters of ICE highlight the agency’s recovery of thousands of missing migrant children during its enforcement surge in Minnesota.
