More than 100 people gathered outside the Home Depot on Grasmere Avenue in Fairfield late Saturday morning, filling the sidewalk with handmade signs, chants and the steady sound of car horns from drivers slowing down to show support.
For months, the big box store’s parking lot has been a familiar meeting spot. Since mid-October, a small but committed group of protesters has returned nearly every Saturday, standing near the main entrance with a large banner that reads, “Neighbors, Not ICE.”
“The first day it was just four of us, because that’s how many people it takes to hold the sign,” said Callie Heilmann, a co-director of Bridgeport Generation Now who has helped organize the protests since they began last fall.
That changed this week.
Following the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Heilmann said organizers put out a call on the organizing platform Mobilize, asking people to show up for an emergency protest as part of a nationwide “ICE Out For Good” Weekend of Action.
By Saturday morning, more than 100 people had signed up, roughly 10 times the typical turnout.
“This came together in 24 hours,” Heilmann said.
The protest began around 11 a.m., with demonstrators lining the sidewalk along Grasmere Avenue, holding signs that read “ICE Out for Good,” “Abolish ICE,” and “No Human Is Illegal.” As chants echoed across the parking lot, cars driving past honked repeatedly, some drivers raising fists or waving through open windows.
Organizers said the protest was part of a broader, grassroots response to what they describe as a pattern of unchecked violence and lack of accountability by federal immigration enforcement agencies.
On Wednesday, Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother, was killed during an encounter involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Minneapolis. The shooting has sparked outrage across the country, with critics accusing the federal government of immediately defending the officers involved and failing to provide transparency or accountability.
Although there was a large turnout at the Fairfield event, the protest remained peaceful. The events were in contrast to a vigil two days earlier in Hartford in which a group of people confronted vehicles exiting a federal building on the other side of where a peaceful vigil was being held in reaction to Good’s death.
The incident ended with one person being struck by a vehicle and at least half a dozen being pepper sprayed. Hartford officials said Friday they had a “strong suspicion” the people driving the vehicles involved in the encounter were federal employees.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam also said Friday that the events are being investigated by the local police and the Department of Homeland Security. He said the violence that occurred on Thursday night “is a direct result of the lawlessness and recklessness of the Trump administration that has occurred over the past year and that last night came here to the city of Hartford, that resulted earlier this week in the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis. That chaos that we saw last night didn’t come from the city of Hartford.”
Among those who answered the call to protest Saturday in Fairfield were Hillie McTernan, 38, and her friend Lisa Endo, 44, both of Fairfield.
McTernan said she and Endo have attended nearly a dozen “No Kings” events and other demonstrations opposing the Trump administration over the past year. Still, she said the response to the fatal shooting of Good felt different, and deeply alarming.
“It feels like it could happen to anyone now,” McTernan said. “The government response was just complete defense of the officers. That’s horrifying.”
Nearby, Karen Butler, an 81-year-old Norwalk resident, stood holding a sign that read “ICE Out for Good,” decorated with an illustration of a woman created by a Chicago-based artist. Butler described herself as a veteran of recent protests but said the moment felt darker than others she had experienced.
“My earlier signs were too kind,” Butler said. “I’m defending democracy. I never thought it would end up like this.”
Saturday’s rally was one of hundreds planned nationwide as part of the ICE Out for Good Weekend of Action. Organizers said protests were scheduled in cities and towns across the country, including roughly a dozen locations in Connecticut such as Brookfield, Torrington and New London.
For many who attended the Fairfield protest, Good’s death raised fears not just about immigration enforcement, but about public safety and the rule of law more broadly.
Sonya Huber, 54, of Stratford, said the incident sent a chilling message to communities already feeling vulnerable.
“I don’t know who among us is safe,” Huber said. “If we’re coming to a protest, I think it represents a complete disregard for the rule of law and the safety of residents and citizens.”
She added that the shooting has had a ripple effect far beyond Minnesota.
“It’s a major alarm bell among thousands,” Huber said. “It strikes fear in those who are willing to stand up for the most vulnerable.”
Mike Martinez, 26, a Shelton resident, said he came to the protest out of frustration and anger, describing the fatal shooting as part of a broader erosion of democratic norms.
“The slaughter of American citizens under this administration is just beyond incomprehensible,” Martinez said. “How we let this happen after Jan. 6, five years ago, is an indictment on us as a nation, and especially the 50% who voted.”
When asked what message he hoped the protest would send, Martinez said unity was central.
“That we’re going to stand united,” he said. “This is inhumane, and we’re not going to allow it. We’re not going to allow fascists to rule this country.”
He added that the size of the crowd was itself a statement.
“The half of the country that opposes this administration is louder than the half that supports it,” Martinez said.
Bridgeport resident Litzy Leon, 25, said she felt compelled to attend after learning more details about Good’s death.
“I just feel like it’s absurd that we’re allowing a murderer free only because he holds the title of ICE agent,” Leon said. “She wasn’t even doing anything wrong, she was just driving away. There was no attack on the agent.”
Leon said the incident also raised concerns about gun use and accountability within federal agencies.
“The gun control is just crazy,” she said.
When asked what kind of accountability protesters are calling for, Leon said the demands are basic, but urgent.
“At the very minimum, we need to see a trial,” she said. “An investigation needs to be held. A trial needs to happen. All respect towards Renee.”
Throughout the protest, speakers rotated through a megaphone, leading chants and urging passersby to learn more about immigration enforcement practices and how to support impacted communities. Organizers emphasized that the Fairfield demonstration was not just about one incident, but about sustained pressure.
Heilmann said the weekly protests will continue.
“This isn’t going away,” she said. “People are scared, they’re angry, and they’re paying attention. And they’re showing up.”
This story was originally published by the Connecticut Mirror.
