Since federal immigration officials began “Operation Metro Surge” in December, protesters have gathered around, and in some cases, interfered with, federal immigration operations, but arrests of unruly protesters have been limited.

While the First Amendment protects the freedom to protest peacefully, violent protests and obstruction of federal law enforcement operations are not protected activities and are generally illegal. Despite the number of clashes between federal immigration operations and unruly protesters, arrests have largely been conducted by federal agencies, not by state or local law enforcement, with the Minneapolis Police Department not reporting any surges in arrests.