ICE protest strike goes national, with CT on board

A coalition of activist groups has called for a nationwide “National Shutdown” this Friday, February 2, 2026.

Connecticut residents are also planning local actions as part of a work, school, and shopping boycott to protest recent killings by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The protest is backed by organisations like National Shutdown and General Strike U.S., which demand justice for Alex Pretti, who was fatally shot by a Border Patrol officer in Minneapolis last Saturday, January 24.

Another incident that fuelled the protest was the killing of Renee Good, a U.S. citizen killed by an ICE officer in Minnesota earlier this month.

Protestors frame the strike as a mass mobilisation for systemic change. In Connecticut, the rallying cry has mobilized community and religious organizations. 

Activities get underway this week with vigils in Avon on Wednesday and Bloomfield on Thursday, where citizens will honour the victims and “name what is wrong.”

On Friday, major protests will be organised in New Haven and New London in solidarity with the victims.

The movement has also received publicity through support from celebrities. 

Actors such as Pedro Pascal, Hannah Einbinder, and Jamie Lee Curtis have used social media platforms to call for public involvement in the movement.

State and local law enforcement are monitoring plans, though organisers stress the vigils are spaces for “grief, truth-telling, and quiet resolve.”