(Washington, DC) – A wave of social media posts has ignited intense debate online this week as people compare the number of people killed by federal immigration agents with claims about violence linked to transgender individuals.
The debate was triggered in part by the national reaction to two fatal shootings involving federal immigration officers in Minnesota in early 2026. Both incidents — including the killing of 37-year-old Renée Nicole Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, 2026, and the killing of 37-year-old Alex Pretti by federal officers during an enforcement operation later in the month — have drawn national attention and sparked protests and scrutiny of immigration enforcement tactics.
In Minneapolis, the fatal shooting of Good — who local leaders and activists described as a community observer and supporter of immigrant neighbors — led to protests and calls for accountability from elected officials in Minnesota and beyond.
The subsequent killing of Pretti, an ICU nurse, during a confrontation with federal agents intensified public outrage and sharpened criticism of the aggressive enforcement strategies deployed during what authorities labeled “Operation Metro Surge.” Video and eyewitness accounts challenging federal narratives have further fueled public debate.
Online Comparisons and Controversy
Against this backdrop, some social media posts have juxtaposed the widely reported ICE shootings with claims about shootings “carried out by transgender individuals.” These posts suggest there is a discrepancy in public outrage between the two topics.
However, national crime reporting data does not systematically track violent acts by gender identity, and there is no authoritative nationwide dataset linking the overall number of violent incidents to whether suspects identify as transgender. Experts caution against drawing broad conclusions from isolated online claims or social media graphics without verified sourcing.
The online comparison has drawn sharp responses from both sides of the debate. Critics of federal immigration enforcement argue that the ICE shootings underscore broader concerns about law enforcement accountability. Others have pushed back on the juxtaposition of immigration enforcement incidents with unverified lists of individuals, describing it as misleading or inflammatory.
