Twin Cities residents officially honored with JFK Profile in Courage Award
Twin Cities residents were officially honored with the 2026 JFK Profile in Courage Award Sunday night for their response to the Trump administration's deployment of federal agents earlier this year.
"The people of the Twin Cities reminded all Americans that we cannot take our democracy for granted," Caroline Kennedy said during the ceremony.
The JFK Foundation announced in March the people of the Twin Cities would receive the award for "risking their lives to protect their neighbors and immigrant community members from an unprecedented federal law enforcement operation."
During Operation Metro Surge — the largest federal deployment of law enforcement in U.S. history — Minnesotans organized protests, pressured lawmakers and even traveled across the country to help bring their neighbors home after Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainment. Federal agents shot and killed two Twin Cities residents — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — and wounded another during the surge.
Four community leaders from the metro were on hand to accept the award: Iamam Yusuf Abdulle, co-founder of the Somali American Leadership Table; Haven Watch founder Natalie Ehret; COPAL Associate Executive Director Carolina Ortiz; and Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik. All four represent communities targeted during Operation Metro Surge.
"It's important to recognize when something isn't quite right and speak up about it. It's really important to find that courage from within, despite the risks that may come, to do the right thing," said Stenvik in an interview with WCCO on Monday.
She added that seven students in her district were detained by federal agents. Six are now back at school as the year winds down.
"It's been very difficult for some, and for others, they've been able to come back and be thriving, so we're providing lots of different supports for kids, and frankly, children in our country deserve a sense of safety and security," said Stenvik.
The award typically recognizes a public official; past recipients include Vice President Mike Pence, President Barack Obama and President George H.W. Bush.
"It's a beautiful message. I think it really speaks to the power and the community-building that has been happening here in our state," said Ortiz.
While Ortiz said it can be important to celebrate, her work continues.
"We continue to get hundreds of calls on a weekly basis about community members who need support for rent, community members who need mental health services because they lost their children, because they lost a mom, a dad," she said.
Though federal officials said the operation was focused on "the worst of the worst," data shows less than a quarter of the 3,800 people arrested during it were convicted criminals. President Trump and other officials said the surge was prompted in part by fraud in Minnesota, which they unjustly blamed largely on the Somali community. People of Somali descent accounted for less than 3% of arrests during the operation.
