Indigenous leaders in Minnesota and the Oglala Sioux Tribe are demanding answers after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Native people in Minneapolis during a major operation.
Oglala Sioux Tribal President Frank Star Comes Out said five enrolled members were taken into custody near the Little Earth housing complex, where the men were homeless and living nearby.
The tribe notes some were detained without their names being recorded, leaving community advocates and attorneys trying to confirm identities and locations.
Attorneys for the tribe have contacted Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan to determine where the men are being held.
The tribe says it is prepared to provide enrolment records to federal authorities and has advised members to assert their rights if detained,
"I am a citizen of the OGLALA LAKOTA NATION, a federally recognised Tribal Nation," a statement read.
"Under the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924, all Native people born within the territorial limits of the United States are recognised as US citizens by birthright.
"Because I am both a Tribal citizen and a U.S. citizen, ICE has no lawful authority to detain me."
Reports from Minneapolis' southside describe agents questioning and detaining Indigenous community members during what an ICT News report described as the "largest immigration raid ever."
Indigenous residents in the area around Franklin Avenue East reported stops and questioning near Little Earth, which community members describe as an urban hub for Native people.
Little Crow Belcourt, director of the Indigenous Peoples Movement, said people were being targeted based on appearance and that Native people were being mistaken for migrants from outside the United States.
"I think some of them [ICE] don't even know what they're doing or where they're at," Little Crow Belcourt said.
"They're just pulling people over at random, if you're Brown.
"Some of our Native people get mistaken for our relatives south of the border.ICT News reported ICE agents attempted to enter Little Earth Housing Project property last week but property managers told the outlet they were not welcome and turned them away.
The same report said agents later attempted to detain Rachel Dionne-Thunder near the Powwow Grounds coffee shop, with workers stepping in as she recorded the encounter on Facebook Live.
Ms Flanagan told ICT News she believed the detentions reflected racial profiling.
"Native people have been here since time immemorial - there's no one that has been a citizen of this country longer than us," Ms Flanagan told ICT.
"The obvious racial profiling happening to our community is disgraceful... my heart breaks to hear about what's happening and it pisses me off.
ICE is doing nothing but making our communities less safe.
"To Indian Country - take care of each other, protect each other, and continue to have each other's backs."
Minnesota's Native American Caucus, including Senator Mary Kunesh, Representative Heather Keeler and Representative Liish Kozlowski, said the detentions and reported stops amount to abuse of power and a breach of Indigenous rights.
"ICE has unleashed unspeakable acts of violence across Minnesota," they said.
"Now, federal agents illegally detained four unsheltered Oglala Sioux relatives and Red Lake Nation descendant, Jose Roberto Ramirez, as countless community members report being harassed, stopped without cause, and interrogated for documentation.
"This is lawless abuse of power rooted in systemic racism - and it will not stand."
The caucus said removing Native people from the street cannot be treated as an error because Tribal citizenship and US citizenship are established through law and treaty.
"Native peoples are Indigenous to this country, existing on this continent for thousands of years before the colonisation of this nation - rendering deportation impossible and absurd," they said.
"Snatching a Native person off the street is not a reckless mistake - it's a direct assault on Indigenous sovereignty and due process."
The lawmakers called for a transparent investigation, stronger consultation with Tribal leaders and measures to stop further detentions of Native people.
"We demand an immediate halt to ICE for good, an end to the discriminatory practices, and a comprehensive, transparent investigation of ICE and its accomplices across the system," they said.
"Authorities at all levels must recognize and respect the sovereignty of Native Nations, DHS must fully consult Tribal Leaders, and ensure that their citizens and descendants are never subjected to violations of Indigenous rights and civil liberties."
The Oglala Sioux Tribe says it is still seeking confirmation of where the detained men are being held as advocates continue searching for names and whereabouts.
