What it means to be American

The First Amendment protects the individual rights and freedoms of every person living in America, including the freedom to do (or not) any of the following: practice any religion, speak openly about public issues and assemble peacefully to discuss problems and ideas. It also means that the government can’t control what people write in the media, and that we, the people, can ask the government to change laws.

I saw the video that’s circulating online. Maybe you did, too. There are many videos taken from several perspectives, but all depict one thing: Alex Pretti on the ground being restrained and punched, then shot multiple times by ICE agents.

This happened on Saturday in Minneapolis. Prior to being pushed to the ground, Alex was helping a woman stand up after she herself was shoved to the ground by agents. Suddenly multiple agents deploy pepper spray then shove Alex to the ground. Alex has both of his arms raised and hands up when he is shot repeatedly by agents.

Alex was a U.S. citizen and worked as a nurse to veterans. There is no sign of him reaching for his licensed firearm in any of the footage captured and published online. At no point did Alex Pretti threaten these heavily armed government agents.

What does it mean for our First Amendment rights when simply helping your fellow community member while being in close proximity to ICE agents can get you shot and killed?

Jo Carter

Vinton