Minnesota Middle School's ICE Geography Lesson Ignites National Debate
A conservative education organization has ignited a fierce controversy by releasing documents alleging that a Minnesota middle school presented Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in a highly negative light during an eighth-grade geography lesson. The materials, published by Defending Education, include PowerPoint slides from Hermantown Middle School near Duluth that describe ICE tactics as "tricky & violent" and claim the agency has harassed thousands of legal immigrants.
Content of the Controversial Classroom Presentation
According to the released documents, students were presented with a slide listing reasons why "people think the Ice [sic] agents have 'gone too far'." The cited reasons included allegations of 22 deaths in ICE custody during 2025, failure to file proper paperwork to track arrests, officers wearing masks to conceal their identities, and instances of people posing as agents to kidnap or harm others. Another slide explicitly stated: "ICE has Arrested &/or harassed thousands of LEGAL immigrants and 170 US citizens — including being dragged, tackled, beaten, tased and shot."
The teacher reportedly encouraged students to watch videos depicting what were described as "inhumane" migrant detention centers and other footage of ICE operations, offering extra credit for doing so. One slide also referenced the Trump administration allocating "$170 billion taxpayer dollars to hire 20,000+ additional I.C.E. agents to find and deport them," while another addressed immigration limitations by stating "there aren't enough 'slots'" for undocumented immigrants to apply legally.
School Administration's Defense and Parental Concerns
The lesson materials were shared with Defending Education by a concerned parent, prompting immediate backlash. However, Hermantown's principal defended the curriculum in a now-public email, asserting that the lesson plan aligned with Minnesota education standards. "All of our social studies classes have a current events component to them and this information is part of the MN standards in geography," wrote the school official, whose name was redacted from the message.
Hermantown Community Schools Superintendent Wayne Whitwam provided additional context in a statement to media outlets, emphasizing that staff strive to present multiple perspectives. "[Defending Education] is showing one side, but for example doesn't include a pro-ICE video shared by the same teacher," Whitwam stated. However, when pressed to share any "pro-ICE" content from the lesson, the superintendent declined, explaining: "I don't want to feed this story."
Broader Context and Political Implications
The controversy emerges against a backdrop of heightened tensions surrounding immigration enforcement in Minnesota. Earlier this month, President Trump's border czar Tom Homan announced the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge, a federal initiative that resulted in over 4,000 arrests and the recovery of 3,364 unaccompanied migrant children in the state. Homan highlighted that those arrested included an illegal immigrant convicted of raping a child under 14, along with other "criminal aliens" found guilty of sexual misconduct and violence.
The drawdown followed weeks of clashes between federal agents and far-left demonstrators, as well as rhetorical disputes between Democratic officials and the Trump administration in the Twin Cities area. The situation gained international attention in January when two anti-ICE demonstrators—Renee Good, 37, and Alex Pretti, also 37—were fatally shot in separate incidents involving immigration officers. Both were participants in "ICE Watch" groups that tracked immigration enforcement activities, though proponents maintained they were exercising rights as "legal observers" without encouraging confrontation.
Educational Guidelines and Accusations of Bias
Superintendent Whitwam shared guidelines from the Minnesota Association of School Administrators that emphasize educational neutrality, including admonitions to:
- Focus on "education, not advocacy"
- "Respect all viewpoints"
- "Support civil discourse"
- "Know your role"
The guidelines specifically advise instructors against engaging in political debates with students or using classrooms for "personal political messages" or displaying "partisan materials."
Nicole Neily, founder and president of Defending Education, condemned the lesson in strong terms: "It's bad enough that this biased lesson is replete with falsehoods — but [for] the school principal to defend such garbage truly adds insult to injury." Neily further argued that "students are being force-fed ideological propaganda during finite lesson time" and "told what to think, rather than how to think," contributing to families "fleeing the public education system in droves."
The released documents did not clarify whether the PowerPoint presentation also covered ICE's arrests of thousands of convicted criminals residing illegally in Minnesota, leaving questions about the lesson's comprehensiveness unanswered as the debate continues to unfold.
