POCATELLO — More than 250 local residents assembled at Caldwell Park on Saturday for an anti-ICE demonstration, joining thousands nationwide in protests spurred by the recent shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis by an ICE agent.

Local activist Elmer Martinez organized the protest after news broke that Good, a 37-year-old American woman, was fatally shot by ICE agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis. Martinez also felt driven to coordinate the demonstration after watching a recent interview in which Vice President JD Vance labeled Good a domestic terrorist.

Good’s killing drew thousands of protesters to the shooting site, including multiple Minneapolis City Council members who issued a joint statement calling for an investigation led by local authorities, according to MinnPost.

The protests also triggered a response from Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who announced during a news conference that he was deploying the Minnesota National Guard to the area.

The Pocatello demonstration was one of thousands held across the United States this weekend, including in neighboring states such as Utah, Oregon and Washington. More than 10,000 protesters marched in Minneapolis alone, according to its city’s police force.

“People were upset about the shooting in Minnesota, for sure,” Martinez said. “That was one of the primary reasons for doing the impromptu protest. I think that the demonization of anybody that protests as leftist radicals or domestic terrorists or anything like that, I think that really strikes people when you consider that our country was basically founded because of people protesting unjust laws and police states. British royalist soldiers were the police state back in the day. But that’s what our country was founded on — the right to protest. And to have Vances of the world saying that, ‘You guys are bad or evil for protests.’ It’s like, no, you guys don’t know (U.S.) history. We have the right to protest. It’s patriotic. I think that resonates with a lot of people.”

Martinez recommended that detractors of the protests study history, specifically the recent Ken Burns series on the American Revolution.

“It should give every American a reminder of why this country exists, why we’re here, and we’re supposed to have these ideals ingrained in our history,” Martinez said. “Let’s try to live up to them. That means not having a police army formed to do the will of one autocratic leader, which I think is what’s happening here.”

The protest was peaceful, following the trend of seven other efforts Martinez organized last year. Police presence was minimal, with Martinez contacting the Pocatello Police Department before the event to ensure everything went smoothly.

“It was fairly peaceful,” Martinez said. “We had people showing us the one-fingered salute. Either that or they were telling us we were number one. There were a fair number of people doing that, and there always are, but there was one person that rolled through there trying to blow(exhaust fumes) on all these senior citizens in the crowd that were protesting, which is not very courageous. I think he got pulled over, I believe, for speeding through there and doing that. Other than that, we didn’t have any incidents.”

While Martinez said some attendees were apprehensive or uncomfortable about protesting, he said he still sees new faces of those who haven’t been involved before.

“They’re beginning to understand that it’s not only a right, but if you feel our country’s going in the wrong direction, it’s an obligation,” Martinez said. “It’s a moral obligation to not let our country be taken in an autocratic or dictatorial direction. I’d rather be cross-country skiing or going to basketball games or doing other things, but it’s too important to not do this stuff. I think other people are starting to realize that also.”

Saturday’s anti-ICE demonstration was a prelude to another protest against recent U.S. involvement in Venezuela and other foreign countries. Pocatello resident Joseph Funk, a disabled Idaho Army National Guardsman and member of About Face: Veterans Against the War, organized the event.

About 150 people attended the demonstration Sunday, which included speeches from Funk, fellow About Face veteran Adrian Rollins, Southeast Idaho Democratic Socialists of America speaker Tommy Dungan and speaker David Roth.

Funk said he was particularly moved by two veterans in their 70s who, in a spontaneous moment, renewed their oath to defend the Constitution.

“What they did was powerful,” Funk said. “It was a good message that was shown, not just for themselves, but for others, to see that kind of dedication to that oath, real dedication that is not as common as I would hope.”

Echoing many of the speakers that afternoon, Funk’s speech tried to communicate the horror of throwing new generations of military into international conflicts.

“I don’t think it’s well understood just how horrible it is, especially when what you’re doing is completely unjustified,” Funk said. “There’s a lot of hate, and it’s always heartening to be part of these little gatherings, because you get to fellowship with other people who are just trying to do the right thing. That, in my experience, doesn’t come up so often in life.”

Another demonstration similar to Sunday’s protest and organized by Funk and About Face: Veterans Against the War will be held Saturday in Idaho Falls, with additional details to come in the next few days.