Rapid Response members finding community through organzing

Twin Ports Rapid Response, a Duluth-based community-organized network, says participation in its trainings has increased sharply as “Operation Metro Surge” continues in Minneapolis and other parts of Minnesota.

Organizing efforts began in October, when U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem visited Minnesota and urged support for federal officials conducting immigration enforcement operations in the state.

About 30 people attended Twin Ports Rapid Response’s initial training, according to organizer Michele Naar-Obed, but interest rose significantly after Renee Good was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in January.

“We had already had a training on the schedule, and it increased,” Michele Naar-Obed, a member of Twin Ports Rapid Response, told WTIP. “It filled the capacity of the church that we were having this training in. We had to turn people away.”

Naar-Obed said subsequent training sessions have also reached capacity.

The organization initially participated in trainings led by Copal, Unidos and the Immigrant Defense Network. Those sessions focused on the legal rights of constitutional observers and how to document federal enforcement activity.

In addition to hosting trainings, Twin Ports Rapid Response distributes “Know Your Rights” cards, provides information to businesses and checks in with community members, Naar-Obed said.

“In the long run, when ICE is finally out of here, we’ll be a stronger community,” Naar-Obed told WTIP. “Because we will have gotten to know each other, and we will have gotten to build relationships with each other, and that’s the best way that community can work.”

Naar-Obed said young people have been especially active, organizing themselves and participating in large numbers.

While some participants are motivated by political beliefs, she said others are seeking connection and community.

“We’re a nation of people, probably from my generation down, that have been kind of taught to live this individualistic life where we don’t even know our neighbors anymore,” Naar-Obed said.”And so to see the people from these newer generations coming up, and they’re hungry, they’re hungry to be part of that kind of a community, and being part of this rapid response team gives them a mechanism to help create that kind of community.”

Twin Ports Rapid Response is exploring ways to expand its reach through online trainings. As a decentralized, grassroots organization, Naar-Obed said it is difficult to measure the group’s overall reach. Participants who complete trainings are encouraged to train others in their own communities.

She said she believes communities across Minnesota are building stronger connections during this period.

“Rural towns and areas are doing what they can do by getting to know each other and supporting each other in reaching those kinds of hopes and dreams that they have for their community,” Naar-Obed said. “I know they’re already doing it, because I know people up there, and that’s what they do, and that’s beautiful.”

Josh Hinke February 3, 2026