Hundreds rally at downtown bayfront expressing support for immigrants.
By Johannes Werner
Original Air Date: January 14, 2026
Host: The killing of a mother of three by an ICE agent in her own neighborhood in Minneapolis triggered hundreds of protests around the country last weekend, including one in Englewood and one in Venice. An estimated 1,000 people rallied along the downtown Sarasota bayfront. Here’s our report from the Sarasota protest.
[Vehicles honking]
Johannes Werner: The rally was called for by the Sarasota Democratic Women’s Club, Next Gen Democrats and El Pueblo Unido Tampa Bay. And people responded. Protesters lined up along two blocks on both sides of US 41, two or three rows deep in many spots. They were waving signs, many referring to Renee Good, the activist and mother of three who was shot and killed by an ICE agent last Wednesday.
There also was a lady blowing bubbles, protesters bringing puppies and babies, and the constant sound of supportive honking, with the occasional engine rev expressing disapproval.
Jodany Delrosario is a 16-year old student organizer on school issues and a member of the Sarasota Next Generation Democrats. She was one of five speakers at the protest, describing what the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis means to her.
Jodany Delrosario: This is about a mother who will never see her children grow up, a daughter who will never hug her mom again and a son who will never hear her laugh. Yet people are trying to pretend it’s acceptable. It is not, and it will never be. Let’s be honest: ICE does not make us feel safe. ICE does not protect our communities. ICE does not bring us peace or security. When a mother can be killed in her own neighborhood, the people in that neighborhood feel terror, not safety. That is not protection. That is not justice. That is not safety.
JW: Daniela Arcadia, an organizer with El Pueblo Unido Tampa Bay, pointed out that Renee Good chose to support immigrants even though she did not have to.
Daniela Arcadia: They have been afraid. They have been confused. They have been sad. They have been stressed for months. But for the past couple of days, I can tell you we are also heartbroken. Renee Nicole Good was a young mother, a wife, an animal lover, a poet and a fighter. She was a strong woman with a kind heart who could have been doing anything else that day. She could have been anywhere else just like we could have been anywhere else today, but she decided to go out and protect the immigrant community, documented and undocumented. On that day, she could have been doing anything else, and she was murdered.
Tom Edwards
JW: Other speakers were Sarasota school board member Tom Edwards, Democratic Women’s Club Chair Julie Forestier and Matthew Montavon, founder of the Immigration Justice Coalition who is running again for the U.S. House seat held by Greg Steube. He lost to Democratic contender Manny Lopez in the primaries last year.
Matthew Montavon: Their objective has always been to act brutally and invoke fear, to militarize our society and to expect compliance. We will not be compliant.
JW: Reporting for WSLR News, Johannes Werner.
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