High-profile American celebrities have spoken out against Donald Trump’s ongoing immigration crackdown after 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Jeffrey Pretti was fatally shot
Ariana Grande voiced her opposition for ICE’s tactics(Image: Penske Media via Getty Images)
A number of celebrities including Ariana Grande, Olivia Rodrigo, Natalie Portman and Olivia Wilde have spoken out on social media after an intensive care nurse was shot dead in Minneapolis this weekend.
Alex Jeffrey Pretti, 37, was shot dead by a US Border Patrol officer after joining demonstrations in the Minnesota city because he was upset by Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, his family said. Alex’s loved ones added he worked for the US Department of Veterans Affairs and had participated in protests following the January 7 killing of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer.
Trump administration officials including Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Alex was shot after he “approached” Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun. However, they didn’t specify whether he had brandished the weapon before he was killed.
READ MORE: ICE Minneapolis shooting victim Alex Pretti pictured as ICU nurse who helped to save lives
Alex Pretti holding his phone before an ICE agent tackled him to the ground(Image: )
In bystander videos of the shooting that emerged soon after, Pretti is seen with a phone in his hand but none appears to show him with a visible weapon. The US citizen was shot just over two weeks after mother-of-three Renee was killed while behind the wheel of her car – and officials from the US government tried to paint both victims as domestic terrorists who tried to attack law enforcement officers.
After Alex’s shooting, several celebrities have spoken out online to express their outrage at the ongoing tensions in the US, and their disapproval of ICE tactics that have been at the centre of demonstrations for several weeks.
Wicked star Ariana, 32, reposted a tweet shared by NYC mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani who wrote: “As tens of thousands across America protest the violence that ICE sows with impunity, federal agents shot and killed another personal in Minneapolis today. ICE terrorizes our cities. ICE puts us all in danger. Abolish ICE.”
He was shot dead in Minneapolis on Saturday(Image: AP)
Singer Olivia, 22, shared on Instagram: “ICEs actions are unconscionable but we are not powerless. our actions matter. I stand with Minnesota.” Chrissy Teigen, who is married to John Legend, took to her Instagram Stories to repost a tweet shared by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on X.
The US representative wrote: “Americans are being killed in the street by their government. Our Constitution is being shredded and our rights are dissolving. Resist. Senate Dems should block ICE funding this week. Activate the National Guard. We can and must stop this.”
The 40-year-old model and TV personality then shared another post by AOC which read: “We have a responsibility to protect Americans from tyranny. DHS just shot a man in broad daylight two weeks after they shot a mother in the face without consequence. They need our votes to continue. We cannot give it to them. Every Senator should vote NO.”
Olivia Rodrigo also spoke out on social media(Image: Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)
Black Swan star Natalie, 44, and Don’t Worry Darling actress Olivia, 41, were among numerous celebrities wearing “ICE OUT” pins at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, this weekend. Both Natalie and Olivia expressed their dismay at the immigration crackdown and shared their support for protesters joining demonstrations.
In an interview with Variety, Natalie said Americans were “at a moment in our country’s history that is quite devastating” as she added: “It’s really impossible not to talk about what is happening right now and the brutality of ICE and how it has to stop immediately.” However, she sent a message of hope: “But also there’s a beautiful community that Americans are showing right now.
“They’re showing up for each other, protecting each other and fighting for their freedom. It’s a bittersweet moment to celebrate something we’re so proud of on the backdrop of our nation in pain.”
Olivia said the US is “hurting” as she condemned the ongoing immigration crackdown saying: “I’m appalled and sickened. We can’t go another day accepting this as our new norm. It’s outrageous.”
She added: “People are being murdered, and I don’t want to normalise seeing that violence – on the internet or on film. It’s hideous. If we can do anything to support the movement to cast ICE out and delegitimise this criminal organisation, then that’s what we should be doing.”
Natalie Portman wore an ‘ICE OUT’ pin at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah(Image: GC Images)
Olivia Wilde also condemned Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown(Image: Getty Images)
Alex was a nurse at a veteran hospital and lived about two miles from where he was killed in Minneapolis. His father, Michael Pretti, said: “He cared about people deeply and he was very upset with what was happening in Minneapolis and throughout the United States with ICE, as millions of other people are upset.
“He thought it was terrible, you know, kidnapping children, just grabbing people off the street. He cared about those people, and he knew it was wrong, so he did participate in protests.”
After seeing videos of top Trump administration officials suggesting their son was a “domestic terrorist” who attacked the officers who shot him, they issued a written statement describing themselves as both heartbroken and angry. “The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting,” the family’s statement said.
They added that videos showed Alex was not holding a gun when he was tackled by federal agents, but holding his phone with one hand and using the other to shield a woman who was being pepper-sprayed. “Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man,” they said.
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