FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 24, 2026
January 24, 2026
AFGE Communications Department, [email protected]
AFGE President Everett Kelley Statement on Tragedy in Minneapolis
AFGE Local 3669 member Alex Jeffrey Pretti was dedicated to serving veterans
WASHINGTON – Following the tragic events in Minneapolis, American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley issued the following statement:
“Today, Alex Jeffrey Pretti, an AFGE Local 3669 member and a nurse at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center who dedicated his life to serving American veterans, was killed during protests in Minneapolis connected to the administration’s immigration actions. Our union is heartbroken. An AFGE member is dead. And a family’s life has been forever changed.
“While details of the incident are still emerging, one fact is already clear: this tragedy did not happen in a vacuum. It is the direct result of an administration that has chosen reckless policy, inflammatory rhetoric, and manufactured crisis over responsible leadership and de-escalation.
“For months, this administration has pursued immigration actions designed to provoke confrontation rather than solve problems. Their actions have raised tensions in communities across the country while stoking fear, chaos, and division. Federal workers have been placed at the center of this political theater, turned into symbols instead of being treated as the public servants they are. That kind of leadership failure has consequences, making everything more dangerous for the public and law enforcement alike.
“Today, those consequences include the death of an AFGE member.
“We are aware that video of the incident is circulating and that DHS has made public claims about what occurred that are brought into question by those videos. A full, transparent accounting and investigation is essential. But no after-the-fact explanation can erase the reality that this administration’s choices have created the conditions that made this tragedy possible.
“Right now, we mourn. We grieve for this member, for their family, and for their coworkers. We owe them compassion, solidarity, and resolve. I urge everyone to remain disciplined and measured in public, even as we are rightly angry. Still, we must do what we can to maintain peace and calm.
“But do not mistake restraint for acceptance. Accountability will come, and AFGE will not be silent about the policies and decisions that led us here.”
###
Click here to Donate to the AFGE Federal Employee Defense Fund.
For the latest AFGE news and information, visit the AFGE Media Center.
Follow us on:
