Minneapolis civil rights leaders demand firing of BCA chief, reject national activists

Civil rights leaders in Minneapolis sharply criticized national Black commentators and called for the firing of Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) Superintendent Drew Evans, accusing him of obstructing the investigation into the shooting death of Renee Good on Saturday.

Attorney and activist Nekima Levy-Armstrong and executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) Jaylani Hussein, held a Jan. 10 press conference demanding immediate action in the case. The leaders also explicitly rejected involvement from national figures such as Rev. Al Sharpton, Minister Jamal Bryant, and activist Tamika Mallory.

“Drew Evans, if you will not participate in this investigation, then you deserve to be fired,” Levy-Armstrong said. “It’s hard enough for us to trust your agency, given that you have rubber-stamped police misconduct in the past.”

Evans has led the BCA since 2015 and oversees the state agency responsible for investigating police- and federally involved shootings. The agency has long faced criticism over its handling of police accountability cases, including the investigation into the 2016 police killing of Philando Castile.

Levy-Armstrong also took aim at national civil rights figures who traveled to Minneapolis during the 2020 George Floyd uprising, accusing them of exploiting local trauma while ignoring sustained, community-led organizing.

“We do not welcome people like Al Sharpton, Jamal Bryant, Tamika Mallory, and these so-called national Black leaders who have come here in the past to exploit our pain,” she said. “They go on national television and pretend no one is organizing the community when there are literally dozens of trusted, consistent organizations doing that work.”

Sharpton, founder of the National Action Network, delivered the eulogy at Floyd’s memorial service in June 2020 and has been a frequent presence in Minneapolis during major civil rights cases. Local organizers have argued that outside figures often overshadow grassroots efforts.

Levy-Armstrong’s criticism follows a controversial April 2025 meeting between Target Corp. CEO Brian Cornell and Sharpton regarding the Minneapolis-based retailer’s rollback of its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. The meeting sparked backlash from local activists who organized a boycott of Target but were not invited.

“It’s unclear to us as Twin Cities organizers why Target CEO Brian Cornell would meet with Rev. Al Sharpton, given that Sharpton had absolutely zero involvement in the Target boycott,” Levy-Armstrong told the Star Tribune in April. Neither Levy-Armstrong nor Hussein nor Monique Cullars-Doty, who organized protests outside Target headquarters, were contacted by the company.

Minister Jamal Bryant, senior pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta, later launched a “Target Fast” during Lent, which Levy-Armstrong and Hussein said undermined their organizing efforts.

“Al Sharpton, stay where you are,” Levy-Armstrong said.

Authorities have identified Jonathan Ross as the federal agent who shot and killed Good near the intersection of Portland Avenue and East 34th Street.

Hussein focused much of his remarks on what he described as federal intimidation and overreach. “In the past 24 hours, we have seen ICE agents continue to harass, intimidate, and target people who are peacefully protesting,” he said.

He described the scene outside the Whipple Federal Building as alarming. “What took place was a showcase of Trump’s army protecting known Islamophobic white supremacists while attacking journalists,” Hussein said.

Both leaders demanded an immediate timeline for prosecution and the arrest of Ross.

“All that is needed is probable cause,” Hussein said. “That requires an arrest of this officer immediately, and that is what we’re asking for.”

Hussein reiterated that Minneapolis does not want or need intervention from national figures. “We do not need anybody to tell us how to take care of our people,” he said.

He also cited the aftermath of Floyd’s murder as a warning. “So many people came here not to help us, but to create more chaos,” he said.

In the morning of Jan. 10, the Department of Homeland Security denied entry to Reps. Angie Craig, Kelly Morrison, and Ilhan Omar when they attempted to meet with officials at the Whipple Federal Building. DHS cited the building’s funding source, President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” rather than traditional congressional appropriations, as justification.

“This is a moment where Congress needs to act swiftly,” Hussein said. “If Democrats are denied equal access to federal facilities, this could escalate immediately.”

Independent Black photographer and journalist King Demetrius Pendleton said he was shot in the foot by federal agents during a crowd-control operation. He said the incident occurred after agents were seen interacting with Jayden Scott, who arrived with Jake Lange, who played Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby” and called for protection from border agents while protesters heckled them.

“It was totally peaceful until white supremacy showed up,” Pendleton said. “For them to shoot me in the foot, right in my foot, it threw me back immediately.”

Later that day, thousands of demonstrators marched from Powderhorn Park to a vigil on Portland Avenue, demanding that federal agents end immigration enforcement actions and leave Minnesota.

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