Author Stephen King has drawn a parallel between the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Nazi ‘Gestapo’ through a post on social media.
In the past day, numerous celebrities have been vocal in sharing their reactions to the tragic death of Alex Pretti, who was shot and killed on Saturday (January 24) by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis.
Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, was killed in the street just a few weeks after Renee Good’s death, who was similarly shot by an ICE agent while in her vehicle.
The Department of Homeland Security has stated that the federal immigration agents fired in self-defense, claiming Pretti was armed with a handgun. However, witnesses and video evidence suggest otherwise, showing Pretti holding a cell phone instead of a weapon.
King has not shied away from sharing his views on Donald Trump, including his opinions on Trump’s literacy skills and how history might judge his administration. Last year, he told The Sunday Times that he believes many will deny ever having supported Trump.
On Friday, the Carrie author took to X to express his view of ICE, referring to it as ‘the American Gestapo’.
He wrote: “ICE is the American Gestapo.”
The US Holocaust Memorial Museum delineates that the Gestapo was the political police force of the Nazi regime, notorious for its cruelty. As detailed on their website: “The word ‘Gestapo’ is often mistakenly used as a catchall for multiple groups of Nazi perpetrators. In reality, the Gestapo was just one of many institutions that perpetrated Nazi crimes.”
King’s comparison is not isolated. Bruce Springsteen recently addressed an audience in New Jersey, stating: “If you believe in democracy, in liberty, if you believe that truth still matters, that it’s worth speaking out, that it is worth fighting for, if you believe in the power of the law and no one stands above it, if you stand against heavily armed masked federal troops invading American cities and using Gestapo tactics against our fellow citizens, if you believe you don’t deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest, then send a message to this president.”
Additionally, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz previously remarked: “Donald Trump’s modern-day Gestapo is scooping folks up off the streets.”
In the wake of Saturday’s incident, Pretti’s family issued a statement encouraging people to ‘get the truth out about our son’, expressing: “We are heartbroken but also very angry.
“Alex was a kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends, and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital. Alex wanted to make a difference in this world. Unfortunately, he will not be with us to see his impact.
“I do not throw around the hero term lightly. However, his last thought and act was to protect a woman.
“The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs.
“He has his phone in his right hand, and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down, all while being pepper-sprayed.
“Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man. Thank you.”