No More Flowers Until ICE is Stopped

On January 24, 2026, Alex Pretti was murdered on the streets of Minneapolis by ICE agents. 

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino continue to lie to the American people about the circumstances of Pretti's death. They insist that agents were acting in self-defense. That Pretti attacked ICE agents. That he brandished his weapon. That ICE agents merely "attempted" to disarm him. 

These are lies. 

There are multiple videos capturing the murder from multiple angles circulating the internet. If you haven't seen them yet, I have downloaded and reuploaded the 2 most telling angles myself below. Social media links continue to be taken down, thus the reason I am hosting these videos myself. It is never easy to watch a man die on camera, but we owe it to Alex to see the truth. 

Warning: Disturbing content. Alex Pretti's murder by ICE agents.
Warning: Disturbing content. Second angle of Alex Pretti's murder by ICE.

After watching the videos, ask yourself these questions: Does it look like Pretti attacked ICE agents? Does it look like ICE agents were in enough danger to warrant killing a man out of self-defense? Does it look like Pretti ever took his gun out? 

Here's what I saw: 

Alex Pretti was helping to direct traffic while there was ICE activity in the area. He held nothing but his phone in his hand. He was filming, which is absolutely his right. There are other peaceful observers also filming the scene. ICE agents begin attacking other peaceful observers, pushing them to the ground. Pretti put himself between those observers and ICE, trying to protect those observers and help them off the ground.

At one point it is absolutely clear that Pretti was holding only his phone in one hand while his other hand remained empty in the air while ICE pepper sprayed him. He then fell on top of another observer, it looks like a combination of trying to protect, help, and actually falling himself. Then, multiple ICE agents pull Pretti off the ground, piling on top of him, and he is eventually shot and killed. 

Not once, NOT ONCE, did Pretti make any sort of action that would indicate he was attacking ICE agents. 

Not only that, but there have been many zoomed-in and slowed-down versions of these videos uploaded to the internet. It can be strongly argued that an ICE agent did successfully disarm Pretti, pulling Pretti's gun out of his holster and walking off with it, BEFORE shots were fired. 

Meaning that the federal government is LYING. Pretti never attacked ICE agents. And ICE agents DID disarm him—not just "attempted" to. 

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Now that you have seen the truth for yourself, why am I, the owner of a small wedding & event floral studio, writing about this? 

Because we all need to do whatever is in our power to hold the federal government accountable for this murder, and for the terror they are instilling in the city of Minneapolis and America as a whole. 

There are many calls for a general strike. As I'm self-employed, I can't exactly go on strike. But I can stop taking on new clients. I can put my own tiny little wrench in the economy in protest. I can limit the income I take in, thus lawfully limiting the amount of income tax I have to pay to the federal government. 

Ritual Floral will not be taking on new clients until something is done about ICE. Whether that looks like abolishing them entirely, defunding them, taking them out of Minneapolis, firing both Noem and Bovino. I'm not sure. But something has to be done, and until it is, I will not be taking on new clients. 

If you have already sent me your deposit and signed a contract, I will not be cancelling your contract at this time, so no worries there. I'm trying to balance my form of striking without totally screwing over my clients who are lovely people <3  

And if you're upset that your florist is "getting political" then you are within your rights to cancel your contract with me. But know that since it is you who is choosing to cancel, your retainer will remain nonrefundable, and I will be donating it to organizations that are working to stand with Minnesota and put a stop to ICE's terror. 

EVERYBODY needs to be afraid of where our government is headed, what it is currently doing. People are being shot in the streets for legally exercising their 1st and 2nd amendment rights. The federal government is sending out memos instructing ICE agents to ignore the 4th amendment. Government officials are lying to the American people even though we can see the truth with our own eyes. Every single American's rights and freedoms are under attack, and we all need to do whatever is in our power, however small, to try to stop the fascist takeover of our democracy before it's too late. 

So there will be no more flowers from me until something is done to stop ICE. 

Thanks for reading. Stay safe out there, and let's help each other out. <3 

—Nikki