Minnesota School Exposed: Teachers Told Students ICE Uses Tricky and Violent Tactics in Shocking Lesson Plan

Minnesota Middle School Caught Teaching Students That ICE Agents Use Violent Tactics

A Minnesota middle school has come under fire after documents revealed that eighth grade geography students were taught that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents use "tricky & violent tactics" against immigrants and U.S. citizens.

The conservative watchdog group Defending Education released the documents on February 17, 2026, exposing lesson materials used at Hermantown Middle School in northern Minnesota. The PowerPoint slides asked students to consider "In what ways do people think the [ICE] agents have 'gone too far?'"

Under a slide labeled "tricky & violent tactics," the lesson materials claimed that 22 people died in ICE custody during 2025, that agents failed to file proper paperwork to track arrests, and that officers wore masks to hide their identities. The slides further alleged that ICE "arrested &/or harassed thousands of LEGAL immigrants and 170 U.S. citizens," who had reportedly been "dragged, tackled, beaten, tased and shot."

Nicole Neily, founder and president of Defending Education, condemned the lesson in a public statement.

It's bad enough that this biased lesson is replete with falsehoods, but for the school principal to defend such garbage truly adds insult to injury.

Hermantown Middle School Principal William Wietman defended the curriculum, stating that "all of our social studies classes have a current events component to them, and this information is part of the MN standards in geography."

Superintendent Wayne Whitwam told The New York Post that the school "strive[s] to share both viewpoints" on the issue and claimed a pro ICE video was also presented during the lesson. However, he declined to provide the video to media outlets when asked.

The controversy emerged during heightened immigration enforcement in Minnesota following Operation Metro Surge, which launched in December 2025, bringing thousands of federal agents into the Twin Cities area.

Public School Pushes Anti ICE Propaganda on Eighth Graders in Geography Class

The lesson plan materials were originally obtained by a concerned parent who brought them to the attention of Defending Education. The documents show a one sided presentation of immigration enforcement, framing ICE operations exclusively through a negative lens without presenting the agency's stated mission of protecting national security and public safety.

Neily characterized the materials as "ideological propaganda" being pushed on children in a public school setting. The incident has reignited the national debate over political bias in K through 12 education and whether schools are using taxpayer funded classrooms to advance partisan viewpoints.

The Crusader's Opinion

This is what happens when activist teachers are given free reign over impressionable children. An eighth grade geography class has no business pushing politically charged propaganda about federal law enforcement. These are 13 year olds being told that the men and women who enforce our nation's laws are violent thugs. The superintendent claims they showed "both sides," but conveniently cannot produce the evidence. Meanwhile, the principal doubles down, defending outright falsehoods as "part of the standards." What standards? The standard of indoctrinating children to distrust their own government's immigration enforcement while ignoring the rule of law? Parents, this is happening in your schools right now. If your child came home and told you their teacher said police were violent criminals, you would be at that school the next morning. This deserves the same response.

Take Action

• Contact Hermantown Community Schools at (218) 729 9369 or visit hermantown.k12.mn.us to demand transparency and balanced education in their classrooms.
• Report biased school curricula to Defending Education at defendinged.org so watchdog organizations can investigate and hold schools accountable.
• Attend your local school board meetings and request to review lesson plan materials being taught to your children. Parents have the right to know what is being presented in taxpayer funded classrooms.
• Support organizations fighting for educational integrity: visit www.TheShepherdsShield.org to support Christian advocacy work across communities.
• Talk to your children about what they are being taught in school. Ask them specific questions about current events lessons and social studies content so you can identify bias early.