A Minneapolis Hilton Hotel has denied service to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents in protest of immigration enforcement activity in the city, an online post revealed Monday.
DHS posted an email exchange between agents and the hotel, in which a hotel manager cancelled a DHS reservation after discovering ties between agents and their “immigration work.”
“We have noticed an influx of [government] reservations… and we are not allowing any… immigration agents to stay at our property,” the email read. “If you are with DHS or immigration, let us know as we will have to cancel your reservation.”
DHS claimed the cancellation was part of a “coordinated campaign” orchestrated by Hilton Hotels in Minneapolis to “undermine and impede DHS law enforcement from their mission to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.” On Tuesday, additional online posts confirmed the hotel’s refusal to house immigration agents, leading Hilton Hotels to cut ties with the hotel.
“[W]e are taking immediate action to remove this hotel from our systems,” an X post from Hilton read. “Hilton is—and always has been—a welcoming place for all. We are also engaging with all of our franchisees to reinforce the standards we hold them to across our system to help ensure this does not happen again.”
Private businesses generally have discretion to refuse service to individuals without justification. However, federal law prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion or national origin. States can add to these protections. The Minnesota Human Rights Act additionally prohibits discrimination solely based on “creed… disability… marital status, sexual orientation, sex, or gender identity.” Neither federal nor state law expressly carve out protections based on federal employment status.
Federal immigration enforcement activity has increased in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area following remarks by President Donald Trump targeting Somali-Americans last month. The region is home to approximately 84,000 people of Somali descent, the largest such population in any US metropolitan area. The president referred to members of the group as “garbage,” claimed that “these aren’t people who work,” that they “do nothing but complain,” and told them to “go back to where they came from and fix it.”
Minnesota has fallen under additional federal scrutiny in recent weeks, as the FBI announced a large-scale investigation into a multi-million dollar fraud scheme within the state that allegedly diverted federal money away from child food aid programs during the COVID-19 pandemic.
