Far-left streamer Hasan Piker is facing online backlash after appearing to mock injuries sustained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a campaign event with Rep. Ilhan Omar on Monday night. Piker, speaking at an event in Minneapolis, referenced the agents involved in Operation Metro Surge and made light of their injuries.
"We saw a lot of funny compilations as well, you know. A lot of hip bones were broken. ‘Officer Martinez down,'" Piker said during the event, which was hosted by Democratic socialist and former Minneapolis mayoral candidate Omar Fateh. Piker also suggested that ICE agents working in frigid winter temperatures must be "extra racist."
Piker's comments have drawn criticism from various political figures and organizations. Andrew Kolvet, executive producer for The Charlie Kirk Show, posted on X, "Hasan Piker was asked what stuck with him from Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis: ‘Funny compilations’ of federal agents being injured... He also called the agents ‘extra racist.’ This isn’t comedy. It’s tacit support for the far-left insurrection network against federal law enforcement. Pro-revolution. Pro-anarchy."
Loomer Unleashed also posted on X, stating, "Hasan and his elected Democrats are sick." Other conservative commentators, including Gina Milan and Kevin Smith, host of Loud Majority Live, echoed these sentiments, with Smith calling Piker "America’s biggest cancer."
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a statement to Fox News Digital, asserting that the "vilification" of ICE agents contributes to a significant increase in assaults against them. "They should be thanking our law enforcement for removing these dangerous criminals from Minnesota—NOT vilifying law enforcement," the spokesperson wrote. "While these people smear ICE, law enforcement is arresting criminals and saving countless American lives."
The DHS spokesperson emphasized that ICE agents do not target individuals based on race and follow protocols to determine immigration status before making arrests. The department urged politicians and activists to "turn the temperature down and tone down their rhetoric."
This incident follows a pattern of controversial statements by Piker, who has previously made remarks that have been widely condemned, including a comment about the 9/11 attacks and accusations of antisemitism related to his commentary on Israel and Hamas. Piker has become a polarizing figure, sometimes embraced by prominent Democrats for campaign events and other times rejected.
Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., publicly condemned Piker's remarks, while other Minnesota Democrats called for the event's cancellation. Omar's campaign defended her participation, aiming to mobilize young voters. The congresswoman has also been dealing with her own controversies, including a federal court filing that identified her by an additional name.
Piker also expressed his admiration for the "solidarity" and "mutual aid" observed during protests against the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota, which led to multiple arrests and instances of objects and fireworks being thrown at law enforcement. During these events, two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, died in interactions with federal law enforcement.
Piker, known for his streams on Twitch, referred to Republicans as "terrorists" during the event, and Omar called the party the "pedophile protection party."