If the marching resistance to U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term had a colour, it was probably pussy-hat pink.
But knitted protest headwear has a new look in 2026, thanks to the popularity of a red “melt the ICE” hat pattern shared online by a yarn shop in the suburbs of Minneapolis.
What started as a local act of “craftivism” has now spread across the U.S. and the world. But crafters say their commitment to the cause of protecting neighbours from immigration raids goes well beyond wearing a hat.
Minneapolis has been the target of escalating immigration raids since Trump deployed 2,000 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers to the city on Jan. 6. The raids have been met with intense local resistance, with protesters following unmarked ICE vehicles and warning neighbours of their presence with whistles.
Amid these tensions, federal agents shot and killed two demonstrators, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, causing international outcry.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz spoke to reporters after a woman was shot and killed by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis, saying he’s been warning about the consequences of the Trump administration’s ‘recklessness’ for weeks.
Public figures from Joni Mitchell to Bad Bunny have spoken out against the crackdowns, with pins bearing slogans like “Be Good” and “ICE Out” making appearances on the red carpet at Sunday’s Grammy Awards.
Nordic inspiration
The “melt the ICE” hat takes inspiration from Norway, according to staff of Needle & Skein yarn shop in St. Louis Park, Minn., who shared the pattern on the popular crafting site Ravelry last month. Minnesota has one of the highest concentrations of residents who claim Norwegian ancestry, according to state demographers.
The red tasselled hat, called a nisselue in Norwegian, was a symbol of patriotism and protest against Nazi occupation during the Second World War.
“The hats were outlawed because of what they symbolized,” said Maggie Bonetti, a Chicago mom and knitting instructor who noticed the pattern making waves about three weeks ago.
Bonetti made an Instagram reel explaining the hat’s history, which she shared with her 900 followers. The post hit a nerve, and was seen by hundreds of thousands of Instagram users.
Knitters from around the globe have since added their own spin to the social media trend, stitching middle fingers and mini purse charms in the shape of the hats. Ravelry users have even recreated the blue bunny-eared hat worn by Liam Conejo Ramos, the five-year-old boy who was detained by immigration officers in Minneapolis last month. (Ramos and his father were released from a Texas detention facility on Saturday.)
The yarn shop is charging five dollars for the “melt the ICE” pattern, and said it’s raised more than $250,000 US for immigrant mutual aid groups in Minnesota. In a fundraising update posted on social media last week, the shop said funds would go to STEP St. Louis Park and the Immigrant Rapid Response Fund, which help people affected by ICE raids pay their rent and bills.
Symbols and action
Ann Shoemake first learned to knit during the women’s marches of Trump’s first term, when pink pussy hats filled the streets of major American cities in response to Trump comments about grabbing women that surfaced during his 2016 presidential campaign. Living in Tacoma, Wash., with her husband and son, Shoemake says knitting became an outlet and a way to connect with a wider community.
With ICE now descending on Minnesota streets, she’s picked up “rage knitting” once more, making red “melt the ICE” hats for her family and friends.
“I’m very upset about what’s going on in this country,” she said. “I’m very worried. I have a husband and a son who are not white, so I’m worried about them.”
People across Minnesota took part in an ‘economic blackout’ action on Friday to protest a federal immigration crackdown in parts of the state. Hundreds of businesses closed for the day and organizers urged people not to work or go to school.
Though it isn’t the first time crafters are embracing a political movement, some “melt the ICE” hat makers want to avoid the pitfalls of the pussy hat movement. Looking back at the pink hat trend some later criticized as out of touch, Bonetti says she’s been careful to not let a symbol get in the way of action.
“The pink pussy hats, they were just kind of this virtue signal, they didn’t really do anything with the movement,” Bonetti said. This time around, she sees a stronger focus on community work and mutual aid.
“What has really been encouraging is to see people not just knit the hat,” she said. “What matters is you’re doing the work within your community to embody what this hat represents.”
Democratic-run cities targeted
Shoemake and her husband, Syed Jamal, say they’ve been attending No Kings marches in Tacoma, and are looking forward to another countrywide demonstration in March.
Bonetti helped organize an anti-ICE fundraiser at a local cafe on Saturday, and she’s planning a follow-up event on Feb. 15. She has called on the wider knitting community to donate to mutual aid funds, and to make a plan for when ICE comes to their city.
Democratic-run cities like Chicago, Portland and Washington, D.C., have already seen federal crackdowns. Shoemake’s family worries Washington state could be next.
During crackdowns in Chicago last year, Bonetti said she heard the near-constant whir of helicopters overhead and more frequent sirens.
“ICE came here in September and it was really scary,” she said. “I had to explain to my children, in an age-appropriate way, why Mama is now wearing a whistle every day to school pickup.”
Small actions, like wearing whistles to school, helped bring neighbours together, she said.
“There was definitely a lot of community working together in Chicago to help resist and fight back as best as we could.”
Could red hats have the same impact?
“Whatever you do, it’s going to feel small,” said Bonetti. “But if the choice is something small or nothing at all, you just need to do the small thing and get over it.”
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