Union Nurses in Bangor & Portland Hold Vigil for Alex Pretti

Registered union nurses from Maine Medical Center and Eastern Maine Medical Center held vigils last Friday to honor Alex Pretti, an RN who was slain by Customs and Border Protection officers in Minneapolis, Minn., as well as remember all who have been killed by federal immigration agents, and demand the abolition of ICE. 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025. The two vigils were organized by members of the Maine State Nurses Association.

"We are calling for the abolishment of ICE as nurses. We come to this profession to take care of people. We don’t care where you come from, your immigration status, the color of your skin, we just care about providing you medical care,” Maine Medical Center nurse Taylor Wescott said.

"Nurses stick together and nurses are going to fight for our patients, and so that's what we're out here doing, because when you take on one of us you take on all of us," said nurse and organizer Ashlynn Ward at the vigil in Bangor.

"Any one of us could have been in that situation," said MSNA member Kelli Brennan, a nurse at Maine Medical Center.

Nurses also called on Congress to stop any further funding to the Department of Homeland Security for ICE and reverse $85 billion in current ICE funding.