Joining a growing national trend, MAGA critics don their own red hats in Eugene

A head covering that originated in Nazi-occupied Norway in the 1940s has re-emerged as an anti-ICE symbol, including at a protest held Thursday in Eugene.

Roughly two dozen protesters sporting red knit hats gathered outside the federal building. The facility has been the target of routine demonstrations since President Donald Trump began his second term last year.

Deemed “Melt the ICE” hats — many with a peak, ribbed edge and a characteristic tassel — activists began wearing them in Minneapolis this winter during ICE operations. The idea is to invoke the spirit of Norwegians who resisted fascism during a roughly five-year period when Nazi Germany occupied their country.

Mary Sue Backus of Eugene told KLCC that she’s “rage knitted” 10 of the hats over the last two weeks, which can take up to 10 hours apiece to finish. She’s also made smaller ones that can be worn on lapels or coats.

Comparing the era of the Norwegian resistance with today’s political climate, Backus says there are troubling parallels.

“We’re seeing people dragged from their homes without warrants, a lack of habeas corpus,” she said, waving to honking cars. “And so we’re seeing a deterioration of our rights for citizens and non-citizens. And so people need to pay attention and say something, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Just a couple years into the occupation, officials aligned with the Nazis made it a crime to wear, make and distribute the red knit hats.

Hats and politics

Early in his first presidential campaign, Donald Trump introduced a red trucker hat with the slogan, “Make America Great Again,” which has become a top-selling item and symbol for his administration. MAGA hats are a popular accessory at many pro-Trump rallies and events. While other versions have come out in different colors or with new slogans, the original remains a mainstay with the president’s followers.

During his first term, many of Trump’s critics knit pink or purple “Pussy Hats” that were essentially beanies with pointed cat ears on top. They were a reference to a lewd hot mic moment between Trump and Billy Bush in 2005 while preparing to tape an Access Hollywood segment. Released by the Washington Post in 2016 ahead of a presidential debate, Trump would apologize for the remark, while Bush lost his hosting gig with The Today Show.

Earlier this year, Greenlanders and Danes began parodying Trump’s MAGA hats with similar ones that said, “Make America Go Away.” The Trump administration’s pronounced interest in acquiring the north Atlantic nation has been met with curiosity and disdain by many Greenlanders, who also wore red trucker caps with the Danish phrase, “Nu det Nuuk” which roughly translates to “enough is enough.”

Now it’s time for yet another piece of iconic headwear, fueled by resistance against the president’s anti-immigration crackdown. The “Melt the ICE” knit hats have caused a surge in demand for red yarn, locally and nationally. A Twin Cities knit shop, Needle & Skein, has shared its pattern online which at last check was downloaded more than 80,0000 times over the past month.

Trump and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem have defended their anti-immigration crackdown, claiming ICE agents are expelling dangerous criminals. But detainment of naturalized citizens and the shooting deaths of Alex Pretti and Renée Good have caused pushback against the operations.

Brian Bull is a reporter with KLCC. This story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.

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