Colbert Tees Up Guest To Promote General Strike To Oppose ICE

CBS’s Stephen Colbert welcomed “non-violence scholar” Maria Stephan to Thursday’s taping of The Late Show to continue his crusade against ICE. During the two-segment interview, Colbert and Stephan promoted the idea of a general strike, suggested that describing Renee Good as violent is a hallmark of authoritarianism, claimed that Christian ICE agents should resign, and praised people who wear frog costumes.

Colbert put the ball on the tee for Stephan when he wondered, “Let's talk about things like a general strike. Has America—it's a very European thing to have a general strike. Has America ever engaged in a general strike, like, “That’s enough, we’re not showing up for work tomorrow”?

 

 

Stephan answered that we have not, but, “I can say what's happening this Friday on January 23rd, there is an ICE Out of Minnesota day of action, it’s a shutdown day where people will be staying home from work. They won't be going to school. They’ll be refusing to participate in economic activity. So, a power—and they are calling on Americans across the country to show solidarity.”

Fact-check: Schools in Minnesota were closed on Friday due to weather, and Minneapolis had a pre-planned teacher work day.

That aside, Colbert continued, “One of the problems with Minnesota right now is to have people like Kristi Noem or the people who are heading up ICE, saying that it's not nonviolent resistance. They are saying someone like Renee Good was actually a threat to those people or that filming an ICE agent, or they are saying filming an ICE agent, documenting, which is perfectly legal, is a form of threat and therefore it justifies use what they say is violence in return to the threat of violence from these people. What do you do when your nonviolent action is perceived of or called violent by the people who can use violence against you?”

Driving your car at someone is a “threat of violence,” but, naturally, Stephan didn’t care about that any more than Colbert did, “Yeah, declaring peaceful protesters violent or domestic terrorists or outside agitators is what autocrats all around the world do. That is their playbook. Is to make people fearful and to try to undermine the legitimacy of protesters. That's their game.”

She then went on to compare the current situation in Minnesota to the Civil Rights Movement of the 60s, “Think about the Civil Rights Movement. Profound state violence used against protesters. They prepared, they trained, they role-played, they organized, all to make that political violence backfire. Think of Selma. The peaceful march. So, when Peaceful discipline protesters confronted the, you know, dogs, the hoses, the response, it revealed the cruelty. When the discipline protesters were faced with this form of violence. And so that's how disciplined nonviolent resistance can make state violence, repression backfire.”

Later, Colbert lamented and asked, “You know, many of the people who are in support of this sort of thing, even some of the people who are in ICE, actually cite their Christian faith as a justification for this. What would you say to those people? Is there anything from your experience of faith that you would say to them?”

Stephan urged them to quit, “I mean, I think I would remind them of our shared humanity in this moment. I would remind them of the greatest commandment: to love thy neighbor. I would remind them of Matthew 25. What you do unto the least of thee, you do unto me. And I would remind them that they have agency in this moment and they can walk away.”

 

 

Of course, ICE agents believe they are simply protecting their community, and they are encountering violence more routinely than Colbert and Stephan want to admit.

Nevertheless, Colbert agreed before moving on to frog costumes, “Yes, they’re not in the army. They’re allowed to quit. I love some of the things I've seen this past year, like all the frog costumes in Portland. The dinosaur costumes. Happened in Chicago too. You know, when the going gets tough, should the tough get silly?”

Stephan affirmed the idea, “They absolutely should. Joy is resistance, Stephen, and there is such a powerful role for humor in this moment. Humor breaks through the fear. It inspires courage... So, the frog costumes, like, it has lit people on fire. Young people are inspired. It's a way for people to show up, to get involved.”

The frog costumes also allow Colbert and Stephan to omit all the non-joyful aspects of the protestors. From violence to church stormings, if Colbert pretends like they don’t exist, it is easier for him and his guests to spin a tale of ICE being like the bad guys in Selma.

Here is a transcript for the January 22-taped show:

CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

1/23/2026

12:18 AM ET

STEPHEN COLBERT: Let's talk about things like a general strike. Has America — it's a very European thing to have a general strike. Has America ever engaged in a general strike, like, “That’s enough, we’re not showing up for work tomorrow”?

MARIA STEPHAN: So, we've never had a general strike, but I can say what's happening this Friday on January 23rd, there is an ICE Out of Minnesota day of action, it’s a shutdown day where people will be staying home from work. They won't be going to school. They’ll be refusing to participate in economic activity. So, a power—and they are calling on Americans across the country to show solidarity.

COLBERT: One of the problems with Minnesota right now is to have people like Kristi Noem or the people who are heading up ICE, saying that it's not nonviolent resistance. They are saying someone like Renee Good was actually a threat to those people or that filming an ICE agent, or they are saying filming an ICE agent, documenting, which is perfectly legal, is a form of threat and therefore it justifies use what they say is violence in return to the threat of violence from these people. What do you do when your nonviolent action is perceived of or called violent by the people who can use violence against you?

STEPHAN: Yeah, declaring peaceful protesters violent or domestic terrorists or outside agitators is what autocrats all around the world do. That is their playbook. Is to make people fearful and to try to undermine the legitimacy of protesters. That's their game. And so what are we seeing in Minneapolis right now? What have we seen in our history in this country? Think about the Civil Rights Movement. Profound state violence used against protesters. They prepared, they trained, they role-played, they organized, all to make that political violence backfire. Think of Selma. The peaceful march. So, when Peaceful discipline protesters confronted the, you know, dogs, the hoses, the response, it revealed the cruelty. When the discipline protesters were faced with this form of violence. And so that's how disciplined nonviolent resistance can make state violence, repression backfire.

…

COLBERT: You know, many of the people who are in support of this sort of thing, even some of the people who are in ICE, actually cite their Christian faith as a justification for this. What would you say to those people? Is there anything from your experience of faith that you would say to them?

STEPHAN: I mean, I think I would remind them of our shared humanity in this moment. I would remind them of the greatest commandment: to love thy neighbor. I would remind them of Matthew 25. What you do unto the least of thee, you do unto me. And I would remind them that they have agency in this moment and they can walk away.

COLBERT: Yes, they’re not in the army. They’re allowed to quit. I love some of the things I've seen this past year, like all the frog costumes in Portland. The dinosaur costumes. Happened in Chicago too.

STEPHAN: Yes.

COLBERT: You know, when the going gets tough, should the tough get silly?

STEPHAN: They absolutely should. Joy is resistance, Stephen, and there is such a powerful role for humor in this moment. Humor breaks through the fear. It inspires courage.

COLBERT: Should you really make jokes about the news, though? Not everything is a joke, Maria.

STEPHAN: So, the frog costumes, like, it has lit people on fire. Young people are inspired. It's a way for people to show up, to get involved.

COLBERT: Also, people don’t look like a threat when they’re in an inflatable frog costume. It really drives home the whole thing, like, “they’ve got guns, I’ve got a little fan on my butt.”