I’ve never seen so many homegrown protest signs as I have this past year. I spotted this one on the way to Seward Co-op to pick up veggies for dinner. Displays like this really help keep hope alive. Some historians tie the Humpty Dumpty rhyme to the fall of King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. We eagerly anticipate a great fall for our own wannabe king.
Category: Resist
Seeing with clear eyes
After a routine eye checkup, I walked over to the memorial at the site where a federal agent murdered Alex Pretti, a VA ICU nurse, six months ago. There were so many flowers and sad and defiant messages. The words of Anne Frank described Operation Metro Surge as if she had been in Minneapolis in January.
The joy of voting
Dropped our primary ballots off at the Minneapolis early voting office. The election judges were in a great mood, and one insisted on taking my photo. I thanked them for running a system we can all trust.
Independence Day 2026
Filled out primary ballots for U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Governor, and all the way down to school board members. In doing so, we asserted our right to choose a government that “shall seem most likely to effect [our] Safety and Happiness,” as declared in the Declaration of Independence. I’ll hand-carry these ballots to a drop-off point, especially since the Federal Government is threatening to block mail-in ballot delivery in states that don’t accede to their demands.
Joy is resistance
Trapped at a red traffic light on our bicycles, a sign warned us that God hates people like Dwight and me. White “christian” nationalists shouted at us through a bullhorn, promising that Tr*mp would punish us. Arriving at the Pride Festival, we joined a crowd of many thousands, got to see the world’s biggest rubber duck, and sipped a Deschutes Fresh Squeezed in a beer garden on a gloriously sunny day.
Speaking truth to power
Took the light rail to Fort Snelling Station to meet a friend for a bike ride along the Minnesota River. While waiting, I waved to these good people who had been risking arrest monitoring ICE activity at the Whipple Federal Building (seen on the left). Activity here is way down from last winter, when brown people, including U.S. citizens, were swept off the streets and detained under cruel conditions.
Past is present
My cycle route included Fort Snelling. In the 1830s, Dred Scott (yes, that Dred Scott) lived here, enslaved by an army surgeon. The infamous 1857 Supreme Court ruling declared that Black people, whether free or enslaved, were not United States citizens, and that the federal government lacked the authority to restrict or abolish slavery. In 2026, we continue to resist the undermining of human rights by today’s Supreme Court, which is once again dividing our nation.
What we learned in the last year
It was a cycle ride in honor of our umpteenth anniversary with a stop for a late lunch at Longfellow’s washed down with beer. Next door at Loons Cafe, we picked up some recently roasted beans and reviewed what people learned in the last (presumably school) year. A lot of us learned to resist the federal government, a force that attacked our values and caused serious damage to our local economy.
Memorial Day 2026
As we honor those who died defending freedom, I am reminded of when a federal force of 3,000 descended on our city, threatening our liberty and endangering American lives.
Protests work in Minneapolis
Pleased to learn this morning that the Minneapolis School Board had reversed its decision to lay off 50% of adult education ELL teachers. I’ve protested outside a board meeting and written to every member; hundreds of others did the same and more. Now I can continue assisting in the classroom, including a new course today, Introduction to Interpreting.