These are law students, by the way. The future lawyers, prosecutors, judges, and policymakers. When we talk about systemic racism, this is what we mean. It is embedded in the institutions themselves. And it’s hard to believe people who openly think this way will suddenly become fair advocates for Black clients once they enter the legal system.
posted on substack by a person named Teri Leigh
I’m writing this from Minnesota.
These are just a few things that may not be making the national or international news.
a beloved local donut shop Glam Doll Donuts across the street from where Alex Pretti died turned into a warming house and medic center for protestors building and maintaining the memorial site.
a 70yo independent bookstore owner DreamHaven Books down the street expressed his pain on camera, walked through a tear gas cloud, and his website crashed less than 24 hours later from too much business and donations.
the day after tear gas bombs destroyed a N-Mpls neighborhood sending a 6mo old baby to the hospital, at daybreak, a small church community cleaned up the mess of pepper balls, tear gas containers and trash so the neighbors didn’t have to wake up to the memories.
a local independent journalist Mercado Media pounding the streets everyday reporting things from the ground had a testicle removed and showed up two days later to walk with 75,000+ community members to walk the streets in -20 degree weather.
a local sex-positive adult-store The Smitten Kitten has completely transformed into a donation and distribution center.
a local pizza place Wrecktangle Pizza raised over $83K in less than a few days to support families that are sheltering in place.
tow-truck companies are donating their services to clean up the accidents and abandoned vehicles left by ICE and the city is waiving impound fees.
local multi-faith spiritual leaders are spearheading sit-ins at corporate headquarters such as Target and USBank to have deeper conversations with CEOs and boards of directors about community relief.
social workers are taking in children who came home from school with both their parents “disappeared.”
animal shelters and pet-fostering agencies are rescuing pets left alone for days or weeks after their humans were detained.
every restaurant, church, karate dojo, dance studio, school, barber shop, and other small business has created their own underground grassroots supportive network to protect their neighbors, get people to and from work, and raise funds to pay everyday bills.
women who are moms and work full-time jobs are donning reflective vests in shifts to stand watch at bus stops, city parks, and grocery store parking lots ini sub-zero temps to bear witness before going home to tuck their babies in at night.
the MN National Guard offered donuts, coffee, and hot cocoa to peaceful protesters the day after Alex Pretti died, reminding community that we are all in this together and they are here to keep the peace.
These are just a few examples. Stories like this are happening in the hundreds here, every single day!
Community is EVERYTHING!
This Substack community and the MN-Strong resistance has saved my mental health these last weeks.
Thank you for reading.
Thank you for giving a shit.
I love you.
JD, you are the vice president of the United States. A US citizen & mother of three was killed by an ICE official who works within the executive branch--put otherwise, for you. If you were serious about this, you would withhold judgment and call for an independent investigation of the events, not run cover for the agent. That you and other members of the administration decided immediately the victim deserved it and labeled her a "domestic terrorist" conveys to the public that this is purely political.
What the fuck is wrong with you?
You have no idea who this woman was. You have no idea what she believed. You have no idea what an actual investigation might show. A 37-year-old American citizen was killed. Her 6-year-old son has been orphaned. Her family and friends are going through the worst moment of their lives. And all you can do is call her a "deranged leftist"?
Seriously what the fuck is wrong with you?
"Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture repainted, every statue and street and building renamed, every date altered, and that process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right."
Orwell, 1984
I will never understand how he was allowed to run after this. He literally tried to overthrow the election because he couldn’t admit he lost. People were injured and died because of him. In a sane world he would have been sent to prison for the rest of his life over this.
Maduro was a brutal ruler, it’s true. So is Putin—who Trump supports. So was Bolsonaro, who Trump supports. So was the drug-trafficking former head of Honduras, who Trump just pardoned. So is Nayib Bukele in El Salvador. MBS. Bibi.
Stop pretending Trump cares about illegitimacy.
White men are 98% of Presidents, 98% of US senators, 94% of the Supreme Court, 90% of the House of Representatives, 90% of CEO’s while making up only 30% of the population…
YOUR OPPRESSION IS NONEXISTENT.
Two students were killed at Brown on Saturday, and while the Vice President has chosen to highlight Ella Cook for sharing his politics, first year student Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, of Virginia, is no less deserving of our sorrow and remembrance. Both losses are tragic
Sorry to get mad at New Yorker cartoons but I hate this so much. It's incredible to hear a dad who hasn't written an essay since college talk seeing his daughter in love. If you roll your eyes because he's not a "professional speaker" something is wrong with you
Yup. He’s up to 11 pounds. They have to transfer him to another hospital for because the current hospital he’s at cannot meet his complex needs. The family is 100% responsible for the cost even tho the state forced them to keep that poor woman “alive” as a human incubator.
No news outlet is covering this, you know why? Because the fucking experiment on a black woman’s body has FAILED miserably. The only updates are from grandma’s go fund me. They let that woman die for a clump of cells (she was only 9 weeks pregnant at the time) that’s not even doing ok 6 months later. 6 months is a long time to be in nicu!
Adriana Smith is her name. I am so sorry the state did this to you. You were a 30 year old nurse with a kid who was already here who needed you. The state failed you, the very hospital that you worked at who was so supposed to help you failed you…everybody failed you.