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https://freedium-mirror.cfd/https://medium.com/@thadrasheridan/its-not-a-resistance-it-s-a-paradigm-shift-minnesota-s-fight-for-it-s-soul-90ee26fcc13a>
“Regina is punk rock to the core. We used to work together at a restaurant in
South Minneapolis. She was a prep cook, I was a waitress. She'd often join me
when I'd step out for a break, and I'd listen to her social commentary
saturated with wit and a deliciously jet black sense of humor. That woman has a
gleaming silver tongue. She describes herself on social media as "Cyborg.
Weirdo. Meat-Wizard." I think that's accurate. On the day they killed Alex
Pretti, Regina was just a few blocks away in her apartment. She's a wheelchair
user now and could only watch out her window as people passed below on their
way to stand up for the dead. It was too cold for her chair battery to last
even a block. Her compromised lungs could not handle the inevitable teargas
that is deployed with such abandon that aerial photos of neighborhoods look
like massive structure fires rage below. She felt furious, frustrated,
helpless. Through her closed window, she heard the citizens of Minneapolis
converging blocks away at the site of atrocity. It sounded like a stadium show.
Bao is an essential part of the ecosystem that is Minneapolis and a titan in
the literary community. He worked at the Loft Literary center for 23 years,
rising through the ranks to serve as Director of Events and Programs for a
decade. He provided space and opportunity for all artists to thrive with a
particular focus on those of color. He is an award winning poet, children's
book author and donut junkie with a bottomless love of fried chicken. We both
came up through the Slam Poetry scene, and I feel an affinity towards him in
how we each, as young poets championed our identities with anger and humor and
have mellowed in our approach with time. Maybe that's an inevitable symptom of
aging, but I feel a connection. It could also be the donuts. Bao is an
immigrant whose family fled Vietnam when he was less than 1 year old. He has
been a US citizen since grade school, but now has to carry 3 forms of ID when
he leaves the house in case he is targeted by those that many call the Gestapo,
though some say slave catchers is more accurate. He worries about his elderly
parents who have broken no laws and been legal residents for 50 years, but that
doesn't seem to be dealbreaker for men who drag pregnant women through the snow
and shoot people in the street. Meanwhile Bao's father calls to beg
him not
to leave his house for the same reason.
I call a friend to make plans to see a show next week in Powderhorn, the
neighborhood where Renee Good was murdered. Although we both want to go, we
keep it tentative in case of Marshall Law or civil war. I text another friend
to confirm upcoming plans for dinner. "Are we still on to be potentially
murdered on Tuesday?" It's glib, I know, but also entirely possible. I read the
newspaper and see people winning Grammys and planning the Super Bowl, and I
wonder how anyone can continue life as usual in this country while an entire
state is occupied by its own federal government. I tell my mother not to answer
the door without looking out the window to make sure it's not ICE. They have
been going door to door asking people to point out immigrant neighbors. This
all sounds very heinous and dystopian, but here we are. This is the reality.
This is Minnesota.”
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
