Billy Graham once wrote in his book, World Aflame: “In Christ the middle wall of partition has been broken down. There is no Jew, no Gentile—no black, white, yellow, or red. We could be one great brotherhood in Jesus Christ. However, until we come to recognize Him as the Prince of Peace and receive His love in our hearts, the racial tensions will increase, racial demands will become more militant, and a great deal of blood will be shed. The race problem could become another flame out of control!”
From The Daily Reformer in Minnesota: If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at Minnesota Reformer Website
Good morning.
Minneapolis endured one of the worst days in its history, as looters tore apart the Target, Cub Foods, Aldi and other stores on East Lake Street, and then continued, according to the Star Tribune this morning, into Uptown and W. Broadway Ave., north Minneapolis’ main commercial drag. Power is currently out in the Longfellow neighborhood of Minneapolis. State Patrol is now in the mix, but not the National Guard yet, despite a report in the Strib to the contrary, according to the office of Gov. Tim Walz.
I’m not totally clear on how much damage we’re talking about over how many square miles, but the burning went on all night.
Reformer reporters Max Nesterak and Ricardo Lopez were in the thick of it last night. Here’s a dispatch that’s mostly their very intense Twitter feeds, including video of looting and protests. Max was hit with a “non-lethal projectile” police were shooting into the crowd. He’ll have a welt, but he’s OK. He then went back out in the middle of the night and captured more footage. A new affordable housing complex went up in flames, according to Libor Jany.
Across the street from the Target that was the first site of looting, Minneapolis Police remained hunkered down at the Third Precinct much of Wednesday evening, their tactical plan and overall strategy a total mystery while a fire broke out at the AutoZone down the street. It’s now a shell, whatever chemicals were inside airborne.
Progressive thinker and Reformer contributor Javier Morillo suggests the police were standing down as a thumb in the eye to Mayor Jacob Frey, who earlier Wednesday called on Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman to arrest the officer who kneeled on George Floyd’s neck. (Max Nesterak reporting.) Here’s Frey:
“I’ve wrestled over the last 36 hours with one fundamental question: Why is the man who killed George Floyd not in jail?” Frey asked during a Wednesday press conference. “If you had done it or I had done it, we’d be behind bars right now. And I cannot come up with a good answer to that question.”
Here’s Javier:
What is happening in Minneapolis right now is a rebellion — of the police against the city they work for. The way they get back at people — esp politicians — who criticize them is to get violent with protestors. They know electeds might be held accountable but they never will be. Here’s the thing — I do not envy leaders in a situation with no good options. But until the MPD is radically reformed, what the mayor gets for stating the truth about murder & today getting positive headlines for calling for prosecution — is a police department he no longer controls.
Plenty of blame to go around, but let me state what should be obvious. Looting: bad. Small businesses, immigrant-owned businesses, already crushed by the pandemic, and now their stores destroyed, their merchandise gone.
Grocery stores and pharmacies that people in South Minneapolis rely on — in various states of destruction. Don’t assume they’ll necessarily come back either. Would you? Not that long ago, a bevy of great American cities went into long and almost permanent decline, coinciding with events like this. Detroit, Baltimore, Newark.
Perhaps worst of all, the looting and violence and fires are also deeply damaging to the cause that can actually create change: The amassing of political power.
Gov. Tim Walz is evaluating next steps, especially if there’s going to be a large demonstration featuring national civil rights figures on Saturday. Looting aside, a huge crowd — during a pandemic — would require a massive logistical effort to maintain safety.
A Walz administration official I talked to was bewildered by MPD’s approach both Tuesday and Wednesday.
Our commentary today is on the need to invest more in public health, writes Rep. Jennifer Schultz, a UMD health economist and regular Reformer contributor. The payoff is huge.
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Correspond: Patrick@minnesotareformer.com
Stay safe. JPC