In Minnesota, in the face of fear and violence, we see courage and connection.
Where systems and politicians seek to divide, there are networks of support. Where terror attempts to isolate, a powerful multiracial movement of neighbors have responded with linked arms.
And where acts of exclusion try to define who matters, the people of Minneapolis embody the truth that every life is worthy of dignity and protection.
Our work at OBI has continually pointed us toward an unresolved question that the United States has always faced: Who belongs?
That struggle is laid bare in Minnesota where the legacy of violence stretches from the largest mass execution in U.S. history — the hanging of 38 Dakota men in 1862 — to the police murder of George Floyd in 2020, and now to the fatal shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents. These Minnesotans were mothers, fathers, nurses, sons, daughters, caregivers, neighbors.
The killings this month, at the hands of ICE agents sent by the Trump administration, have sparked nonviolent actions, boycotts, vigils, and grassroots organizing in cities across the country that serve as neighborhood protectors demanding accountability, transparency, and fundamental respect for life.
And while this month ICE surges targeted Minnesota, there are already indications in Maine they are changing tactics. How do we move forward toward belonging when the reality is extreme othering and violence?
What we’ve all witnessed in Minnesota is the template. Instead of withdrawal or despair, they show up with collective care, trying to protect those in harm’s way, and ensuring that every person is seen and heard. We saw this in neighbors defending one another, mutual aid networks distributing food and medical care, and movements linking arms across race, class, and background.
May we look at Minnesota as a reflection of where we’ve been and a window into who we can become — a people bound together not by fear, but by a network of care, and shared commitment to life, dignity, and mutual support. We must learn from their courage and the knowledge they continue to share with the people and places that will face these dehumanizing attacks next.
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Disclaimer: The Othering & Belonging Institute is not speaking on behalf of UC Berkeley, or any other campus in the University of California system.
