“All we say to America is, ‘Be true to what you said on paper.’” - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Near the end of last summer, on a trip with my daughter to the Twin Cities, we sat down in a diner in the Dinkytown neighborhood for a late breakfast. The family behind us in line had a daughter roughly my little girl’s age, and they became instant best friends - as kids that age do. As I chatted with the parents, we talked about Minneapolis and what it had meant to them. They had relocated for professional reasons, but made it a point to end a long road trip with time back in the city to reconnect with friends and family and to soak in the beauty that is a midwestern summer. As we finished our meal and started to go our separate ways, the father handed me a slip of paper with an address written on it. They were hosting a barbecue with a bunch of old friends in a park near the river, and would love for us to join if we really wanted to experience what Minneapolis was all about.
When we showed up, we were treated like family. Despite being the only people at the party without a decades-long history of friendship, we were welcomed with open arms. This happened time and time again in our time in Minneapolis. Everywhere we went, strangers bent over backwards to make us feel like we belonged. They call it “Minnesota Nice,” and I can tell you that it is 100% real.
I only tell this story because when I see the videos from Minneapolis, of the senseless and brutal murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, of the detention of children and the forced separation of families trying their best to build lives for themselves and their communities – these are the people I think about. This is the community that finds itself under siege by its own government.
In times like this, I always struggle with what to say. I am not a person whose opinion moves the needle, and at this point in my life I find myself largely cocooned in my own echo chamber. For the most part, the people in my life are of the same opinion about what’s happening in this country. No one needs me to tell them that the actions of the current administration in Minneapolis are abhorrent, and that the blatant disregard for human life in the pursuit of toxic politics is in direct contrast to the idea of America we were sold as children.
I spent last year on and off making a record for the first time in a long time. At some point in the process TJ and I decided to record a version of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” that I have been playing live for years to include with the new material. It fits the vibe of the record and unfortunately feels as relevant today as it did when it was written nearly 40 years ago. Today, I’m releasing that song on Bandcamp, and whatever money comes to me from it will go directly to rent relief for South Minneapolis families affected by federal immigration operations. I don’t expect it to be much, but at least it won’t be nothing.
I imagine the helpless feeling I get when I think of the scale of what’s happening in this country is part of the point. But when I think about the important moments in history, I think about the ones that did what they could. Today I’m thinking about the thousands of people in Minnesota who have put their bodies between the innocent and those who wish them harm. I’m thinking about the families who risked everything to come to this country, only to be told they aren’t welcome anymore. And I’m thinking about the families who have an empty setting at the table because their loved one was killed by their own government for standing up for what was right. When my kids ask me about this, I want to be able to say I was on their side.
The kindness of strangers and loving your neighbors. That’s America to me.