Friends and Relatives,
With the ongoing occupation of ICE in the city, residents in Minneapolis are afraid to leave their homes to go to work. People are driving to work terrified of being detained, or sheltering in place and unsure how they will afford rent this month. Many businesses in the area have either closed or are working on minimal capacity because of safety concerns. While community efforts and fundraising are ongoing, there is a broader need across Minneapolis and Minnesota as ICE expands its operations in the state.
Yesterday, Minneapolis City Council members unanimously passed a resolution calling on Governor Walz to put in place a state-wide eviction moratorium. Thanks to the organizers who flooded the Minneapolis City Council Meeting to advocate powerfully for all vulnerable neighbors, with signs reading: “Evict ICE, not us”. When the most vulnerable are at risk, it affects everyone. At a time when ICE is making daily life impossible, Minneapolis is showing up for their neighbors and putting the needs of people over profit-based systems.
In this moment of crisis our security is in each other. Minneapolis is showing us what it looks like to step in as ordinary people, and be a part of creating hyper-local and interdependent care systems.
If you are in MN please call/email/contact Governor Walz’s office asking him to issue an eviction moratorium for the state.
As we are thankful for the response of community organizers, we have heard that white supremacist agitators are planning to descend on the city tomorrow. We are concerned about potential violence, and ask that you join us in covering Saturday in prayer for the communities of Minneapolis. We are welcoming prayer coverage any time of day, dawn of Jan 17 to dawn of Jan 18. Email doe@dismantlediscovery.org to sign up for a specific time
We also invite you to join our online gathering on Sunday, Jan 18th, at 5:30pm CT. We will pray, sing, and share about what’s happening on the ground, as well as calls to action to support impacted communities and to begin organizing your own hyper-local community networks. Register for the Zoom link
Thanks to your donations we have raised over $1,000 in funds to send to local organizing efforts working with directly-impacted families, including Indigenous communities, for material support, rent support and food delivery.
You can still send support! Donate here: dismantlediscovery.org/donate (mark your donation with “Minneapolis” when you fill out the payment information).
We pray:
Creator God,
Today we lift our voices and join our hearts with our sisters and brothers in Minneapolis. Your most vulnerable are under assault. All who stand up and speak out are under siege. Innocents are killed, beaten, and disappeared, while the powers and principalities prowl neighborhoods terrorizing your children under the guise of “law and order”. Your law is Love. Your Trust is our justice. Call us into the streets with our relatives to bring to life again that old prophecy from the lips of the mother of Jesus. That the mighty may be cast down and the lowly lifted up.
Amen.
