I read a lot of thoughtfulness in this post which reads close to my own thinking on the topic. I'm a Minneapolis resident, now a baker's dozen years and counting, but among my privileges is living in a quiet part of Ward 13 which is, by any standard definition, essentially suburban.
Still, Minneapolis is my adopted hometown and for several years I lived just off of East Lake Street. For part of that time, I didn't own a car. I rode my bike or rode the bus and walked. Seeing businesses that I patronized looted and burned was absolutely heartbreaking.
My initial reaction was also to shut down comparisons between Wednesday and summer 2020 for the same reasons you articulated. I'm still impatient and defensive with anyone not from Minneapolis offering an unsolicited a take on this summer's events prior to asking what I think. Lots of people that were more directly affected than me; I can't imagine what they're feeling, but I try. And those are the perspectives I want to understand before any else.
One distinction I've been thinking about: the US Capitol belongs to every citizen. I'm inclined to think "both sides" is an unhelpful reaction or framework considering this week's events. What are the two sides if not a violent insurrection fomented by a cult leader and reasonable citizens committed to democracy?
Minneapolis and other cities where unrest and rioting took place this summer don't exist in isolation and shouldn't be exempt from outside criticism or reflection. But if your immediate reaction is to compare these riots or invoke one in discussion of the other, then I'm afraid you may be in the insurrectionists' cult.
I read a lot of thoughtfulness in this post which reads close to my own thinking on the topic. I'm a Minneapolis resident, now a baker's dozen years and counting, but among my privileges is living in a quiet part of Ward 13 which is, by any standard definition, essentially suburban.
Still, Minneapolis is my adopted hometown and for several years I lived just off of East Lake Street. For part of that time, I didn't own a car. I rode my bike or rode the bus and walked. Seeing businesses that I patronized looted and burned was absolutely heartbreaking.
My initial reaction was also to shut down comparisons between Wednesday and summer 2020 for the same reasons you articulated. I'm still impatient and defensive with anyone not from Minneapolis offering an unsolicited a take on this summer's events prior to asking what I think. Lots of people that were more directly affected than me; I can't imagine what they're feeling, but I try. And those are the perspectives I want to understand before any else.
One distinction I've been thinking about: the US Capitol belongs to every citizen. I'm inclined to think "both sides" is an unhelpful reaction or framework considering this week's events. What are the two sides if not a violent insurrection fomented by a cult leader and reasonable citizens committed to democracy?
Minneapolis and other cities where unrest and rioting took place this summer don't exist in isolation and shouldn't be exempt from outside criticism or reflection. But if your immediate reaction is to compare these riots or invoke one in discussion of the other, then I'm afraid you may be in the insurrectionists' cult.