This past year in Minneapolis has been a tough one with ICE taking away our neighbors, yet we continue to spread love throughout our community. When ICE began to invade Minneapolis and take away fellow Minnesotans, we protested and stood up for our own and other people's rights. We held protests peacefully and went after the people in charge of sending ICE to our state.
Minneapolis as a community was so peaceful that the city of Minneapolis was nominated for the Nobel Peace prize. In the cold of winter, neighbors went out all across Minneapolis to peacefully protest by singing songs that were connected to what was happening at the time. Also, Minneapolis in general has a very supportive community. Every year we have a Pride festival where we come together to celebrate inclusivity.
A few years ago, a big tree got struck by lightning one night near Lake of the Isles, so the owners of the house decided to change the tree into a giant pencil and once a year have a pencil sharpening party. At first, it started out small but now people across the United States come, all because of our amazing community.
Even way back when the United States was just starting, Minnesota was a very accepting place for immigrants new to the United States. If you look on a map, you'll see many cities that are named after places all over the world because of our unique background. If you live here, you know that Minnesota nice is not just a saying, it's the embodiment of our community.
By Flynn Morrow, age 12
