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Do you remember Dr. Fauci? The doctor who helped us get through COVID-19 with calm, steady guidance?

I have no idea how the man was able to make it through some of those press conferences with a straight face and without losing his mind. I still remember when Trump suggested that disinfectant might somehow be injected into the body and repeatedly promoted hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment, despite the lack of reliable evidence that it worked against COVID-19.

Dr. Fauci has spent his life working in public health. Once Trump and his allies began publicly attacking and questioning him, his life changed forever. He required federal protection and received repeated death threats. Senator Rand Paul, an ophthalmologist, repeatedly questioned Fauci’s testimony, judgment and medical expertise during contentious congressional hearings.

President Biden issued Fauci a preemptive pardon in January 2025, explaining that public servants were being threatened with politically motivated investigations and prosecutions.

Then, on Wednesday, July 29, Fauci was compelled by subpoena to appear before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. He invoked the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times, saying the hearing was a political trap that could expose him to prosecution despite Biden’s pardon. Rand Paul attacked him throughout the hearing and had one of Fauci’s lawyers removed from the room after refusing to recognize the attorney’s attempts to speak.

The damage these science deniers have done to the medical profession is something I see on a weekly basis. Medical misinformation and the politicization of public health have contributed to distrust of doctors, vaccines and proven treatments. It cost lives then, and it costs lives now.

Can you imagine trying to save lives while the people in power actively work against you and then try to send you to jail for it?

This administration is exhausting.

This week, it was also publicly confirmed that the administration has been using federal funding decisions to punish states that did not support Trump. In court filings, the administration acknowledged canceling $7.6 billion in clean-energy grants based on the political affiliation of the states receiving them. The affected projects were located in 16 states that voted for Kamala Harris in 2024.

ICE has also been ramping up its kidnappings. Immigration arrests reached approximately 1,600 per day in early July, the highest sustained pace in the agency’s history. ICE deported approximately 443,000 people during fiscal year 2025 alone, meaning the total since Trump returned to office has now surpassed half a million.

And yes, immigration enforcement activity continues to affect Carver County. ICE activity did not simply disappear when it stopped receiving as much attention.

But I see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Voting for Minnesota’s August 11 primary is already underway. Absentee voting began June 26, and Minnesota’s new in-person early-voting period began July 24. The Minnesota Secretary of State provides information about where and how to vote early.

More and more people appear to be done supporting Trump and his ilk. Many are doing it quietly, but it is happening.

Get your lawn signs. Keep fighting and standing up.

Your actions are changing minds, helping people learn the names of our candidates and encouraging so many others to vote.

I was in Florida a few weeks ago, and I did not see a single Trump sign or flag. When I travel through greater Minnesota, in places where I used to see pro-Trump signs, there are now none.

That is only my own observation, but it gives me hope.

Keep going.

I know that when I see you every week, it restores my faith in humanity.

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at Kerber & West 78th. [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall. Sign library is available.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Vance Boelter turned 59 on Thursday. He spent his birthday hearing a federal judge sentence him to two consecutive life terms, plus 40 years, for murdering Melissa and Mark Hortman and shooting John and Yvette Hoffman in their own homes.

The judge called it, in the Minnesota Star Tribune’s account, “an attack on democracy itself.” No parole. No possibility of release, ever, under the federal sentence.

That’s accountability. It’s also not the whole story.

What Boelter did, in his own words to his family

Boelter didn’t leave behind some sprawling political manifesto. What investigators found was closer to a hit list: roughly 70 names, mostly Democratic officials and abortion providers, built from searches and surveillance. Hours after the killings, he texted his own family group chat three words: “Dad went to war.”

From the Star Tribune’s account:

The shootings were the implementation of Boelter’s plan to rattle the political foundation of the state. He had plotted it for some time. Court filings say he frequently sent text messages to friends and family about the balance of power between the political parties in Minnesota, about the Republican U.S. House majority being “in danger” and that “Democrats steal enough elections to tip the balance of power.”

That’s the plainest evidence we have of what was in his head: A culmination of dangerous right-wing political rhetoric that motivated an attack on the Capitol in Washington and an attack on our political leaders here in Minnesota.

He had a target list, and a declaration of war against the people on it.

Federal prosecutors weren’t shy about naming what this was. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Forbes told the court, according to MPR News, that Boelter was “consumed with those he disagreed with.”

The Hortmans’ children told the court what his rampage cost them. Sophie Hortman described, in the same MPR account, having her entire life shattered in thirty seconds, then having to help decide whether to put the family dog down after Boelter shot him too. Colin Hortman spoke of panic attacks and of seeing his parents’ blood before he falls asleep each night, a detail reported by CBS Minnesota.

Why this isn’t over

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty isn’t dropping her case just because the federal one is done. Boelter still faces two counts of first-degree premeditated murder, four counts of attempted first-degree murder, felony cruelty to an animal, and impersonating a police officer, all in state court, according to CBS Minnesota’s coverage of the state case.

Moriarty’s reasoning matters. She said Boelter “will sit in a Hennepin County courtroom and be held accountable,” and her office has been explicit on one point in particular: State sentences aren’t touched by a presidential pardon. Federal ones are.

We don’t know what Donald Trump will do in four years, or in two, or next month. We do know he’s already pardoned thousands of January Sixers convicted of political violence. A Minnesota conviction on first-degree murder, carrying its own mandatory life sentence, is insurance against a future none of us can predict. That’s not paranoia. That’s just paying attention to precedent.

Moriarty is doing her job.

A different Chaska resident, a different outcome

Now hold that story next to another one, from a lot closer to home.

On January 7, ICE officer Jonathan Ross, who lived in Chaska, shot and killed Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, through the windshield of her SUV on a Minneapolis street. She’d turned her wheel to drive away from the agents surrounding her car. His own cellphone audio caught what he said in the seconds after: “fucking bitch.”

Good was a mother of three. She has not received the accountability the Hortman and Hoffman families are receiving this week. Ross has not been charged with anything.

Minnesota and Hennepin County officials have said the federal government spent more than six months stonewalling their attempt to investigate: body camera footage, agent statements, even Good’s own SUV, all held out of state hands until officials sued to get them.

Seventeen days after Good was killed, Border Patrol agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, on a different Minneapolis street. Minnesota has sued the federal government over that investigation too.

The silence that isn’t quite silence

Here’s what your Southwest Metro representatives in Washington and St. Paul did with all of that.

Congressman Tom (Go Get ‘Em ICE) Emmer, whose district includes Chaska, didn’t stay quiet. He posted on Facebook that he was grateful no Border Patrol agents were harmed, referring to the agents who killed Pretti, and accused his Democratic colleagues of jumping to conclusions.

State Senator Julia Coleman posted her own statement more than two weeks after Good’s death, a capitulation clothed in the language of compromise.

Neither one has publicly called for an investigation into Jonathan Ross’ role into the murder of Renée Good. Neither one has asked why the federal government spent half a year blocking state investigators from doing their jobs. Neither has said Ross’s own recorded words, aimed at a dying woman, deserve scrutiny.

That’s not silence. It’s the party line.

What you can do with this

Boelter will spend the rest of his life in prison, federally, and Minnesota is right to finish its own case so that outcome doesn’t depend on the mercy of whoever occupies the White House.

Renée Good’s case hasn’t gotten that far. Call Congressman Emmer’s office. Call Senator Coleman’s office. Ask them directly whether they support a full state and federal investigation into Jonathan Ross. Ask them why they haven’t already.

Keep asking. That’s how the six-month stonewall became a lawsuit. It’s how a lawsuit becomes evidence. It’s how evidence, eventually, becomes accountability.

And keep showing up on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (see below for details).

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at Kerber & West 78th. [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall. Sign library is available.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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I absolutely love farmers markets. I love buying directly from the producer and the fact that my money goes directly to them and stays in our local economy.

I used to work in downtown Minneapolis. Among the many pre-COVID delights of working downtown was the lunchtime strolls down Nicollet Mall through the countless stands selling produce and goods.

The fresh produce. The artisinal products from local vendors. The variety. The atmosphere.

But we don’t have to travel to Minneapolis to enjoy the delights of farmers makets. We have plenty of them here in the southwest metro. I’ve compiled the details of as many of the southwest metro farmers markets as I could find below.

Carver Community Market/Farmers Market

The Carver Community Market is a small, community-oriented market featuring fresh produce, meats, eggs, cheeses, baked goods, honey, maple syrup, plants, flowers, crafts, food trucks, and local businesses.

Tuesdays, 3-6 pm (June 2- September 29) | Carver Station, 1607 Hartwell Drive, Carver, MN 55315 | City of Carver calendar

Chanhassen Farmers Market

The Chanhassen Farmers Market is a weekly outdoor market hosted by the city and volunteer organizers. The market features locally grown fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats, cheeses, baked goods, sweet treats, bread, local art, and flowers. NOTE: Its location this year has shifted to the north side of the Chanhassen Library on Kerber Boulevard close to the tennis courts behind Chanhassen Elementary School due to construction.

Saturdays from June 6 through September 26, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. | City Center Park, 7700 Market Boulevard, Chanhassen, MN 55317 | Official Website

Chaska Farmers Market

The Chaska Community Market (also known as the Downtown Chaska Farmers’ Market) is a community market in central Chaska that features local produce, baked goods, crafts, and food vendors. NOTE: The Chaska Famers Market has relocated away from Firemen’s Park to a downtown parking lot situated between Meadow Springs Church and Red Bench Bakery

Thursdays, 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. (June 11 - September 17, 2026, excluding July 2) | 511 Walnut Street, Chaska, MN 55318 | City of Chaska listing

Eden Prairie Markets and Stands

Eden Prairie residents are served by Marshall’s Farm Market, a seasonal roadside farm market offering fruits, vegetables, meats, eggs, hand-cut flowers, and farm goods on a daily basis during the growing season. Marshall’s operates as a multi-generational family business dating back to its founding on the bluffs of the Minnesota River Valley in 1953.

Daily, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (During the growing season) | 9100 Eden Prairie Road, Eden Prairie, MN 55347 | Official Website

Edina Centennial Lakes Farmers Market

The Centennial Lakes Farmers Market (also known as the Edina Farmers Market) is a weekly summer market featuring live music, an Edina Liquor wine and beer garden at Hughes Pavilion, and partnerships with VEAP to distribute fresh produce.

Thursdays (June 4 - October 1, 2026) | Centennial Lakes Park, 7499 France Avenue South, Edina, MN | City of Edina listing

Hopkins Farmers Market

The Hopkins Farmers Market is a downtown market offering fresh, locally grown produce, farmstead products, baked goods, meats, cheeses, and handmade items. Located in the parking lot on 9th Avenue, which is half a block south of the Mainstreet clock tower.

Saturdays, 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Mid-June through October) | 16 9th Avenue South, Hopkins, MN 55343 | City of Hopkins official listing

Minnetonka Farmers Market

The Minnetonka Farmers Market is a city-run market featuring over 30 rotating local vendors offering fresh produce, eggs, meats, cheeses, baked goods, canned goods, maple syrup, honey, fresh-cut flowers, bread, and handcrafted items. It features live music, community booths, free kids' activities, and the Power of Produce (POP) club for youth.

Tuesdays, 2:00 - 6:00 p.m. (June 2 - September 29, 2026) | 15000 Minnetonka Boulevard, Minnetonka, MN 55345 | City of Minnetonka official listing

Prior Lake Farmers Market

The Prior Lake Farmers Market is a downtown market showcasing organic produce, sourdough, flowers, bison meat, candy, dog treats, food trucks, and maple syrup.

Saturdays, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Early May through early October) | Main Avenue SE, Prior Lake, MN 55372 | Prior Lake Events

Savage Farmers’ Market

The Savage Farmers’ Market is sponsored by the St. Paul Growers’ Association and offers locally grown vegetables, fruits, cut flowers, plants, and artisan goods.

Sundays, 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (June 7 – October 25) | 4800 W 123rd Street, Savage, MN 55378 | Minnesota Grown listing

Shakopee Farmers Market Status

The actual Shakopee Farmers’ Market is an active seasonal event offering fresh produce and artisan goods in the southwest parking lot of St. Francis Regional Medical Center.

Tuesdays, 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (Seasonal) | 1455 St. Francis Avenue, Shakopee, MN 55379 | Scott County Official listing

Victoria Farmers Market

The Victoria Farmers & Makers Market (also known as the Victoria Farmers Market) is a weekly summer market featuring produce, prepared foods, and handmade goods from local makers. Held in the lower parking lot of OMNI Brewing (formerly ENKI Brewing).

Thursdays, 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. (June 25 - September 3, 2026) | 1495 Stieger Lake Lane, Victoria, MN 55386 | City of Victoria Official listing

Waconia Farmers Market

The Waconia Farmers Market & Flea Market is a combined market open weekly in the summer, offering local produce, plants, crafts, antiques, and resale items. Located in the downtown parking lot on Main Street across from Freshwater Church/Home Again Furnishings.

Thursdays, 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. (June 4 - October 15, 2026) | 224 W 1st Street, Waconia, MN 55387 | Carver County Official listing

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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This Friday, while most of us were still deciding whether the tomatoes in the backyard could wait one more day before staking, the Justice Department quietly handed Hennepin County something it had spent half a year refusing to give up: The evidence in the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

Body camera footage. Agent statements. Renee Good’s SUV, the one she was driving on Portland Avenue on January 7th when ICE agent and Chaska citizen Jonathan Ross shot and killed her.

All of it sat in federal hands for more than six months while Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Attorney General Keith Ellison sent request after request, then finally sued to get it. Ellison said this week he remains “deeply troubled that the federal government spent more than half a year attempting to conceal this evidence from state investigators.”

He’s right to be troubled. So are we.

Here’s the part your Southwest Metro Republicans hope you missed: Not one of them ever publicly demanded that evidence.

Not Tom Emmer, who holds the second-highest job in the U.S. House. Not Julia Coleman, your state senator in District 48. Not Jim Nash, your state representative in 48A. Six months. Two dead Minnesotans, both U.S. citizens, both killed by federal agents during Operation Metro Surge. And silence from the people whose job is to represent you in Washington and St. Paul.

Coleman did speak up once, back in January, days after Pretti was killed. She proposed a “deal”: a 30 to 60 day pause on ICE’s “ground game” in exchange for the state agreeing to honor ICE detainers.

Not a demand for the evidence. Not a demand for accountability. A capitulation cloathed in compromise, offered to the same federal government that was, at that very moment, refusing to hand over body camera footage of a Minneapolis mother of three getting shot in her own car.

That’s not leadership. That’s triage for a party that knows exactly how bad this looks.

And it looks worse every week. On Wednesday, Donald Trump gave his “complete and total endorsement” to Mike Lindell, Chaska’s own least-favorite-son, the MyPillow salesman, for governor of Minnesota. Trump called Lindell one of “America’s greatest and most hard working Patriots” and said he’d bring the state back “from oblivion and embarrassment.” Even the chair of the Minnesota Republican Party couldn’t stomach it, noting Lindell left the state for Texas when things got hard here and still owes tens of thousands of dollars in delinquent property taxes.

The one complaint the GOP chair didn’t raise was Lindell’s wild-eyed conspiracy theories about Donald Trump’s loss to Joe Biden. A glaring omission.

This is who Trump wants running Minnesota: A man who wants to melt down our voting machines and turn them into prison bars, endorsed by a president whose own DOJ spent six months hiding evidence in the killing of two of our neighbors.

Sit with that for a second.

Then look at what else is happening while Minnesotans pay more at the pump and stretch grocery budgets that don’t stretch anymore. Trump’s White House ballroom, once pitched as a $200 million private-donor project with “zero taxpayer dollars,” is now projected to cost $600 million. Internal contractor estimates show taxpayers are on the hook for roughly half of that: $155 million from the Secret Service, $149 million from the White House Military Office, more from the Executive Residence. So much for the donation.

Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance’s security detail has reportedly grown “fed up” with last-minute requests to fly his young son around the D.C. area, including a planned trip on Marine Two, the vice president’s military helicopter, to get him to a golf lesson. Operating that helicopter runs taxpayers somewhere between $16,000 and $24,600 an hour. Sources close to the detail say neither Mike Pence nor Kamala Harris ever asked for anything like it.

Vance himself put it plainer than any critic could. Asked recently about how life has changed since he became vice president, he said: “People go to the grocery store for me.” Say that sentence out loud while you contemplate what you paid for eggs and gas this week.

A ballroom nobody asked for. A helicopter for a golf lesson. A murder investigation stonewalled for six months. And a slate of Minnesota Republicans who found time to talk about voting machines but never found time to demand the evidence in Renee Good’s death.

Here’s the thing worth noticing, neighbors: None of this happened because Washington got a conscience. It happened because Minnesotans wouldn’t let go.

Moriarty and Ellison sued. Families kept showing up. Reporters kept asking. Pretti’s family attorney, Steve Schleicher, kept saying out loud what federal officials wouldn’t: “No family should be required to beg federal authorities to do their job.” Six months of pressure, and the evidence finally moved. That’s not an accident. That’s what sustained, vocal opposition does. It works slowly and it works.

Trump is floundering enough that he’s propping up a candidate even his own party chair won’t defend. He started a war he can find no way out of, that has strengthened Iran, weakened America and raised everyone’s cost of living.

His enablers in our own backyard are hoping you’re too busy with summer to notice they never once stood up for two dead Minnesotans. That they haven’t said a peep about this unnecessary and disastrous war. Not a word about the tariffs that are costing us so much.

Don’t give them that. Notice. Make these points the next time you’re at a coffee shop, a parade, chatting with neighbors.

And show up this weekend. Good Trouble Lives On, the national weekend of action honoring the legacy of Congressman John Lewis, runs Friday through Sunday, July 17 to 19, under the banner “Teach! Reach! Preach!” There are protests scheduled for every day this weekend (see below).

Bring a neighbor. This is how we keep the pressure on, the same pressure that just got two Minnesota families a step closer to the truth.

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Hello, everyone!

It’s been a humid few days, and my vegetables and herbs are loving it. I have enough lettuce, mint, and basil to feed the neighborhood. Soon, my little tomatoes will be ready, and there is nothing like walking by the plant and popping one into your mouth.

Summer has so many wonderful things to offer in Minnesota. I know many of you are going to the cabin, relaxing at a lake or on a boat, barbecuing, and soaking it all in. I hope you are taking this time to grab some joy and find things that will sustain you when life gets rough. I also encourage you to turn off the news for a few days.

The continuous cycle of absolute madness is both overwhelming us and causing many of us to start turning a blind eye to it.

If you are worried that you will miss something, let me summarize what will probably happen during the five days you take a break:

• Trump will bomb something and then say they are in talks again.

• At least two government officials will say something that, in previous years, would have cost them their jobs but will now simply be shrugged off.

• There will be another project that Trump is spending billions of our tax dollars on that will fail in some way.

• Trump will insult a world leader, country, or ethnic group, and he will call us communists, “Dumocrats,” or something similar.

So, you will not miss anything. Take a breath. Recharge!

In the past month, I have almost passed out twice at the protest, so while the temperatures are above 80 degrees, I will not be there for the full event. I may stop by for a short while, and I apologize for not staying the whole time.

SW Protectors Updates

There will be no SW Protectors event on July 21. The next one will be August 4, and then we will return to twice a month in September.

Please go to the website for Adam Moore, as well as the websites for all our other candidates, and request a lawn sign. By law, even if you live in an HOA, you can now put one in your yard, and research shows that it does help. I have mine proudly on display!

Please remember to thank our amazing weekly volunteers, including Kim, who keeps us hydrated; Scott, Dan, and Charlie, who keep us safe; Dave, who brings our amazing sign and flag library, and his son, Corey; Joel, who greets you all with his cowbell; Jen and Max, who welcome so many of you; Paul, who takes pictures; and so many more.

Every one of you is amazing for showing up and taking time out of your life to do this. Don’t you love it when a big semi-truck drives by and honks its horn?

Enjoy the summer in any way you can, and get ready to vote in November!

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Our protest this Saturday falls on the 4th of July, and I think that is very fitting. Our protest celebrates what the USA stands for. Besides apple pie, hot dogs, and fireworks, the USA stands for freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and yes, even your right to bear arms.

We know that, besides the right to bear arms, all the other freedoms are under attack. And it does not matter if you are a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, or if you support the Flying Spaghetti Monster, we all support those ideals! When I see someone driving by giving us the finger, I always want to explain to them that I am fighting for their rights too.

This week, the Supreme Court handed down this year’s last decisions. Some were positive, and many were very negative. The ban on transgender girls and women competing on female sports teams being upheld was a tough one, but I want to point out that because they are leaving it up to the states, Governor Walz has already said he will not follow this ban.

This is one reason why it is so important to support our Minnesota candidates. We can lessen the damage done by this administration by making sure everyone, from the school board to the governor’s mansion, is fighting for all people.

I really hope that you are finding comfort and hope in the little things around you. Summer in Minnesota means growing your own tomatoes and eating them before you even make it inside the house. It means warmth and, at times, scorching heat, barbecues and s’mores, and going to the lake.

Coming to the protest means that, for one hour, you are surrounded by a community that is vibrant, supportive, and persistent. We have been so persistent! Cold, rain, and now heat are not stopping us because we know this is bigger than all of us.

Come Saturday, and let’s celebrate!

Note: Chanhassen’s location this Saturday will be on the pedestrian bridge. Suggested parking is on Lake Drive East.

Don’t forget that this upcoming Tuesday we meet at the Bellows for our SW Protectors get-together. It is a time to meet others, laugh, support one another, and learn about what is happening in our community.

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Scroll down for a listing of the Independence Day events in the Southwest Metro this year.

Reasons to Be Proud

I’ve been enthralled for the past week watching reaction videos of Europeans visiting America for the World Cup and their amazement at Costcos and Walmarts, ordering food at restaurants, four-lane highways, and other mundanities.

While all that is amusing, it is heartening to also hear them praise the kindness and hospitality of ordinary Americans.

It is the people that make our country great, not the leaders. Here are some other things I’m thinking about that give me pride in this country on our 250th birthday:

• Social Security: Under Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal Democratic coalition, the Social Security Act of 1935 created old-age benefits, unemployment insurance, and aid programs for vulnerable Americans. It remains one of the most durable anti-poverty and retirement-security programs in U.S. history.

• The New Deal: As a response to the Great Depression, the New Deal reshaped the federal government’s role in stabilizing the economy, protecting workers, regulating finance, supporting farmers, building infrastructure, and putting people to work. Not every program succeeded equally, and some excluded many Black workers and women, but as a governing achievement it fundamentally changed American life for the better.

• Workers’ Rights: The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 protected workers’ rights to organize, bargain collectively, and seek better working conditions without retaliation. That helped create the legal foundation for the mid-20th-century labor movement and the growth of the American middle class.

• Saving the World from Fascism: FDR’s leadership before and during World War II, followed by Harry Truman’s early postwar leadership, placed Democratic presidents at the center of defeating fascism, mobilizing American industry, creating the foundations of the postwar order, and helping shape institutions like the United Nations and NATO-era internationalism that kept the world largely at peace for eighty years.

• The G.I. Bill: Signed by FDR in 1944 after unanimous congressional passage, the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, or G.I. Bill, helped millions of veterans access education, housing, and economic opportunity. It was one of the most important middle-class-building policies in American history, though its benefits were distributed unequally because of discrimination in implementation.

• The Civil Rights & Voting Rights Act: Under Lyndon B. Johnson, Democrats helped pass and enact the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, two of the most important democracy-expanding laws in U.S. history. These laws attacked legal segregation and protected voting rights, though they required enormous pressure from the civil-rights movement and also received crucial Republican support in Congress.

• Medicare & Medicaid: The Social Security Amendments of 1965, signed by LBJ, created Medicare and Medicaid, transforming health care access for seniors, low-income Americans, people with disabilities, and families. CMS describes these programs as protecting the health and economic security of millions of American families.

• Affordable Care Act: Under Barack Obama, Democrats passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010, the largest health-care overhaul since Medicare and Medicaid. It expanded coverage, created insurance marketplaces and subsidies, expanded Medicaid in participating states, and barred insurers from excluding people because of preexisting conditions.

• Renewable Energy Investments: Under Joe Biden, Democrats passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which included major climate, clean-energy, prescription-drug, tax, and health-care provisions. It is widely described as the largest U.S. climate investment to date, though its long-term impact depends on implementation, courts, markets, and later Congresses.

When we’ve been guided by our better angels, our country has done and is capable of doing amazing things and making the world a far better place. While a lot of that progress has been under assault, take some time to appreciate all the good that has been done.

And give yourself a pat on the back for your contribution to keeping this an amazing country.

Here’s to 250 more!

David

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All events below are free unless otherwise noted. Events span July 1–5, 2026

QUICK REFERENCE: FIREWORKS BY DATE

• Friday, July 3

  • Shorewood/Chanhassen — Lake Minnewashta Regional Park: Dusk (~9 p.m.) | Free

  • Eden Prairie — Sparklefest drone show, Round Lake Park: ~9:45 p.m. | Free

  • Waconia — Sovereign Estate Winery / Lake Waconia: ~9:45 p.m. | $30/person

  • St. Louis Park — Aquila Park: 10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Shakopee — Canterbury Park (Kwik Trip Spectacular): ~10:10 p.m. | Tickets req’d

• Saturday, July 4

  • Excelsior — Excelsior Commons / Excelsior Bay: ~9:50 p.m. | Free

  • Chanhassen — Lake Ann Park: 10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Eden Prairie — Round Lake Park: 10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Prior Lake — Lakefront Park: 10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Prior Lake — Mystic Lake (Rock & Rockets): ~10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Shakopee — Valleyfair (Star-Spangled Night): ~10:00 p.m. | Admission req’d

  • Shakopee — SMSC Wacipi Grounds: 10:00 p.m. | Free

  • Chaska — McKnight Park: Dusk (~10 p.m.) | Free

  • Edina — Rosland Park: Dusk (~10 p.m.) | Free

CARVER

FIreworks at Lake Minnewashta Regional Park
Presented by KABOOM (Keeping America's Birthday Observation Over Minnewashta)

CHANHASSEN

43rd Annual 4th of July Celebration — “America’s 250th”

The City of Chanhassen’s flagship community celebration, now in its 43rd year, spans four full days with events at City Center Park, downtown Chanhassen, and Lake Ann Park.

• Date: Wednesday, July 1 – Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Location: City Center Park, 7700 Market Boulevard, Chanhassen, MN 55317; Lake Ann Park (fireworks)

• Cost: Free (carnival rides and some activities cost extra: $3–$6/ride)

Schedule Highlights:

• Wednesday, July 1

  • Free Movie Night at City Center Park — National Treasure — 9 p.m. (complimentary popcorn & candy, sponsored by Xfinity)

• Thursday, July 2

  • Family Night at the Carnival (discounted rides $3 before 8 p.m.)

  • Face painting, wacky hair, temp tattoos ($3–$15)

  • Kiddie Parade ride decorations (10 a.m.–3 p.m.)

• Friday, July 3

  • Minnesota Twins Youth Baseball Clinic

  • Taste of Chanhassen Food Truck Festival & Beer Garden (4–11 p.m.)

  • Stone Daisy Concert (5:15–7:15 p.m.)

  • Kiddie Parade (5:30 p.m.)

  • 3rd Lair Summer Skateboard Series (7 p.m.)

  • Street Dance (8–11 p.m.)

• Saturday, July 4

  • Classic Car Show (10 a.m.–1 p.m.)

  • Carnival (10 a.m.–6 p.m.)

  • Taste of Chanhassen Food Truck Festival (10 a.m.–5 p.m.)

  • BINGO (11 a.m.–1 p.m.)

  • American Bootleg Concert (11:45 a.m.–1 p.m.)

  • Rotary Club 4th of July Parade at 2:30 p.m.

  • Fireworks over Lake Ann at 10 p.m.

Source: ChanhassenMN.gov/4th, cclocalnews.org

Lake Minnewashta Fireworks Show

A popular Carver County Parks fireworks show launched over Lake Minnewashta, with the park located along the Chanhassen/Shorewood border. Presented by KABOOM (Keeping America’s Birthday Observation Over Minnesota) and Carver County Parks.

• Date: Friday, July 3, 2026

• Time: Dusk (approximately 9:00 p.m.)

• Location: Lake Minnewashta Regional Park, 6900 Hazeltine Blvd, Shorewood/Chanhassen, MN 55331

• Cost: Free

• Rain Date: Sunday, July 5

Source: CarvercountyMN.gov, FamilyFunTwinCities.com

CHASKA

City of Chaska 4th of July Fireworks

The City of Chaska hosts a free public fireworks display at McKnight Park. This show was confirmed for July 4, 2026 at dusk (~10 p.m.). Simply show up with a lawn chair or blanket.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: Dusk (~10 p.m.) — approximately 20 minutes

• Location: McKnight Park, 2905 McKnight Road, Chaska, MN 55318

• Cost: Free

Source: Macaroni KID Carver

Jonathan Association 4th of July Festival & Community Event

An annual community celebration hosted by the Jonathan neighborhood association, featuring a fun run, kiddie parade, entertainment, and family activities at Lake Grace Pavilion.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 7:30 a.m. (Fun Run registration) through midday

• Location: Lake Grace Pavilion, Chaska, MN

• Cost: Free (fun run participants receive a t-shirt)

• Schedule:

  • 7:30 a.m. – Fun Run registration

  • 8:00 a.m. – Fun Run

  • 9:30 a.m. – Kiddie Parade (gathers at Karen House at 9 a.m.)

  • 10:30 a.m. – Entertainment at Lake Grace Pavilion (music by Eddie Mac, magician/comedian, bounce houses, face painting, food including hot dogs, chips, ice cream)

• Notes: Rain or shine

Source: JonathanInChaska.com

EDEN PRAIRIE

Sparklefest — Sensory-Friendly Drone Show

A family-oriented, sensory-friendly July 3rd pre-celebration at Round Lake Park featuring inflatables, crafts, bingo, dance party, foam party, and a spectacular sensory-friendly drone show (not fireworks — lower noise, ideal for children and pets with sensitivities).

• Date: Thursday, July 3, 2026

• Time: 6:00–10:00 p.m. (drone show ~9:45 p.m.)

• Location: Round Lake Park, 16691 Valley View Rd, Eden Prairie, MN 55344

• Cost: Free; free parking at Eden Prairie Community Center with free shuttles

• Activities: Dance party, hands-on crafts, inflatables, kids bingo, lawn games, food truck plaza, foam party (7:30–9:30 p.m.), archery/games by Scouting America (6–9:30 p.m.)

Source: EPLocalNews.org, FamilyFunTwinCities.com

4th of July Hometown Celebration — Music & Fireworks

Eden Prairie’s main Independence Day celebration with live music, food vendors, and a spectacular fireworks show at 10 p.m.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 3:00–11:00 p.m. (fireworks at 10 p.m.)

• Location: Round Lake Park, 16691 Valley View Rd, Eden Prairie, MN 55344

• Cost: Free; free parking at Eden Prairie Community Center with shuttles

• Rain/Postponement Date: Sunday, July 5 (announcement by 8:30 p.m. July 4)

• Schedule:

  • 3:00 p.m.: Food & beverage vendors open

  • 3:15 p.m.: Blue Hazard (live music)

  • 4:30 p.m.: Annie Mack (live music)

  • 6:00 p.m.: Maiden Dixie (live music)

  • 7:45 p.m.: Welcome from Mayor Ron Case & City Council

  • 8:00 p.m.: Free and Easy (live music)

  • 10:00 p.m.: FIREWORKS

Source: EPLocalNews.org, FamilyFunTwinCities.com

Prairie Hill Church — July 4th Celebration (Free Community Event)

A free community celebration at Prairie Hill Evangelical Free Church with live band, food, cotton candy, dirty soda station, games, crafts, bounce houses, and more. After the event, attendees can watch the Eden Prairie fireworks from the church parking lot.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 6:00–9:00 p.m. (fireworks viewable from parking lot ~10 p.m.)

• Location: Prairie Hill Evangelical Free Church, 17200 Valley View Rd, Eden Prairie, MN 55346 (Parking Lot)

• Cost: Free (everything)

• Note: Valley View Road closes at 8 p.m.; notify police if arriving after 8 p.m.

Source: PrairieHill.church

EDINA

Edina 4th of July Parade

Edina’s beloved annual Independence Day parade through the heart of the city, featuring veterans, marching bands, floats, horses, musicians, and character groups. An estimated 20,000 spectators typically attend.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 10:00 a.m. (approximately one hour)

• Parade Route: Starts on Eden Avenue behind Edina City Hall → east on Eden Ave → east on West 50th Street → ends at Halifax Avenue (near Lunds & Byerlys)

• Cost: Free

• Broadcast: Live on Edina TV (Comcast/Xfinity channels 813 and 16)

Source: EdinaMN.gov, EdinaParade.org, Patch.com

Rosland Park Concert & Fireworks Spectacular

An evening celebration with food trucks, live patriotic music by the 204th Army Band and the First John Philip Sousa Memorial Band, culminating in a fireworks show at dusk.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: Food trucks from 5:00 p.m.; 204th Army Band at 8:00 p.m.; First John Philip Sousa Memorial Band at 8:45 p.m.; Fireworks at dusk (~10 p.m.)

• Location: Rosland Park, 4300 W. 66th St., Edina, MN 55435

• Cost: Free; no alcohol served

• Parking: Available in two lots at Rosland Park and surrounding neighborhoods; W. 66th St. will be closed from West Shore Drive to Southdale Road

Source: EdinaMN.gov, Patch.com

EXCELSIOR

Lake Minnetonka 4th of July Celebration

Excelsior hosts the only public fireworks show on Lake Minnetonka, produced and organized by the Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Chamber of Commerce. The full-day celebration begins at dawn and ends with fireworks launched over Excelsior Bay.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 7:30 a.m. – ~10:15 p.m.

• Location: Excelsior Commons / Excelsior Bay, 135 Lake St (Commons Park area), Excelsior, MN 55331; Excelsior Elementary School (race start)

• Cost: Free (Firecracker Run has registration fees: 1-Mile $25–$33; 5K $45–$53; 10K $47–$55)

• Full Schedule:

  • 7:30 a.m.: Excelsior Firecracker 1-Mile Start at Excelsior Elementary

  • 7:50 a.m.: Excelsior Firecracker 10K Start

  • 8:00 a.m.: Excelsior Firecracker 5K Start; free face painting (8 a.m.–1 p.m.)

  • 10:00 a.m.: Kids’ Bike Parade gathering at Kowalski’s in Excelsior (hosted by Primrose School)

  • 11:00 a.m.: Kids’ Bike Parade down Water Street, ending at Excelsior Commons; Petting Zoo & DJ Dance Party (11 a.m.–1 p.m.)

  • 3:00 p.m.: Food vendors open at Excelsior Commons

  • 3:00–5:00 p.m.: The Percolators (live music)

  • 5:00–7:00 p.m.: Sawyer’s Dream (live music)

  • 7:15 p.m.–close: Jake + Josie (live music)

  • ~9:50 p.m.: Fireworks launched over Excelsior Bay

Source: Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Chamber of Commerce, Patch.com, Lake.com

HOPKINS

No standalone City of Hopkins July 4th weekend celebration was identified for 2026. Hopkins’ signature summer festival — the 92nd Annual Hopkins Raspberry Festival — runs July 15–19, 2026, with the Grande Day Parade on Sunday, July 19 at 1:00 p.m. on Main Street.

For July 4th fireworks nearby, Hopkins residents may visit Edina’s Rosland Park (6 miles), St. Louis Park’s Aquila Park (4 miles), or Minneapolis’ Red, White & BOOM! events.

MINNETONKA

No standalone City of Minnetonka July 4th celebration was identified for 2026. For July 4th fireworks, Minnetonka residents are within easy driving distance of the Lake Minnetonka/Excelsior celebration and multiple other events in this guide.

PRIOR LAKE

Prior Lake Association Fireworks — 60th Anniversary!

The Prior Lake Association hosts its 60th consecutive annual fireworks display, launched from the beach at Lakefront Park over Prior Lake. Completely community-funded through donations.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 10:00 p.m. (show starts from the beach)

• Location: Lakefront Park, Prior Lake, MN (viewing from the park and around the lake)

• Cost: Free

• Note: Check the Prior Lake Association’s Facebook page for any weather-related updates

Source: PriorLakeAssociation.org, CitiesSouthMag.com

Rock and Rockets at Mystic Lake

Mystic Lake Casino Hotel hosts its free Fourth of July outdoor celebration with live music, food trucks, and a fireworks show in the outdoor area between Mystic Lake and Little Six.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 5:00–10:30 p.m. (fireworks ~10:00 p.m.)

• Location: Mystic Lake Casino Hotel, 2400 Mystic Lake Blvd, Prior Lake, MN 55372 (outdoor area between Mystic Lake & Little Six)

• Cost: Free; family-friendly

Source: PriorLakeEvents.com, USA-Quarter-Millennial.com

SAVAGE

No standalone City of Savage July 4th celebration was identified for 2026. For July 4th weekend, Savage residents may attend events in nearby Shakopee (Canterbury Park, Valleyfair, SMSC) or other neighboring communities.

SHAKOPEE

Canterbury Fireworks Spectacular (Kwik Trip Fireworks Spectacular)

Canterbury Park hosts Shakopee’s biggest July 3rd fireworks show, following an evening of live thoroughbred and quarter horse racing. Sugar Buzz performs live, and the fireworks display follows racing at approximately 10:10 p.m.

• Date: Friday, July 3, 2026

• Time: 4:00 p.m. – 10:45 p.m. (first race at 4:00 p.m.; fireworks ~10:10 p.m.)

• Location: Canterbury Park, 1100 Canterbury Rd S, Shakopee, MN 55379

• Cost: Tickets required (general admission and reserved seating available at tickets.canterburypark.com)

Source: Patch.com, ExploreMN.com, CanterburyPark.com

Hormel Foods 4th of July Celebration & Wiener Dog Races

Canterbury Park’s July 4th America’s 250th Birthday celebration featuring live horse racing, the beloved wiener dog races between races, and a hot dog eating contest.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 11:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

• Location: Canterbury Park, 1100 Canterbury Rd S, Shakopee, MN 55379

• Cost: General Admission Adults (18+): $2.81; discounted for America’s 250th anniversary

• Highlights: Wiener dog races between live horse races, hot dog eating contest, family-friendly activities

Source: ExploreMN.com, Tickets.CanterburyPark.com

Valleyfair Star-Spangled Night

Valleyfair amusement park hosts its annual Independence Day celebration with full access to rides, the Superior Shores Waterpark, food, and a fireworks spectacular at ~10 p.m. Fireworks are set to music and included with park admission.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. (fireworks ~10:00 p.m.)

• Location: Valleyfair, 1 Valleyfair Dr., Shakopee, MN 55379

• Cost: Tickets start at $54.99 plus parking; active military and veterans receive FREE admission July 4–7

Source: Patch.com, FamilyFunTwinCities.com

SMSC Public Fireworks Display

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) sponsors a free public fireworks display, open to the general public, best viewed near the SMSC Wacipi (Pow Wow) Grounds.

• Date: Saturday, July 4, 2026

• Time: 10:00 p.m. (rain or shine, unless severe weather)

• Location: Best viewing near SMSC Wacipi (Pow Wow) Grounds, 3212 Dakotah Parkway, Shakopee, MN (south of County Road 42, between CR 83/Canterbury Rd and CR 17/Marschall Rd)

• Cost: Free; open to the general public

Source: ShakopeeDakota.org

SHOREWOOD

Lake Minnewashta Regional Park Fireworks

Carver County Parks presents a professional fireworks display launched over Lake Minnewashta. The park straddles the Shorewood/Chanhassen border and is the premier lakeside fireworks venue in the area. Presented by KABOOM.

• Date: Friday, July 3, 2026

• Time: Dusk (~9:00 p.m.)

• Location: Lake Minnewashta Regional Park, 6900 Hazeltine Blvd, Shorewood/Chanhassen, MN 55331

• Cost: Free

• Rain Date: Sunday, July 5

• Note: Also the route for the Excelsior Firecracker Run on July 4, which passes through Shorewood, Deephaven, and Greenwood

Source: CarvercountyMN.gov, Patch.com Shorewood calendar

ST. LOUIS PARK

Fireworks Celebration at Aquila Park

St. Louis Park’s beloved Independence Day celebration is consistently cited as one of the best fireworks shows in the Twin Cities. The free event features food trucks, vendors, DJ entertainment, and fireworks set to music.

• Date: Friday, July 3, 2026

• Time: 7:00–10:30 p.m. (fireworks begin promptly at 10:00 p.m.)

• Location: Aquila Park, 3110 Xylon Ave. S., St. Louis Park, MN 55426

• Cost: Free; no registration required

• Rain Date: Thursday, July 9

• Food Trucks & Vendors on site: Ralph’s Rib Crib, KCM Eggrolls, Waffle Bar, Pizza Karma, Cave Cafe, Big Bell Ice Cream, Firefly S’mores, Shelita’s Art World Face Painting, DJ Trilogy, Park N’ Play mobile rec city vehicle

• Note: Leashed dogs welcome in the park, but please leave pets at home during fireworks

Source: StLouisParkMN.gov, ExploreMN.com, Patch.com

VICTORIA

No standalone City of Victoria July 4th celebration was identified for 2026. Victoria’s prominent annual summer festival is Volksfest, typically held in mid-July.

For Independence Day fireworks, Victoria residents are within easy reach of the Lake Minnewashta Regional Park fireworks show on July 3 (approximately 7 miles), and the Lake Minnetonka/Excelsior celebration on July 4.

WACONIA

Lake Waconia Fireworks — Sovereign Estate Winery

Note: In 2026, the Lake Waconia fireworks are scheduled for Friday, July 3 — NOT July 4. This year, Sovereign Estate Winery has taken over organization of the beloved community fireworks tradition (previously managed by the Waconia Chamber for 30+ years), launching from the winery’s lakeside property. The fireworks are entirely community-funded through donations.

• Date: Friday, July 3, 2026

• Time: 6:00 p.m. – dusk/~9:45 p.m. (fireworks just after dusk)

• Location: Sovereign Estate Winery, 9950 North Shore Road, Waconia, MN 55387 (on the shores of Lake Waconia)

• Cost: Ticketed event — $30 per person (tickets through OneCause.com benefiting Ridgeview Medical Center Foundation)

• Entertainment: Rock tribute band XPEDITION at 8 p.m.; food trucks; fundraising activities

• Viewing Alternatives: Lake Waconia Regional Park (8170 Paradise Ln), Lola’s Lakehouse, InTowne Marina, Island View Golf Club, or by boat on Lake Waconia (free viewing from these spots)

Source: DestinationWaconia.org, SovereignEstateWine.com

All event details were current as of July 1, 2026. Always confirm event details and check organizer websites or social media for last-minute updates due to weather.

The Southwest Crier does not guarantee the accuracy of times, dates, or costs listed herein and recommends confirming with event organizers.

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Three Killings, No Charges

On January 7, ICE agent Jonathan Ross (who lived in Chaska, The Intercept reported) shot and killed Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, through the windshield of her car on Portland Avenue near 34th Street in south Minneapolis. She and her wife were alerting neighbors of ICE’s presence when agents approached, shouted at her to get out, and reached inside her window. She reversed, then began moving forward and away from the officers. Ross fired three shots.

The Department of Homeland Security immediately called it domestic terrorism. Bystander videos told a different story.

Seventeen days later, on January 24, Border Patrol agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, 37, a U.S. citizen and VA intensive care nurse, on E. 26th Street and Nicollet Avenue. He had been filming agents and stepped between them and a woman they had shoved to the ground. At least five agents pinned him down. He was shot multiple times. And, again, the administration sought to smear the victim’s name.

A third person, Victor Manuel Díaz, a Nicaraguan man arrested during the surge, died in a Texas detention facility after being taken from Minnesota.

Three people dead. Not one federal agent has been charged with the killings.

What the Report Documents

Last week, Human Rights Watch released a 180-page report titled A Manufactured Crisis: Minnesota Communities Terrorized by the Federal Government. It is the most comprehensive independent accounting yet of what the federal government did to this state between December 2025 and March 2026.

Researchers interviewed more than 130 people, including immigrants, lawyers, healthcare providers, educators, and government officials. They analyzed dozens of photographs and videos, sworn declarations, legal petitions, government data, and medical records.

Us Minneapolis 0626 Operation Metro Surge Human Rights Watch Report

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Here is what they documented.

Federal agents detained at least 4,000 immigrants during Operation Metro Surge. Nearly two out of three had no U.S. criminal record. Many were detained arbitrarily. In Minnesota, lawyers filed habeas corpus petitions in 532 cases; 88 percent of those resolved resulted in an order for release or a bond hearing. That means a judge looked at the evidence and said this person should not be held.

The operation reached into schools, clinics, and neighborhoods far beyond any targeted enforcement. Residents were scared to leave home to access healthcare.

Fridley, one of the most effected school districts, reported attendance dropped nearly one-third during the surge. In St. Paul, two days after Renée Good was killed, half of the Spanish-speaking students and a quarter of Somali students were absent.

One medical provider told Human Rights Watch that at least three adolescents came in for medical care after suicide attempts, in each case because their parent had been detained.

The numbers are staggering. The city of Minneapolis’ preliminary assessment put the economic impact of just the first month at more than $203 million. A broader assessment covering December through April, released June 10, estimated the total damage to the city at nearly $700 million — $445 million in lost business revenue and $152 million in lost wages — a figure city officials say is likely an undercount. (Minneapolis Star Tribune, June 10, 2026)

Daniel Hernandez opened Colonial Market on East Lake Street in November 2024, investing $3 million and hiring 25 workers to serve the Latino community along the corridor. By the height of the surge, 90 percent of what little revenue remained came from deliveries. He laid off workers in waves — three in the summer, two in the fall, half the staff by January. At the peak, he was running the store with two people.

He is now closing the Lake Street location. “We were doing well until the ICE surge came,” he said. “Because the math doesn’t lie.” Even as his own business bled, Hernandez helped sign up roughly 6,000 children for Delegation of Parental Authority documents and connected neighbors with nurses and doctors who would visit their homes. “I had the option to either cry about my business and all the money I was losing, or begin helping the community one way or another,” he said. (Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, June 15, 2026)

Jennifer Jackson King, who has owned Prima Restaurant on Lyndale Avenue since 1999, said the operation was worse than the COVID-19 pandemic. She and her family drove employees to and from work when workers were too afraid to leave their homes. “I thought COVID was probably the most difficult time to be in our food and beverage industry,” she said. “But I think Operation Metro Surge was probably worse.” (Minnesota Star Tribune and BLCK Press, June 10, 2026)

A union organizer described the question parents were asking themselves when their child was sick: “Are they sick enough that I have to risk my family?”

A pediatrician told Human Rights Watch: “In 2020, during Covid-19, we had everyone in the same boat. But this is such a targeted population that is feeling the effects of being at home. The rest of school is going on, everyone else is advancing.”

Near-Total Impunity

Human Rights Watch’ conclusion is blunt. The many abuses committed by federal agencies have been met, in the report’s words, with “near-total impunity.” At the time of writing, two ICE officers faced local assault charges, one for pulling a gun on residents and one for the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis. No officer has been prosecuted for the killings of Renée Good or Alex Pretti.

Federal agents blocked state investigators from the scene of Pretti’s shooting. Good’s car has been sitting shrink-wrapped in an FBI warehouse for months, unexamined by state investigators. The federal government has declined to release the personnel files of the agents involved.

This is documented. It is in 180 pages. And the accountability has not come.

The Next Step: Following the Paper Trail

That is why what Governor Walz did this week matters, and why you should pay attention to it.

Two days ago, after a federal judge threw out six grand jury subpoenas targeting Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and Attorney General Keith Ellison, calling them “a blatantly unlawful and unethical use of the grand-jury process,” Walz filed 16 Freedom of Information Act requests with federal agencies across the Trump administration. (Minnesota Public Radio, June 25, 2026)

Those requests ask for every record and communication that mentions the words “Minnesota,” “Walz,” “reckoning,” “retribution,” “punish,” or “Democrat” since January 20, 2025. The governor says Minnesota has faced more than 100 federal demands, investigations, lawsuits, and threats to withhold funding since Trump’s second term began. Trump himself posted during the surge that a “Day of Reckoning & Retribution” was coming for Minnesota. (Fox News, January 13, 2026)

A FOIA request is a formal demand, under the Freedom of Information Act, for government records. Federal agencies are legally required to respond. They can delay and they can fight it in court, but they cannot pretend the question was never asked. These 16 requests put the scope of the targeting campaign on the public record in a new way: Who ordered this, who directed it, and what has it cost us?

What You Can Do

Renée. Alex. Their names are in the report. The report is public. So is the reporting on Victor.

Human Rights Watch is calling on Congress to hold hearings on the conduct of federal agents during Operation Metro Surge, with leadership from Homeland Security, ICE, Customs and Border Protection, and the Department of Justice.

Congress has not acted.

Here is who represents you. Call them. Tell them you read the report.

Rep. Tom Emmer (CD6, House Majority Whip): 202-225-2331.
Senator Amy Klobuchar: 612-727-5220.
Senator Tina Smith: 651-221-1016.

Not sure which congressional district you’re in? Find your U.S. House representative at house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative.

Local representatives need to demand justice for our fallen Minnesotans. You can probably guess who has remained silent:

Sen. Julia Coleman: 651-296-4837
Rep. Jim Nash: 651-296-4282

The Human Rights Watch report is at hrw.org. Read it. Then make the calls.

4th of July Chanhassen Protest Location

For the 4th July, the Chanhassen protest (10am - 11am) is moving to the pedestrian bridge over Highway 5. People can park along Lake St., East by the Methodist Church.

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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The 15 people arrested this week in Minneapolis did not commit any crimes ... yet. That is the view the Trump administration is taking. But that these people were against them was enough, and federal charges have been brought against them.

The United States has free speech as one of, if not the, main pillars of its society. If this is taken away, what is left? What they are doing is trying to scare all of us, making us believe that even writing something or posting something on Facebook will be used against us as a crime.

He is trying to scare us all because what we are doing is working. We are fighting back. ICE is on a hiring spree, trying to hire more than 10,000 agents.

They know that if we win, their days are numbered and their whole house of cards will come crumbling down. The corruption, the Epstein Files, all of it will then be laid bare. So they are running scared, and we all know desperate people will do desperate things.

Stay strong. Do not give in and do not give up. Stand up and be counted, vote and help others vote, and speak up.

Locally, a lot of things are happening. Congressman Emmer went on several TV shows talking about how they are fighting antifa. The man has not held a town hall in years and then has the gall to say that protesters are bad people. Let’s vote him out, as he does not represent us at all.

Doug Chapin is running against him and has been at many of our events. We also have a very large data center that is now proposed to be built right here in Chaska. This data center would be 1.5 million square feet, and we need to stop it. Please get involved in stopping it.

Lastly, many of you know Mary Fuentes of Latino Voices. Mary worked tirelessly during Operation Metro Surge, helping everyone she could, and now she needs our help. Mary has been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer, and she is in the hospital. A GoFundMe has been set up to help her and her family as they try to navigate this.

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Trump is Scared. MAGA is Scared. That’s Why They’re Doing This.

On Tuesday morning, before most of Minnesota had made coffee, federal agents fanned out across Minneapolis and arrested twelve people.

By mid-morning, U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen was at a podium calling them terrorists. Anarchists. Antifa.

The cameras rolled.
The message was loud.

It was a lie.

What the Indictment Actually Says

Here is what the 94-page federal indictment actually documents as evidence of a criminal conspiracy:

• Posting opinions on Facebook,

• Attending meetings,

• Wearing certain clothes,

• Standing on public streets and watching federal agents haul neighbors into unmarked vans.

Among the 15 people charged:

• Trade unionists,

• Educators,

• Community organizers.

Richard Painter, who served as the chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, called the charges “completely disproportionate” and predicted they would be dismissed.

The government’s own track record backs him up. Of the 36 Minnesotans previously charged with interfering with ICE operations during Operation Metro Surge, at least 15 cases have already been dropped outright.

They arrested people for attending meetings. Then held a press conference to announce it.

That is not what winning looks like.

What Demoralization Is Designed to Do

If you’ve been feeling ground down lately, you’re not alone.

Some of you attended the DFL endorsing convention and watched the process feel frustratingly slow. A lot of you have been protesting every week.

Some of you were standing on cold streets, documenting what the federal government is doing in Minnesota, and now you’re watching neighbors face six-year federal conspiracy charges for it.

The exhaustion is real.
The frustration is real.

Some of it is engineered.

Scholars who study authoritarian governments call this tactic “lawfare”: using the legal system not to win in court, but to exhaust people, drain their money, scare off their friends, and make the cost of resistance feel higher than the cost of giving up.

The point is not conviction. The point is fear. The point is to make you feel small and alone and helpless, and to make you stay home.

They are doing this because they are losing. A movement that is winning does not need to arrest people for posting on Facebook.

The Numbers Say So

A president who is winning does not hold a 34% approval rating, the lowest of his second term, according to Pew Research Center. A political coalition that is winning does not lose ground in every single special election held in the country for the past year and a half.

Democrats are outperforming their 2024 margins by an average of 15 points in every special election this cycle, including flipping a Texas State Senate seat that Trump won by 17 points.

Just Security’s litigation tracker shows plaintiffs winning 272 federal cases against the Trump administration to the government’s 133. The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ruling, struck down Trump’s sweeping tariff program in February, with Chief Justice Roberts writing that the administration’s legal claim “cannot bear such weight.”

For the first time since 2010, Democrats are more trusted than Republicans to handle the economy.

They know they are losing the public. They know they are losing the culture. So they pick a handful of people and make a spectacle of them. That is what scared movements do.

The Long Road

Today is Juneteenth.

On June 19, 1865, a Union Army general arrived in Galveston, Texas, and read aloud General Order No. 3. “All slaves are free.” The enslaved people of Texas learned, for the first time, that the law had already changed. The machinery of oppression had been doing everything in its power to keep that knowledge from reaching them.

Freedom came. But it came slowly, and under fire.

Reconstruction was dismantled. Jim Crow laws locked Black Americans out of schools, out of voting booths, out of restaurants and buses and neighborhoods.

Emmett Till was murdered in 1955. Four little girls were bombed in a Birmingham church in 1963. Medgar Evers was shot in his driveway.

And through all of it, Black Americans did not stop. They organized. They marched. They went to jail. They came back and marched again.

The Civil Rights Act passed in 1964. The Voting Rights Act in 1965. Not because the opposition gave up. Because the people pressing for freedom never did.

And they are pressing still. The disparities that Black Americans face today in housing, in health care, in policing, in wealth: They are still fighting those, too. Every generation has had to fight for the same ground their grandparents already bled for, and every generation has shown up anyway.

That is the road we are walking on. Their road. And we should be clear about that.

When federal agents pepper-spray legal observers in Minneapolis, when a U.S. Attorney labels union members terrorists, when the full machinery of the federal government turns against the people watching it: This is not a new story in America.

It is the oldest story. And we know it ends when people refuse to stop.

The Resistance Has Already Worked

Operation Metro Surge sent more than 2,000 federal agents into the Twin Cities, thirteen times the normal federal footprint, and it ended with ICE withdrawing. That withdrawal happened in significant part because sustained community resistance made the operation politically and legally untenable.

The community defense work now being criminalized in this indictment, the very work of watching and documenting and standing in the street, was recognized with the Kennedy Center Profiles in Courage Award.

They’re arresting people for it because it worked.

Where Your Effort Matters Most

Presidential elections get the attention. But the fights that shape your daily life are decided much closer to home, by margins of tens of votes, sometimes fewer.

Minnesota’s current legislative maps were drawn by a court in 2022 because the legislature deadlocked.

The next redistricting happens after the 2030 census. If Republicans hold a governing trifecta when that moment arrives (or even before), we have every reason to expect they will draw maps designed to lock in their advantage for a generation.

We have seen them break poltical norms with their unprecidented mid-decade redistricting schemes. With racially-motivated redistricting schemes. It is not speculation. It is the documented playbook.

Keeping that from happening starts right now, at the precinct level, in your neighborhood.

The special elections in Minnesota House districts 47A and 64A this January were both won by Democrats, restoring an even 67-67 split in the State House. Two races. Two wins. The balance of power shifted. Local races in this state have been decided by single digits before and will be again.

Your two votes could be those two wins.

Don’t Give Them What They’re Working For

Today, Juneteenth, is the right day to let history do what it is meant to do: Remind us of what people before us endured, what they refused to accept, and the future they built by refusing.

They had so much more to fight through than we do. They did not stop.

We are not losing. The numbers say so, the courts say so, and the opposition’s own panic says so. Every show of force, every pre-dawn arrest, every press conference labeling teachers and union members as terrorists: That is a regime telling on itself.

Don’t give them the demoralization they’re working so hard to manufacture.

Show up.
Knock on your neighbor’s door.
Vote.

Go to the school board meeting. Volunteer for the state legislative race in your district. If you want to support the Minnesota 15 directly, a legal defense fund is live at chuffed.org/project/186570-minnesota-15-legal-defense-fund.

The road is long. People before us walked farther on it than we have to.

They didn’t stop.

Neither should we.

Foot on the gas.

Full speed ahead!

David

Full Report

For the full sourced research report with citations and links to primary sources underlying this article, download the Southwest Crier Research Report: “The Show of Force Is the Tell.”

Swcrier Show Of Force Report June 2026

263KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Podcast Version

Here’s the podcast version if you don’t want to read it. (This was generated by Google’s Notebook LM tool.)

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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It is time to rise up!

No Official No Kings Protest, But…

First, let me address the confusion around Sunday’s events. There are no official No Kings protests scheduled on Sunday. Instead, the organizers wanted people to get together and form watch parties to watch the show they are putting together with Bette Midler, Jane Fonda, and others.

We are having our regular protest on Saturday, but if you want to attend a protest on Sunday, please consider the one in Norwood Young America from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. This area of Carver County is small but mighty and would love to have you come out and support them!

The protest will be at Highway 212 and Foxton Road by McDonald’s. Please park on the street, as the local businesses (even the ones that are closed) have refused to let anyone park there.

Show The World

I think we all need to show the world that we are fed up and that we do not agree with what is happening. You can also just stand on any street corner or bridge and protest. You do not need others to be there. One person standing there is so powerful!

As for the businesses that are not supporting us, let’s let them know that we will not be supporting them either. We are the ones with the money!

Lawn Signs

Starting June 26, Minnesota law protects your right to have political signs in your yard. These do make a difference! Please contact your candidates and get yours ASAP!

Remember that Doug Chapin, Dan Kessler, Joe Brothers, Chrissy Ahola, Lucy Rehm, and Julie Kelzer are all running in our area. Don’t know who your candidates are? You can find them from the Secretary of State candidates page.

We have a chance in Carver County to unseat Emmer, Nash, and Coleman. They do not represent our values and do nothing to protect us. Right now, Republicans are working on cutting Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security, all of which we have been paying into since we started working. The consequences will be devastating if they are able to do this.

Sheriff Candidate Meetup

On June 24 at 6:00 p.m., you have a chance to see all five of the Carver County sheriff candidates in person. This event will be at Waconia Middle School and is being hosted by the Republican GOP. This means that they will only allow previously screened questions, but I encourage you to show up and ask the hard questions anyway.

I found out who I liked among the three I spoke to when I got in their face, asked pointed questions, and would not let them give me political answers. I have not spoken to the other two yet, but I hope to soon! If you go, I hope you let me know your thoughts!

Shop Local

There are many more opportunities to support and help, and I urge you to reach out to your candidates in person, on Facebook, or via email to get their updates. Do not sit at home frustrated or sad. Get angry and DO SOMETHING!

One of our amazing protesters sent me an email with news I had not even thought about in the last few weeks. With rising costs for gas, beef, food, and electricity, we have amazing locally owned restaurants like India Bar and Grill right here in Chaska that are struggling with increased costs.

The owner reported that one reason is that the spices they need to make their delicious food are getting more expensive too! I encourage you to order from local places when you go out. The big corporate chains are doing fine, and we do not get any benefit from them. Eating local means that local workers and owners make money that goes straight back into our community.

Stay Safe

Lastly, it was hot last week! Please wear hats, bring cold water, and do not forget to lather yourself up with sunscreen, especially on your feet, calves, and neck. Our team has sunscreen and water, so flag one of us down if you need it.

Come on Saturday and protest the destruction of our country! We are not giving up and not backing down!

We are the protectors!

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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The Most Important Door You’ll Knock This Year Is the One You Knock in June

Here’s a number that should change how you think about the next six months: 387.

That’s how many votes separated Matt Little from his opponent in 2016, when he won a state Senate seat in a district Donald Trump carried by roughly seventeen points. Three hundred eighty-seven neighbors. Fewer people than show up to a decent farmers market on a Saturday morning.

State Senate and House races are won and lost in margins that thin. And the thing that moves those margins isn’t the thirty-second ad you’ll be sick of by October.

It’s door knocking (and shouldn’t it be called door belling by now?) It’s a person standing on a porch, talking to another person.

That person could be you. The question is when you decide to start.

The science is settled, and it’s not subtle

For twenty-five years, political scientists have been running actual randomized experiments on what gets people to vote, the same way a doctor tests a drug. The founders of that work, Alan Gerber and Donald Green at Yale, knocked on tens of thousands of doors in New Haven in 1998 and measured the result against a control group.

Door knocking won. It wasn’t close.

Their findings [PDF], published in the American Political Science Review, became the standard reference for every serious campaign in the country. Face-to-face canvassing raised turnout by about six points overall, and by nearly nine points among the people a volunteer actually reached at the door.

Phone banks did less.

Mailers did less.

Email did almost nothing.

When researchers later pooled fifty-one of these door-knocking experiments together, the verdict held: roughly a 4.3 percentage-point bump in turnout among people contacted in person. Gerber and Green put it plainly in their handbook Get Out the Vote: a face-to-face conversation produces about one additional vote for every fourteen doors knocked.

Fourteen doors. One vote. Do that math against a margin of 387 and you start to see why the people who knock decide who wins.

Why October is too late

Here’s the part most people get backward.

The instinct is to wait. The election’s in November, so you’ll help in the fall, when it “matters.” Save your energy for the big push.

The research says that instinct is wrong, and it says so with unusual force.

In 2018, researchers Joshua Kalla and David Broockman analyzed forty-nine separate field experiments to find out when campaign contact actually changes minds. Their conclusion was sobering for anyone planning a last-minute blitz. Persuasion in the final stretch of a general election is, on average, almost nil. But there was an exception, and it’s the whole ballgame:

“When campaigns contact voters long before election day... campaigns often appear to persuade voters. However, this early persuasion decays before election day and the very same treatments usually cease working close to election day.”

Read that again. The conversation that changes a neighbor’s mind has to happen early. Knock on that same door in late October and you’ve missed the window.

There’s a deeper reason this works. The most durable persuasion doesn’t come from a script and a flyer. It comes from a real conversation, ten or fifteen minutes long, where a volunteer listens as much as talks. Broockman and Kalla showed in a study published in Science that one such conversation could shift someone’s views for months. But you cannot have a thousand fifteen-minute conversations in the last week of October. You build that, door by door, starting now.

Mobilization adds up. Start the pile early.

Persuasion is only half the job. The other half is turnout, getting the people who already agree with you to actually fill out the ballot.

Here the lesson is about accumulation. When researchers Ryan Enos and Anthony Fowler studied the massive 2012 ground campaigns, they found something campaigns dream about: “no evidence of diminishing marginal returns.” Every contact, each one small on its own, stacked on the last. Together they raised turnout by seven to eight points in the states where the work got done.

A campaign isn’t a fireworks finale. It’s a savings account. The deposits you make in June compound through November.

And there’s a quieter return on starting early that no spreadsheet fully captures: the volunteer who knocks a few doors in June becomes the team leader in August who trains four new neighbors in September. That’s how a campaign grows the army it needs for the final weekend. Wait until fall and there’s no time left to build it.

This is the work, and it’s down the street

We’ve watched this play out right here in the southwest metro.

The Minnesota Senate has flipped on a single seat twice in recent memory, in 2016 and again in 2022, and was held by a hair in the 2024 special election out in Lake Minnetonka, where one race, the only Senate seat on the ballot, decided whether control of the chamber would flip. One district. The whole state hung on it.

Down-ballot races are exactly where a knock on the door counts most. In a presidential year, voters drown in contact. In a state Senate or House race, a volunteer at the door might be the only campaign anyone in that household ever talks to. The research bears this out: personal contact does more in quiet, low-information races than in the loud ones at the top of the ticket.

So the seat is winnable. The margin will be thin. And the person who moves it is a neighbor on a porch, in daylight, in summer. It could be you.

What to do, and when to do it

Don’t wait for October. Here’s the path:

Sign up now. Knock your first doors this summer, while the conversations can still change a mind and while there’s time to learn the work.

Bring someone. The neighbor you recruit in June is the team leader the campaign needs in September.

Come back in the fall for the turnout push, when reminding our people to vote is the whole job, and do it knowing you helped build the operation that makes that final weekend possible.

Your Senate or House district race needs door knockers, and it needs them now, not in the panic of the last few weeks. An afternoon you give in June is worth more than the same afternoon in October. That’s not a pep talk. That’s what the data says.

Three hundred eighty-seven votes.

Some summer Saturday, on some street near you, a few of those votes are waiting behind a door nobody’s knocked on yet.

Go knock.

The Politics Chicks In Real Life Event

I wrote previously about the importance of political campaign donations and how you can take advantage of Minnesota’s excellent Political Contribution Refund program. Well, here’s a fun fundraiser:

Tomorrow, the hosts of the extremely popular Minnesota politics podcast, The Politics Chicks, are hosting a live conversation and audience Q&A with District 48 Senate candidate, Dan Kessler. This event doubles as a fundraiser for his campaign. Doors open at 6:30. Register here.

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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The Art Of Victimhood

MAGA has turned victimhood into a fine art.

They squeal about the latest wild conspiracy that’s trending in the dark corners of the internet. They continue to squeal about the long-running conspiracies they’ve always sqealed about.

The January 6ers sqeal about injustice despite their role in an attempted coup d’état and their assault on police officers defending the Capitol.

While the rest of us—the real victims of their malfeasance—grin and bear it.

We bear the indignity and the offensiveness of their wild-eyed insanity. They’ve damaged the pride we used to feel when our nation represented the good guys on the national stage.

More importantly, we bear the real burdens of their misrule:

• The plunder of our national treasury; stealing our tax dollars to fill their pockets while depriving us of a government that serves us all,

• Unchecked inflation driven by Trump’s crazy tariffs,

• Sky-high gas prices (and groceries, and utility bills, and air travel, and computer chips, and farm inputs, and…) due to their war of choice against Iran that they have no strategy for ending and which leaves Iran with a stronger strategic hand than before, and

• The silence of Republican elected leaders in the face of this madness.

Get Loud

It’s time for us to take a page from the MAGA playbook and squeal ourselves, but with actual justification and bringing actual receipts.

• Complain to your neighbors and friends about whatever it is you are paying more for and make a direct connection to the policies that are responsible for those costs. Make it clear who is responsible.

• Whenever you fill up your tank, take a photo of the pump and post it online and thank Trump, MAGA, and your local Republican representative for the higher costs. (It costs me $20 more to fill up my tank than it did before Trump started the war against Iran.)

• Take a picture of your grocery receipts (remember to redact your card number) and do the same.

• Is your company requiring you to return to the office? Complain about the cost of child care or the cost of clothes and do it publicly.

Carver County has a beautiful and very popular system of nature trails. Take chalk with you the next time you go for a walk to leave messages along the trail (or other high-traffic areas). Paint messages on stones to leave along the trail. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Trumpflation Is Killing Us

• Republican Rule = High Prices

• Billionaires Got Deals. You Paid The Price.

• Vote Like Your Rent Depends On It

Be loud. Be persistant. And be clear about who you hold responsible.

Affordability Resources

For my day job, I have the privilege of being able to work on projects that leave the world in a little better place. In these trying times, many of us are going to need a little help to get by.

I’ve added two of those projects to our Mutual Aid page:

Get Gambling Help

In 1945, Minnesota partially legalized gambling by allowing charitable bingo to help nonprofits raise funds. Over the years, legal gambling expanded to the point where we are today with a state lottery, parimutual betting and tribal casinos.

Recognizing the risk of addiction to gambling, state legislators carved out set-aside funds from gambling revenue devoted to a program to oversee problem gambling prevention, education, and reimbursement for clinical treatment. Because gambling addiction is not heavily subsidized by federal healthcare funding, the state built a self-sustaining funding pipeline directly attached to gambling revenues.

Gambling addiction often causes a financial burden not only on the individual suffering from the addiction but on their families and loved ones as well.

That program runs a gambling helpline and its associated GetGamblingHelp.org website to promote free resources to help those struggling with gambling.

Quit Partner Minnesota

Quit Partner is Minnesota’s official, free state-run family of programs designed to help residents kick nicotine and commercial tobacco addictions, including smoking, vaping, and chewing.

The program relies on a mix of behavioral therapy and clinical treatment, offering flexible resources that let people “quit their way.”

• Free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT): For adults 18 and older, Quit Partner mails free two-week starter kits of patches, gum, or lozenges directly to their door (limited to two kits per person, per year).

• One-on-One Coaching: Enrollees get access to trained tobacco cessation coaches 24/7. Coaching can be done entirely over the phone, via live web chats, or through interactive texting.

• Digital Scaffolding: For those who prefer a self-guided approach, the program offers automated text messaging tracks and email programs designed to provide behavioral tips, daily motivation, and strategies to conquer cravings.

• Language Accessibility: Services are offered in multiple languages, utilizing specialized translation networks (like LanguageLine) to support Hmong, Somali, Spanish, and over 200 other spoken languages.

I personally took advantage of Quit Partner’s predecessor program, QuitPlan, to sucessfully quit smoking in 2001. Quitting now is a great way to free up budget for the higher costs of everything else.

That program was funded as a result of then-state Attorney General Skip Humphrey’s 1998 landmark settlement with the tobacco industry, which won $6.5 billion for the state of Minnesota and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota.

THAT is what it looks like when you hold power to account.

P.S., Uncle Sam is pretty pissed off about the cost of living, too!

I Need Your Help

My company has another project currently underway for which we are trying to recruit young Minnesotans (13-24) to provide their perspective in a cannabis-use research study.

Eligible participants will take part in a 90-minute virtual focus group or interview, for which they will receive a $75 gift card of their choice. It is a confidential and judgment-free discussion. You do not have to be a cannabis user to particpate. Visit YouthHealthMN.com for more information and to apply.

Below, I’ve included program flyers in English, Spanish, Somali and Hmong. Please share with your networks!

YouthHealthMN.co

It should be 80 and sunny for tomorrow’s rally!

See you there.

David

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Get angry!

I again started to get depressed these last few days. The constant, relentless barrage of insane news, ranging from threats here in Minnesota to our Boundary Waters and ICE ramping up again, to the news that a slush fund has been created and the official record of the crimes committed by the January 6th insurrectionists is being erased and they will be receiving money, to the insanity in Iran and Gaza. There is no letup, and there seems to be no limit to how low the administration can go.

One of our regular protestors now brings a whiteboard to the protest so she can change her sign weekly, because there is always something new.

As I was sitting on my couch staring at the news, I realized that I needed to change my feelings of sadness, fear, and depression into anger.

Sadness, fear, and depression are feelings that immobilize you. They make you freeze and stop you from doing things. Anger, on the other hand, makes you do things.

The majority of people in the USA are vastly underestimating how bad things really are. Many think that if we vote them out during the midterms, things will go back to normal. They won’t. So many things have been set in motion, rules and trust have been broken, and so much damage has been done that it will take decades to heal.

It’s time to get angry. Angry at the small group of powerful people who are dismantling the USA and its Constitution piece by piece. Get angry at the people who are destroying the rights so many have fought so hard for. Get angry that they want to put profit over the health of our people and our environment.

Anger puts us into motion. It requires action.

We have history on our side. What I mean by that is that we know how past dictators did this, and we also know how people resisted. We have the internet at our fingertips to rally all of us, to fight misinformation, and to make sure we are doing this together.

The first thing to get angry about in our local community is that they are planning another data center in Chaska. We now know what this does to our energy bills, our water, and our environment. We can stop this.

Contact Liz Hanson, city planner, at 952-448-9200 or email her at ehanson@chaskamn.gov, and contact all the city council members. Chaska does not want this!

Other things you can do are to find out what your local district is and educate yourself on who is running. Support those who are running by volunteering, putting up yard signs, and yes, donating money.

On Tuesday, Bountiful Baskets is coming to the SW Protectors meeting to explain to us how a food shelf actually works, where they get money from, what they can and can’t provide, and how the landscape is changing for our local families. I hope you can join us.

I am angry that funds are continuing to be cut, including SNAP benefits for children. As groceries continue to get more expensive, more and more people are having to ask for help.

This Saturday promises to be warm, so wear hats, put on sunscreen, and bring a cold drink. Get angry, and take action!

The resistance does not win through sadness or by ignoring what is happening around us. We win by fighting.

Let’s go!

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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On this 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding, and our present fight to preserve our nation, Memorial Day takes on an added and more urgent significance.

In addition to our fallen family and friends, we also honor the Revolutionary-heros who gave their lives to win our independence from a monarch.

We also honor our Union Blue soldiers who gave their lives to preserve the great American experiement in representative democracy and to end the fascism of the slave-holding south.

We also honor our GIs who gave their lives to literally defeat fascism and create the rules-based world order.

We also honor those who have given their lives since in the service of preventing World War III and defending the rights and freedoms we all enjoy and face such threat today.

Memorial Day is not an abstraction. It is a name carved into stone. It is a folded flag handed to a mother. It is a uniform hanging in a closet that nobody has worn since.

Tomorrow, our neighbors across the Southwest Metro are gathering to read those names out loud. Here is where you can stand with them.

Bloomington

The Bloomington American Legion Post 550 steps off at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, May 25, 2026, near Lyndale Avenue and Old Shakopee Road. The route runs south on Lyndale, beginning somewhere around 94th and Bryant, heading toward Bloomington Cemetery.

Map to staging area | Facebook event

Chanhassen

Cemetery honors begin at 7:45 a.m. at three sites: Leach Cemetery, Chanhassen Pioneer Cemetery, and St. Hubert’s Cemetery.

The main ceremony runs from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. at the Al Klingelhutz Memorial Pavilion, Lake Ann Park, 1456 West 78th Street. The keynote this year is Miki Huntington, a retired U.S. Army veteran. The pavilion is covered, with lights, electrical outlets, picnic tables, and portable restrooms. The city moved the ceremony here because construction is still tearing up the usual City Center Park area.

Map | Event page

Chaska

Morning honors start at 7:30 a.m. at the local cemeteries. The parade steps off at 10:00 a.m. from Chaska Boulevard and Pine Street and ends at Veterans Park, 619 Creek Road. The program follows at 10:15 a.m. Hosted by American Legion Post 57 and VFW 1791.

A practical note. Parking near Veterans Park will be tight. The city is asking people who can walk to park at Firemen’s Park and come over on foot. Wear shoes that can do the distance.

If it rains, the program moves to the Chaska VFW.

Map to parade start | Map to Veterans Park | Event details

Eden Prairie

11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., The Veterans Memorial at Purgatory Creek Park, 13001 Technology Drive.

The keynote is John Mallo. He is a longtime Eden Prairie resident and a U.S. Army veteran. He is also one of the people who helped bring this memorial into being in the first place.

The Eden Prairie Community Band will play. Local veterans will be recognized by name.

Parking at Purgatory Creek is limited. Restrooms are on site.

Map | City calendar

Excelsior

The South Lake Minnetonka Memorial Day program runs from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The opening program is at Excelsior Elementary School, 441 Oak Street, at 10:00 a.m. The parade steps off at 11:00 a.m. There is a gravesite ceremony at Oak Hill Cemetery, with a flyover tied to the parade and cemetery portion.

Map to the school | Event post | Chamber calendar

The Excelsior Streetcar Line Memorial Day Service runs 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Regular fares for the public. Veterans ride free with their families. The Minnesota Streetcar Museum opens the carbarn, runs the historic cars, and puts the history exhibits out.

The boarding platform is on Water Street next to the Excelsior Public Library, 337 Water Street. Two free parking lots in town, plus limited free on-street parking. One important note for families: the historic streetcars are not wheelchair accessible.

This is not a remembrance ceremony. It is a Memorial Day afternoon with kids on a streetcar and grandparents telling them what they remember. It counts.

Map to boarding | Museum page

Prior Lake

The parade starts at 9:00 a.m. from Twin Oaks Middle School, 15860 Fish Point Road SE, and heads west down 160th Street to Memorial Park / Veterans Memorial Park, 5181 Memorial Trail SE. A special dedication will be part of the program at the park.

The city and the VFW are running this one together. The detail on the program internals is thin in the public listings, so come ready for a ceremony of the customary shape: invocation, names, flag, music.

Map | Event post

Richfield

2:00 to 3:00 p.m. at the Honoring All Veterans Memorial, 6401 Portland Avenue South. The Richfield Symphonic Band will play. There is a Table of Remembrance, a color guard, an invocation, and a T-6 Thunder flyover. New names, freshly engraved, will be unveiled on the memorial.

Bring your own chair.

Here is the detail that matters and that almost no other city in this list bothered to publish: parking and wheelchair access is at the former American Legion post parking lot at 6429 Portland Avenue. If you or someone in your family needs that access, you know where to go.

Map | Event page

Shakopee

Cemetery honors begin at 7:30 a.m. The ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park starts at 10:00 a.m. The March to the Monument follows at 10:15 a.m. Memorial Park, 1801 County Highway 101 E.

Shakopee VFW Post 4046 and American Legion Post 2 share these duties in a yearly rotation. This year, the VFW is hosting. The post calls it “this solemn morning,” and that is exactly the right phrase for it.

The park has an open-air shelter, electricity, picnic tables, and portable restrooms.

Map | Event post

St. Louis Park

10:45 a.m. at Wolfe Park, at the Veterans Memorial Amphitheater. The St. Louis Park Community Band is playing at that exact time and location, and a public Memorial Day ceremony is listed for the same slot, so the program almost certainly braids the two together.

The accessible public documentation on this one is thinner than it should be for a city this size. The time and place are firm. The rest, come and see for yourself.

Map | Event post | Band page

One Last Thing

You do not need to know the right thing to say at a Memorial Day ceremony. Nobody does. You stand. You take your hat off. You listen when the names are read.

Pick the one closest to your house. Bring a kid.

These ceremonies happen because veterans and their families build them, every year, with folding tables and microphones that do not always work. They happen because neighbors show up.

David

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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I’ve been meaning to share this story about the Ghost Shoes project with you all.

Volunteers have installed 50 pairs of white shoes at locations throughout Minneapolis where ICE abducted people, the Star Tribune’s Alicia Eier reports.

On a fence at Valley View Elementary School in Columbia Heights, four pairs of small white shoes hang in a row. Kid-sized. Painted bone-white. No feet inside them.

One of those pairs belongs to Liam Ramos, the five-year-old boy who was detained alongside his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, by federal agents on January 20 at that approximate spot. You may remember the story. It drew international attention.

The shoes are still there.

They were hung by Anthony Marchetti, 47, of Minneapolis, and his son Luciano, 8. “We don’t want people to forget,” Anthony told the Star Tribune. “We want people to remember and to continue to fight injustice.”

Multiply that fence by fifty.

What the project is

The project is called ICE Ghost Shoes 26: A Remembrance, conceived by Minneapolis artist Laura Migliorino. Fifty pairs of white-painted shoes now mark Twin Cities locations where federal agents detained, shot, killed, or committed violence against someone during Operation Metro Surge. Each pair carries a tag with the date, a short description, and a QR code linking to @ghostshoesice26 on Instagram.

The project draws on a deep tradition: the Shoes on the Danube Bank in Budapest, the Stolpersteine plaques set into European sidewalks for deported Jews, the ghost bikes chained to telephone poles where cyclists were killed.

This is what civic art has always been for.

The next phase: installations across the rest of Minnesota, starting in July.

That includes here.

The Southwest Metro is not exempt

It would be easy, reading the Strib piece, to assume Operation Metro Surge happened somewhere else. Lake Street. North Minneapolis. The cities. Someone else’s neighborhood.

We know otherwise.

Federal agents operated in Eden Prairie. In Chanhassen. In Chaska. In Shakopee. Out at the construction sites and the auto shops and the cleaning company parking lots that keep this metro running. They sat in unmarked vehicles outside apartment complexes off Highway 5. They followed people home from second-shift jobs on Highway 41. Neighbors of yours watched it happen. Some of them stopped going to work. Some stopped going to church. Some are still gone.

If you have neighbors who were detained.

If you drive Highway 7 to work, you have driven past locations that belong on this map.

The shoes haven’t gone up here yet. They could. They should.

How you can help

Here is what we know about getting involved, based on what Migliorino and the organizers have said publicly:

Add a location. The project’s installation map is built from ICEout.org. If you witnessed an enforcement action in the Southwest Metro, or if you know of one that happened to someone in your neighborhood, you can add it to the map. The team is actively looking for sites in the rest of Minnesota for the July expansion.

Donate shoes. The project transforms donated footwear into ghost shoes by painting them white. Adult shoes, kid shoes, work boots. Anything that fits the foot of a real person who walked our streets.

Paint. Volunteers do the painting in groups. It is slow, deliberate work, and it is also community work. You meet people who care about the same things you do.

Install. Ten different groups of volunteers installed the first fifty pairs. When the project reaches the Southwest Metro, those installation teams will need people who know which fence, which signal pole, which stretch of sidewalk matters and why.

Follow and share. The project’s Instagram is @ghostshoesice26. Every QR code on every pair of shoes points back there. The more people who follow, the more the documentation travels.

Why this matters now

The administration would like Operation Metro Surge to fade. They would like the chaotic footage to slip out of the news cycle. They would like the kids who were taken from school pickup lines to become a story other people tell, somewhere else, about another time.

The shoes are how we refuse that.

Every pair on a fence is a small public sentence: Someone stood here. Federal agents came. We saw it. We will not let it disappear into the regular noise of the day.

That sentence belongs in Eden Prairie. It belongs in Chaska. In Shakopee. It belongs at the intersections you turn through on your way to soccer practice, because that is precisely where the people who do the work of this metro were targeted.

We have a chance, between now and July, to make sure the Southwest Metro is on the map when the next wave of installations begins.

If you witnessed an enforcement action in our area, or you know someone who did, report it to ICEout.org so the location gets on the installation map.

A pair of small white shoes on a fence is not much. It is also everything. It is the thing that says, decades from now, when someone walks their kid past that spot: This happened here. We remembered. We did not look away.

That memory is ours to build.

The Symbolic Power of Shoes

If you have seen Jojo Rabbit, you already know why shoes carry this kind of weight. (Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen that superb film, you might want to watch it first before reading the rest of this.)

Taika Waititi’s film follows a ten-year-old Hitler Youth recruit whose mother, Rosie, is secretly a member of the German resistance. We meet her shoes before we meet her face. The camera lingers on them, red and white, as she walks. Rosie ties Jojo’s laces over and over throughout the film. It is her small, stubborn act of love.

And then, late in the film, Jojo turns a corner in the town square and sees a pair of red and white shoes hanging above the cobblestones. The shoes are how he learns his mother has been hanged by the Gestapo. The camera holds on the shoes, not the body.

It is one of the most devastating images in modern cinema, and it works precisely because Waititi understood what every memorial artist understands: a shoe is the last honest record of a person. It holds the shape of who they were. It says they walked here, stood here, lived here.

At the end of the film, Jojo finally manages to tie a pair of shoes himself, the red ones, now on the feet of Elsa, the Jewish girl his mother hid. He has grown up. He has chosen humanity. The shoes carry that, too.

This is what the Ghost Shoes are doing on our fences. They are not abstractions. They are the shape of a neighbor who was here.

See you all tomorrow!

David

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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I came up with the name “Protectors” because each one of us is trying to protect someone or something by speaking out: The Constitution, bodily autonomy, the environment, our transgender friends and family, and family members, friends, and co-workers who have come from different countries, and so much more. It is all under attack, and it is all happening at once.

Why We Show Up

Our voting rights are being threatened and, with them, our ability to have any say in how we want to be governed. Free press and free speech used to be real things, and it has amazed me how fast that has been eroded. News stations are not airing stories so as not to offend the Trump regime, glossing over the truth instead of digging deep to bring to light what is really happening.

I hope you are reading and listening to news sources that try to give you real news and not infotainment. I hope you are not just listening to quick sound bites, but are trying to understand the history behind the issues being discussed.

The blatant disregard for the Constitution and what the USA stands for is astonishing, but there is good news. People are not happy. I know it seems like our pro-democracy rally has been small every week and that support is waning, but in actuality, more and more people are unhappy about what is happening and, if given the chance, will vote against the regime in the next election. They may not come out on Saturdays, but they will show up at the polls.

Supporting Candidates and Spreading the Word

We need to make sure we are all able to vote safely and fairly, and we need to make sure people know who to vote for. I know in my neighborhood many people do not yet know that Joe Brothers is running for House District 48A or that Doug Chapin wants to unseat Emmer.

We need to spread the word. Some people are doing door knocking, but even putting up a yard sign can make a big difference and help build name recognition down the line.

On Tuesday, Dan and Michelle Kessler will be at The Bellows for the Southwest Protectors meeting to discuss what you and I can do to help.

Help Needed

I am looking for help. I am overwhelmed with all the events and activities happening, and I would love it if someone could help keep track of candidate events, volunteer opportunities, and fundraisers so we can continue making you aware of them. Please let me know if you are able to send me a list of events each week that I can pass along to everyone.

Important Safety Reminder

I also wanted to make you all aware that a well-known agitator has stated he is interested in coming to our area to bully our patriots. He specifically mentioned the Waconia protest, and since we are close by, I am sure we are on his list too.

My first ask is that, if you are able, please come support the Waconia protest from 11:30 to 12:30.

Second, DO NOT engage with him in any way. He wants publicity for his YouTube channel, and if we do not give him reactions, he has nothing to work with.

Remember that we are in a public area and he has every right to be there. If he starts yelling or screaming obscenities, that is his right. Just remember that you cannot reason with him, and if you give him attention, he will profit from it. I know I do not want this person making any money from our reactions.

Our security team has pictures of him and a description so we know who to look out for.

Bring the Patriotism

As we get closer to Memorial Day, many stores are selling items with flags and patriotic themes. I hope you will bring those things to the rally so people can see that we are fighting for the United States. I bought some flag hats and fans myself to help deal with the heat in the upcoming months.

Keep Going

If you are feeling defeated by the amount of absolutely batshit crazy stuff the Trump regime is currently doing, please remember that they are desperate, and the more desperate they become, the more unhinged their actions will be as they try to hold on to power.

We will protect.

See you Saturday.

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Sorry for the very short letter today. I am dealing with possible pneumonia and am exhausted from all the coughing.

Last Saturday there were 260 of you, and this weekend the weather will be absolutely amazing. I am hoping you get out, recharge in the sun, and get ready for a long fight.

The Voting Rights Act is no more, and the aggressive way the Trump regime is trying to obtain various voter roll information shows they will stop at nothing to prevent us from having a free and fair election. Why? Because they know we will win.

Check your voter registration at least once a month, as there have been reports all over the U.S. of registrations disappearing. You can do this at mnvotes.sos.mn.gov.

I know that there have been a number of kids on bikes and scooters at the protests. Please be aware of your surroundings, as I do not want anyone to be accidentally hit by them. I also know the things they say and how they behave can be very frustrating.

I know they have been filming us, so please do not give them any reason to complain to authorities about us, because that would be a PR nightmare.

Remember that we are on a public way, and they have as much right to be there as we do. Their behavior is a direct reflection of their parents, and all we can do is deal with it.

I wish you all a great weekend!

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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Today’s newsletter will be a short one. I, too, am tired.

The last many months have been difficult on a personal level, from losing my father to ICE activity in Minnesota the week I came back. I have been going non-stop, fighting ICE, volunteering at Latino Voices, and so much more. I try to take a deep breath and not let the news overwhelm me. I look for hope, and I see it every week when we all come together.

But these past months have taken a toll on me, and the barrage of news is affecting me too.

In the next few weeks, you will see less of me, and there will be fewer newsletters. I apologize for that. I need a little time to recharge. I will still have one newsletter per week, and yes, we still have the SW Protectors. You will see me at the protests, just not every time.

We have such amazing volunteers, and I am so thankful to them and to all of you. We are going to keep protecting democracy and standing up for what is right.

Kohl’s has asked that we leave parking by the front of their store for paying customers, so please try to keep the first several rows available.

The amazing Ivy has started a free clothing closet, but she needs your help. She is looking for several shelves for her garage to store all the donations. If you can, please Venmo her at @ivydawnjohnson so she can store and organize them. It would be really helpful, as several organizations have already reached out to her for clothes.

Ivy would also love help sorting and organizing. You can contact her via the Free Clothing Closet Facebook page. Or let me know, and I can put you in touch with her.

She is not accepting new clothes right now, as she needs storage racks first.

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

Leave a comment

257 people showed up on Saturday. The wind was low, the temperature was wonderful, and we stayed dry, which I call a win.

On Saturday, a black car with blacked-out windows drove by with a loudspeaker, yelling at us. It then turned into the parking lot and slowly made one loop between our cars as people were walking back. Most probably did not notice it or could not make out what was being said. I won’t repeat what they called us.

I am glad no one reacted or engaged. Because of this, they left feeling small and ignored. I thought of them as cowards; anonymous in a blacked-out car, while we stand out there every week, same time and place, with our faces and our voices. What a contradiction.

It takes courage to do what you do every single week.

On Courage, Big and Small

The big protests are wonderful. There are many of us at those, and that makes things easier. But showing up every week, even when the numbers are small, takes real courage.

The Norwood Young America protest is small, held Sunday late morning in a more conservative part of our county. Typically, it has 10–20 people. Waconia is also in a more conservative area, and because there are fewer protesters, there is more of that same cowardly behavior.

A new protest has started in Victoria on Wednesdays from 4:30 to 5:30 at the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive.

And lastly, the person who, to me, shows the most courage is Ellie Krug, who stands in downtown Chaska on Fridays from 3–4. Usually she is alone, though recently two others have joined her. It takes so much to stand there, holding a sign and remaining open to whatever pushback may come.

Grace Under Pressure

Recently, a group of trolls found her Facebook account, and the things people have said have been horrible. Ellie has kept her grace and invites anyone who wants a civil conversation to meet with her over coffee. No one has taken her up on that offer.

It is easier to yell from a car or type a one-sentence slogan on a Facebook post, something that falls apart if actually examined closely.

Why We Show Up

None of us standing on the side of the road are there because of a sudden decision that the opposition is simply stupid. We came to this after looking at the facts and seeing how things are affecting us, our neighbors, our country, and our world.

It’s not easy to come week after week. We stand there in the rain, the cold, or the hot summer sun, taking time out of our precious weekends because this is too important to ignore. It takes courage to face the facts, rather than look away or ignore the real consequences of what is happening.

Every week, you tell me how overwhelming the constant onslaught of terrible news is. Yes, we are exhausted. I know I am.

But we keep showing up.

That, my friends, is true courage.

For Everyone

To face the problem head-on and try to change it for the better, for everyone. Not just for us, but even for the person who drives by giving us the finger. We are trying to protect them too, from an emerging surveillance and police state, from a country where freedom no longer means what it once did.

We are trying to protect them from higher medical bills, from losing their, and our, right to free speech. We are trying to make sure we all have clean water to drink and science to help us live better lives.

The resistance is for everyone.

Events

Tomorrow on Tuesday, April 28 beginning at 9 am, the Carver County Board of Commissioners will host a working session during which, according to the agenda, there will be an “Elections update”:

Cc Board Of Commissioners Elections Update 04

810KB ∙ PDF file

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On Wednesday, April 29, 6:30 - 8:30 Joe Brothers is hosting his campaign kickoff in Waconia. Joe is running against Representative Jim Nash in House District 48A. [Details]

Judith

Chaska Protests

Every Friday from 3:00–4:00 p.m. at the corner of Chaska Blvd. and Chestnut Street (Highway 41) [Map]

Every Saturday from 1-2 pm at the corner of Hazeltine Boulevard and Highway 41 (Chestnut) [Map]

Chanhassen Protests

Every Saturday from 10-11 am at 7700 Market Boulevard [Map] Public parking is available behind City Hall.

Norwood Young America

Every Sunday, 11 a.m.–12 p.m. (Line up at the bike path south of Highway 212 and Faxon.)

Victoria

Every Wednesday from 4:30-5:30 pm on the corner of Highway 5 and Victoria Drive/County Rd 11.

Waconia

Every Saturday from 11:30-12:30 pm at Highway 5 and County Road 10 in front of the Starbucks and Jersey Mike’s. [Map]

SW Protectors

Every first and third Tuesday from 6:30 – 8:00 pm. It’s no cost and come and go as you like.

Please do buy something to eat or drink, though, to support our venue, which is The Bellows restaurant and it’s located at 232 Pioneer Trail in Chaska.

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