Spring 2021

As we write, we do so with deep sadness in the wake of the Brooklyn Center police shooting of Daunte Wright following a traffic stop on Sunday, April 11th. We send our condolences to his family and the communities that are daily impacted by state and police violence. We demand an end to violence against communities of color and we stand in solidarity with those doing the work to create communities that are safe for BIPOC communities.

We also find ourselves two-weeks into the Derek Chauvin trial for the murder of George Floyd. The prosecution will rest their case shortly, the defense will begin later this week, and closing arguments are anticipated on Monday, April 19th. At the same time, the protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder continue and new protests have been ignited in the wake of Daunte Wright’s death.

In light of these events and the precipitous rise in anti-Asian violence, the ICW in partnership with the Race, Indigeneity, Gender & Sexuality Studies Initiative (RIGS) at the University of Minnesota convened three spring teach-ins. These teach-ins put scholars, activists, and students conversant with the Chauvin trial; active in the ongoing social protest and police reform movements taking place across our cities and campuses; and positioned to place both the trial and these movements in a broader historical context, in conversation with each other and our campus and urban communities.