NSS Weekly: A Look at Minneapolis Six Years After the Murder of George Floyd

Transcript

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INTRO: You are listening to North Star Stories: Voices from Where We Live, a newscast about what it means to live in Minnesota, produced by AMPERS, with support from the McKnight Foundation and the State of Minnesota.

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HOST: This is North Star Stories: Voices from Where We Live. I'm Gracie J.

This week, six years after the murder of George Floyd, we take you back to the neighborhood to hear how the community is coping and report on the progress that's finally being made to create a permanent memorial at George Floyd Square. Then, we reflect on how the incident changed the way local media covers stories from Minnesota's diverse communities. And we'll have a conversation about how art can be used as a force for healing and moving forward. But first, here are some of the stories that made the headlines this week.

As the legislative session came to an end, lawmakers used the final hours to move several major bills across the finish line. From bills allowing grocery stores to donate eggs after the quality assurance date to new rules on social media accounts for kids and a higher education finance bill. And after being hit hard by federal cuts, the state legislature finds a way to help some of Minnesota's smallest broadcasters.

REP. GINNY KLEVORN: We have the AMPER'S funding, which will keep our public, non-commercial radio stations viable.

HOST: That includes $1.8 million for small TV stations and $100,000 for community radio stations.

As wildfires start burning up north of the state, a bill passed on the final day of the legislature will help restore and protect nearly 69,000 acres of Minnesota habitat. The $191 million legacy package supports 53 projects through the state's Outdoor Heritage Fund. That includes prairie chicken and trout stream protection, wetland and forest restoration, invasive carp prevention and new access to conservation grants for more urban and suburban communities. DFL Representative Samantha Vang says the investment is meant to last.

REP. SAMANTHA VANG: It is really, truly a legacy for our next generation of kids, farmers, and the public.

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Well, six years after George Floyd's murder, the future of the square that bears his name is beginning to take shape. Construction is about to begin in that part of South Minneapolis. A development partner has been selected for the People's Way gas station site, but community caretakers are still asking what the space will become. Reporter Katharine DeCelle visited the site and spoke with community members and officials about what's next for George Floyd Square.

MAESTRO: How y'all doing? All is well. I'm the caretaker here, landscaper. My name is Maestro. Doing an interview with a radio, so yeah, yeah.

KATHARINE DECELLE: At the intersection of 38th and Chicago avenues in South Minneapolis, Maestro sits in the middle of the George Floyd Square memorial space. He's surrounded by planter boxes he built himself, filled with flowers, greenery, and young trees. At his feet sits a chess board, where he plays matches with neighbors and visitors. Music plays from a portable speaker. Nearby rests a kettle of tea next to notebooks. He has filled with sketches and ideas for a memorial space that he hopes one day will become a reality. Maestro has spent the last year volunteering as a caretaker at George Floyd Square. He says he felt the space had been neglected.

MAESTRO: It needed some upkeep. It needed some cleaning. It needed some evicting of energy. It needed some life and some love.

KATHARINE DECELLE: For years after the 2020 uprising, the square became a gathering place for mourners, activists, tourists, and neighbors. But Maestro says the space also struggled with open drug use, vandalism and safety concerns.

MAESTRO: Minnesota has failed this space the past five years. It was worn out teddy bears, fake flowers, or memorials still sitting on the ground, it hasn't been up kept, no maintenance.

KATHARINE DECELLE: He says his connection to this space is deeply personal. His uncle was murdered blocks away decades ago. His sister died nearby in 2017. He says he felt called to care for this space and the people who come here.

MAESTRO: So, I started out with keeping it clean first, and that was the beginning of the journey. I know I was going to have to run into news reporters, tourists, visitors, businessmen, addicts, pedestrians. I didn't know all these things were in play of this.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Every day for the past year, he arrives around 11 in the morning and waters plants, cleans the memorial, talks with visitors, and tends to the gardens.

MAESTRO: I basically told George Floyd that I'm gonna turn it into a forest, treat it like sacred land and keep it clean.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Maestro is entering his ideas for the space into a competition for the design of a permanent memorial. The competition is put on by the nonprofit Rise and Remember, one of the leading groups helping preserve the space.

MAESTRO: I'm gonna have a beautiful forest here by 2028. Hopefully I win.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Winners of the design competition will be announced next month. While Maestro is preparing to submit his proposal for the memorial, the city of Minneapolis is preparing to begin major street and infrastructure reconstruction in the area. Adam Hayow is an engineer with Minneapolis Public Works.

ADAM HAYOW: The project will be built over two years in 2026 and 2027. Phase one this year will begin in June.

KATHARINE DECELLE: For the past five years, the city has been soliciting feedback from the community for the future of George Floyd Square. Some community members want the intersection permanently closed to traffic and viewed as sacred ground. Others want transit and businesses restored. The City of Minneapolis says conversations with community members have shaped their upcoming construction plans.

ADAM HAYOW: Process was a very thorough and intensive process of getting feedback, and it focused mainly on pedestrian safety, traffic calming, preserving memorial space within the project design for turning transit back to the corridor. Transit was a huge feedback we received bringing the D line service back to Chicago Avenue.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Minneapolis will begin major reconstruction around the square in just a few weeks. That work includes new sidewalks, bike lanes, accessible ramps, and the return of bus service to Chicago Avenue, which has not been in service since 2020. Mary Altman runs the city of Minneapolis' public art program. Her job includes preserving city art and memorials.

MARY ALTMAN: Almost immediately after George Floyd was murdered, people began putting memorials on sidewalks and in the street. I've been involved since then, just monitoring what's happening, communicating with the caretakers, and involved in planning the construction project, and how memorials need to be temporarily moved during construction.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Altman says that input from the dedicated volunteer caretakers of the memorial has shaped how the city will care for the memorial's artwork and offerings during construction.

MARY ALTMAN: It's our goal to maintain an active memorial space during construction. Memorials may need to be moved to another area within the square during construction, because they're sitting on sidewalks and streets, which are the surfaces that are getting reconstructed.

KATHARINE DECELLE: Meanwhile, another major piece of the future is now moving forward. The City of Minneapolis recently recommended the Minnesota Agape Movement as the development partner for the People's Way site, the former gas station property across the street from the memorial. Agape Movement is a Minneapolis-based organization led by CEO Reginald Ferguson. The current George Floyd Square caretaker, Maestro, says he's excited to see Agape develop the site.

MAESTRO: Oh, he's from this community, got long history. Reggie is the perfect person. Agape, I swear, Reggie is the one guy I am very proud, because it's a man, which melanated man, that knows about the situation. So that made me so happy. I got him a card, got people to sign the card, got him a balloon.

KATHARINE DECELLE: In a statement after winning the recommendation, Agape organizer Bridgette Stewart said Agape's plan for the site is centered on healing, unity, economic opportunity, and honoring the significance and legacy connected to the space. The city says Agape will now work with community members over the next several years to create a development plan for the former gas station. Soon, construction crews will break ground and rebuild the streets. Busses will travel down Chicago Avenue again, and new plans for the People's Way site will move forward. But for many people here, like Maestro, the square remains more than blueprint plans. It's a place where grief, protest, healing, and community continue to meet. Maestro says caring for the space and the people who visit it is part of his life's purpose.

MAESTRO: This is my dreams. Yeah, I've been waiting all my life for this. It's work but let your life be worth living. Let it be something that's raising the vibrations and frequencies on a planet.

KATHARINE DECELLE: For North Star Stories, I'm Katharine DeCelle.

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HOST: The events of six years ago put parts of Minneapolis in the national headlines, but after the cameras left, the troubling situation continued for many of the businesses and communities surrounding the area where Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd. We're joined now by Allison Sharkey, the executive director of the Lake Street Council. The council advocates for and supports the diverse business community along Minneapolis's Lake Street corridor, which suffered an estimated $500 million in damages during the civil unrest following the murder of George Floyd. Thank you so much for joining us today, Allison.

ALLISON SHARKEY: Thank you for having me, Gracie.

HOST: Because of what happened in 2020 and even more so with Operation Metro Surge earlier this year, how has that affected the recovery of the area?

ALLISON SHARKEY: So recovery has come in waves, and initially there were over 500 businesses that were shut down, and over two dozen buildings that were, that were burned and were unusable or gone. And what was really incredible is that almost every small business that could made the decision to come back, and that was mostly due to those entrepreneurs' commitment to continuing to be part of this community and wanting to reinvest in it and be here. And it was also thanks to this rich partnership that built amongst nonprofit organizations, the foundation community, and just everyday supporters from the community that came out determined to help this community rebuild. There were three values that were really established for what rebuilding should look like. And the first was to bring businesses back and continue to make sure that this is a place where homegrown small businesses could have a place and thrive. The second was to keep it in local hands, prevent large scale gentrification. And then the third was to make sure that there was increased ownership opportunity, especially for black entrepreneurs and also immigrant entrepreneurs as well, and we've seen success in all of those areas.

HOST: So going back to what happened in 2020 with the murder of George Floyd and the civil unrest that followed, what do you think the city learned from what happened, especially with your expertise with the Lake Street corridor?

ALLISON SHARKEY: I think there was a lot that was learned in terms of how our police department needed to make really significant change to make sure that this didn't happen again. Outside of that, I think that we learned a lot as a community around how to come together and get things done collectively. That experience of coming together intentionally in response in 2020 is really what helped us successfully get through Operation Metro Surge, and is what really helped us make history in terms of the resistance that was organized here, as well as the mutual aid networks that really helped people survive through this time.

HOST: What should listeners know about that specific part of the city?

ALLISON SHARKEY: To me, Lake Street kind of represents the American Dream and the ability of people to come here and make a better life for themselves. We've seen waves of migration from other parts of the country and from other countries that have really defined Lake Street from over 100 years ago when businesses like Ingebretsen's first opened. And you know that's partly why when our Somali Minnesotan brothers and sisters were scapegoated that everyone knew here what those neighbors bring to this community, the investment and new life that they've brought to Lake Street over the last 15 or so years.

HOST: So, what do you think still needs to happen for the area to fully recover?

ALLISON SHARKEY: First of all, just need people to come and shop and eat out in the area. Businesses have been through so much since 2020 and now again in this, this last year. So, really, that commitment that we saw when mutual aid was really at its peak, that intentionality around putting your dollar where it can make the most difference for your community. That's really what we need to see. In addition, we need support from our foundation, corporate, and government sectors. We still have a lot of businesses that are really hurting, you know, their sales were down anywhere from 20% to 100% across the board. And so we're going to be looking for new ways to bring in subsidies to help those businesses get through, because that's what we do in Minnesota whenever there's a disaster.

HOST: Well, thank you so much for your time today, Allison. We really appreciate it.

ALLISON SHARKEY: Thank you for having me.

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HOST: After the break, how the murder of George Floyd changed the local media landscape. This is North Star Stories: Voices from Where We Live, produced by AMPERS with support from the McKnight Foundation and the State of Minnesota. We'll be right back.
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HOST: You are listening to North Star Stories. I'm Gracie J.

We continue our special edition for the sixth anniversary of the killing of George Floyd with a look at the impact on local media. The incident drew the attention of the nation and the world to the struggles of South Minneapolis, and it also sparked a response from local news organizations and community journalists who took to the streets to tell their side of the story. One of those projects was Racial Reckoning: The Arc of Justice, a journalism initiative created by AMPERS, the Minnesota Humanities Center, and member station KMOJ. The project covered the trials of the former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd's murder. That project eventually became what is now North Star Stories. To learn more about how local media changed, we're joined now by Harry Colbert Jr., vice president of programming and editorial at the Center for Broadcast Journalism in St. Paul. An award-winning journalist and editor, he provided on-the-ground reporting and commentary on George Floyd's murder and its aftermath. Thank you so much for joining us today.

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: Thank you.

HOST: Now you were at the center during the events of the summer of 2020. How was that experience for you, and how do you think it changed you as a journalist?

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: I don't know how it changed me as a journalist, because unfortunately prior to May 25 of 2020 we had November 15 of 2015 when Jamar Clark was killed. We had July 6 of 2016 when Philando Castile was killed. I covered all of those, so the experience of George Floyd's murder was this continuation of trauma in covering these deaths at the hands of law enforcement. So I don't know that it changed me in particular, but it obviously changed the world.

HOST: As we mentioned, many Black and Indigenous journalists of color have continued their careers documenting and covering the lives and experiences of diverse communities in the state. Do you think the media is now more representative of diverse perspectives, or are we still lacking in those stories?

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: We're absolutely lacking. I coined a phrase many, many years ago, and I called it the 10-minute revolution, and to me that's kind of what happened after the killing of George Floyd. Is there was a rush to say, hey, this is outrageous, something needs to be done, and in the immediacy, something was done. Commitments were made through local government, state government commitments were made throughout corporations in the nation. But as we've seen, those commitments have been backed off on. I ended up at a media outlet, and they are a nonprofit media organization that had no black leadership ever in its history of the organization, and they had to answer to their board and funders at that time. That was again four years ago, and now we've seen that that pressure has lessened, and therefore there aren't as many organizations that are still holding themselves accountable.

HOST: With the rapid growth of social media, more people are getting their news from TikTok and YouTube. How is that affecting the news landscape?

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: We're in a changing landscape, and I think it's actually in many ways for the better. Understand that we don't get a George Floyd, Derek Chauvin conviction if it's not for social media. So we're understanding that there's a shift, and the shift is to independent news, independent media, independent journalism, and I think that we're seeing some of the best journalism to come out of that space, whether it is the president of my organization, Georgia Fort, who's doing an excellent job in independent media. You have so many people on a national scale who've gone independent, Joy Reid, Aaron Parnas, and so many others that are breaking stories that the majors won't touch. So I'm really hopeful that this new direction in media is what will break through to help save democracy, as I sadly feel now it is being stripped away day by day, actually minute by minute.

HOST: Did the events of 2020 prepare journalists for Operation Metro Surge?

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: I think it helped prepare journalists somewhat. What happened in 2020 was protest on a massive scale, and journalists in America, in particular, weren't used to that type of coverage. When I was covering the events of 2020 and then later on in 2021 during the killing of Daunte Wright, which happened at the same time as the Derek Chauvin trial, it was as if we were reporting in a war-torn environment, and that was something highly unique for a lot of us American journalists. So, moving forward to the 2025-2026 Operation Metro Surge, we had some inkling of what to do as a journalist. It was also kind of awe-inspiring to see how many people were so committed to their belief that ICE had well overstepped its bounds, that they were willing to be out there as well for those many hours in sub-degree temperatures.

HOST: How do you see the future of journalism in the state in the next five years, especially for Black, Indigenous, and journalists of color?

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: More of us in the field, more of us in leadership. We in Minnesota, we have about 3% of journalists that are black, and that is a paltry number. So, what we're doing at the Center for Broadcast Journalism is trying to train the next crop of journalists to come through and to join us and eventually take our places, because without the representation you're not going to get the stories that need to be told. We cover a lot of trauma, and a lot of trauma is being told about our communities, but there's joy, there's beauty, there's hope, and sometimes those stories never break through, because there isn't a - I won't say willingness, but there isn't a curiosity to go and search out those stories. I call it mind over matter. Sometimes they don't mind because they don't necessarily think that we matter. So that's what I'm hoping to see.

HOST: Thank you so much for joining us today.

HARRY COLBERT, JR.: Thank you.

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After the events of the summer of 2020, artists decorated the corner of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue with murals, altars, sculptures, and other works of art meant to help the community understand the moment and begin healing. To this day, those expressions remind us of that time and invite us to keep reflecting on what it meant for Minnesota. Our next guest is Carolyn Holbrook, a writer, educator, and advocate for the healing power of the arts. She is the author of the memoir Tell Me Your Names, and I Will Testify and co-editor of the essay collection We Are Meant to Rise: Voices for Justice from Minneapolis to the World. She is also the founder and director of More Than a Single Story, and a 2025 McKnight Distinguished Artist. Thank you so much for being with us today, Carolyn.

CAROLYN HOLBROOK: Thanks for having me.

HOST: How can we see the healing power of art, from writing to painting to drawing to singing?

CAROLYN HOLBROOK: There's something about self-expression that is just magical and just extremely, I keep saying healing, but it's bigger than that. It's very therapeutic to just sort of pick up a paint brush and start painting, or just pick up a pen and start writing, or you know, work on your computer, or dance, just move your body. There's something about getting all of the tension and stress out of your body that really is very healing and calming. I like to quote Octavia Butler. I do it all the time. It's one of my mantras that she said in Parable of the Sower, her very, very prophetic book that she wrote about today's time before she died. And she said, "Sometimes writing about a thing makes it easier to stand." I really believe that, and I've seen it in my own life, and as well as many other people that I work with. I mean, even as you look across time, you see the artwork that came out, and some of the poetry from centuries ago is being used today to, you know, say, "See, we're still here, folks, we're still alive."

HOST: You know, you wrote an open letter in Literary Hub reflecting on the federal occupation earlier this year, saying that Minnesota had been here before. Can you explain what you meant for our listeners?

CAROLYN HOLBROOK: When I saw the DOJ report talking about how police brutality in Minnesota has been, I mean, they, they talked about it, as though it was new. And I think a lot of people in the Twin Cities and the state of Minnesota did believe that it was new. But it wasn't, not at all. I think most people in the Black and Native American communities, which are the ones they pointed out, which received the most, I guess I'll just say police brutality, is not a new thing to us at all. It was like, wow, finally people get to see that it's not just in big cities in New York and Chicago and LA and in the South. It's right here in the great state of Minnesota, and it's about time that folks have recognized that. So for George Floyd to be murdered right on the corner of 38th and Chicago, and for Darnella Frazier, that girl, I mean, she deserves so much praise for recording it and putting it out there, because finally people believed us, just like what happened with Renee Good and Alex Pretti, you could see it, it's been here all the time.

HOST: So, how can we see then the healing power of art in this moment in Minnesota?

CAROLYN HOLBROOK: Just look around you, it's everywhere, it's everywhere. My daughter just sent me this morning a notice about little paint and sip sessions that are happening at a coffee shop in Northeast Minneapolis. People are doing art everywhere. There's this amazing video of 90 seconds of a dance group in New York. Their dance is called Resistance Dance, and they have 22 dancers who represent the 22 days between the time that Renee Good and Alex Pretty were killed, and they create this amazing video that just ends with, that just makes you gasp. What I mean, we have set the stage for the entire world, I think, to see what one little community can do. Because when you go back, if you go and visit the sites where Renee Good, George Floyd, Alex Pretti were murdered, you will see art everywhere, people just leaving creations, leaving flowers, leaving paintings, leaving just beautiful little poems to say, "Hey, we see you, we know, we know you were here, look what you did for our community." It's really sad, and yet at the same time it's powerful, the way that these horrible tragedies have brought us together, and the way that we're creating in the midst of it, and as a result of it, you just, if you just check Instagram, Facebook, everything, you see that these little art things are happening everywhere, and in their open invitations, come paint with me. Those are some of the ways that art is healing us through this stuff.

HOST: Thank you so much, Carolyn, for coming on here.

CAROLYN HOLBROOK: Thanks for inviting me.

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That's it for today's program. If you missed any part of today's newscast, you can find this and past episodes at AMPERS.org or listen to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts. You can also get North Star Stories daily on our website or check your favorite station's schedule. Thanks for listening, and we'll be back next week with more stories and voices from the North Star State.

OUTRO: North Star Stories is produced by AMPERS, diverse radio for Minnesota's communities, with support from the McKnight Foundation and the State of Minnesota. Online at AMPERS.org.