My Last Few Days In Minneapolis Have Been Eye Opening

In addition to working in radio, I am employed by an environmental remediation firm as well.  We do all kinds of environmental testing and clean-up work primarily within a few hours of the Duluth area.  On Friday morning we got a call to head down to Minneapolis to help with haz-waste disposal in buildings that were impacted by the recent events in the area.

As almost everyone knows, on May 25th, 2019, George Floyd's life was takin by a Minneapolis police officer.  His unwarranted and beyond wrong murder has been followed by many nights of peaceful protests.  With that came some rioting and destruction by some who may or may not have been part of the peaceful parts of the days.  Some of those businesses hired out cleaning crews to handle items that may be hazardous and require disposal.

I got to Minneapolis on Friday evening and was instantly saddened by what I saw.  A little bit because of the destruction which made me feel for the whole situation.  Mostly I was saddened by the residents in the area that were around.  A lot of people were just milling around and looked heartbroken, lost, hopeless, and sad.  I can't help but feel compassion for those in the heart of what's gone on.  It's tough to imagine being in a community that has had so much happen to it.  George Floyd's death as inexcusable, but the community destruction is horrible too.  People who shopped local because that's their only option have lost a lot of those avenues.  People can't get their medications, can't shop their local grocery or corner stores and again, I can't imagine how much despair they feel.

I even had the chance to chat with some locals and some had a lot to say and others just about had tears describing what's going on.  Besides just issues with minorities and the police, there is such a deeper systemic problem in our country.  I know there isn't one right answer but if anything comes out of the destruction and the taking of George Floyd's life, hopefully it's at least a start to some change for the better.