‘We can do hard things’: The impact of ICE enforcement on the arts
Go Deeper.
Create an account or log in to save stories.
Like this?
Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.
The Saturday morning that federal officers shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, students were in class, a few blocks away, at the Children’s Theatre Company.
“We finished the classes that we could and safely got those children home,” says Ryan French, the theater’s managing director.
French says the theater was included in the safety perimeter set by the National Guard on Jan. 24 around the area of the federal shooting in the Whittier neighborhood.
For the safety of staff, performing artists and patrons, the theater decided to cancel all four of that weekend’s performances of “Go, Dog. Go! (Ve Perro ¡Ve!)," a bilingual play based on the 1961 book of the same name.
Turn Up Your Support
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
“It’s a really special show,” French says. “But we knew we had to do that, given everything that was happening, that the shooting happened only three blocks away, so it was not a safe place.”
The neighborhood was not safe
Children’s Theatre is one of many arts organizations and spaces, in the vicinity of the shooting as well as across the Twin Cities, that have been impacted by the actions of federal immigration enforcement.
On Jan. 24, Minneapolis Institute of Art, which shares a building with Children’s Theatre, also announced a sudden closure for the weekend.
“Our priority was the safety of our visitors, staff, and the collection, and we decided to close out of an abundance of caution,” said Mia director and president Katie Luber in a statement to MPR News.
By noon that day, the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, which is on the same block as Mia, announced the school would shelter in place.
“The safety of MCAD students, staff and faculty is the highest priority for us. We are currently under a ‘shelter in place’ order by our Campus Safety until the scene is deemed safe and clear,” said a statement that Annie Gillette Cleveland, MCAD vice president of external relations, shared with MPR News.
The shelter-in-place order was lifted later that day, but MCAD announced the cancellation of all classes for the following week, and that classes for Feb. 2-13 would be virtual.
The Icehouse music club is one block north on Nicollet Avenue from the Pretti killing. Owner Brian Liebeck says they decided immediately to cancel the weekend shows.
“It was just a no-brainer — just fearing for the worst, thinking about everyone’s safety,” Liebeck says. “It would just be disingenuous to be trying to throw any kind of an event with what was going on.”
Liebeck says in addition to the community impact, the cancellations likely cost the venue around $40,000. For the Children’s Theatre, Ryan French says show cancellations would cost about $50,000 in lost revenue if they cannot reschedule.
“The reality was the neighborhood was not safe, and we don't know how many people are choosing not to come to the Children’s Theatre or to the neighborhood or to the other arts organizations nearby, because of this perception and because of the actuality of what happened,” French says.
Arts in a time of crisis
Arts organizations beyond the Whittier neighborhood have also been affected. The Guthrie Theater, First Avenue and the Walker Art Center all canceled events.
The weekend of the Pretti killing, Theater Mu, an Asian American theater organization in St. Paul, canceled the remainder of its annual New Eyes Festival with the Playwrights’ Center.
That Sunday, the festival was set to feature a world premiere reading of “Hmong Futures” by Twin Cities playwright Katie Ka Vang, a play celebrating the 50th anniversary of the arrival of Hmong communities in Minnesota, as well as the next 50 years.
“Knowing that there are these agents going around saying, ‘Where are the Asians? Where are the Hmong?’ — it did not feel like it was responsible for us to wave a flag saying, ‘Over here,’” says Fran de Leon, artistic director for Theater Mu.
“At the same time, not wanting to be forced to go underground. Obviously, we want the community to come out and see this. We want to be able to celebrate the Hmong community. When can we do that without putting anybody's lives in jeopardy? I don’t know.”
“Hmong Futures” is currently scheduled to open April 9.
The Pillsbury House + Theatre is about three blocks away from where an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Macklin Good on Jan. 7.
“The impacts are real and multi-faceted and layered, and many of the impacts are hard to even necessarily quantify,” says Signe Harriday, senior artistic producing director for Pillsbury House + Theatre. “Trauma is showing up in every corner of our work, whether it’s with our participants, our families, our artists, our kids, our staff, everyone is touched and impacted in some way.”
Harriday says that Pillsbury has opened its doors for impromptu screen printing events and community gatherings, and even played a role in directing traffic and rendering first aid in the aftermath of ICE activities. The arts nonprofit has also decided to move some of its programming online, including an upcoming drag story hour.
“We are hearing from our families that there are people who are afraid to leave their homes,” Harriday says.
Many of the arts organizations say that the current environment is reminiscent of many of the tribulations Minnesota has faced in recent history.
“Whether it was the global uprising in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, or whether it was the peak of the pandemic with COVID-19, we have learned that we can do hard things,” Harriday says. “We've also been reminded over and over again the clear and necessary, purposeful role that artists play at times of crisis.”
