Minnesota comedians respond to ICE presence, and aren't afraid to get political
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Ben Katzner has a joke about ICE that’s not fit for radio.
In fact, many of the jokes he and other local comedians have been writing about the federal government’s ongoing enforcement in Minnesota might make you clutch your pearls.
“If I have a target, it's easy to be like, OK, here are the things I can't post, I can't tweet, I'm not going to send to the family group chat,” he said.
Katzner is one of three Minneapolis comedians who hosted a "roast" of ICE — a type of insult comedy — at the beginning of the month at Sisyphus Brewing to fundraise for local organization Every Meal.
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The show brought a number of comics together to flame and make fun of the federal agents in the city. The first was so popular they did a second. The two shows raised thousands of dollars.
Comedian Pearl Rose, who co-hosted with Katzner and comedian Lily Meyer, said it felt like a good way to respond to the moment, and not just financially.
“It was really cathartic,” Rose said. “It was really fun to see Minnesotans bring out their mean side, just because we are so nice. But when a Minnesotan insults you, it's just like, so sharp and fierce.”
There's a long history and comedic tradition of punching up, or making fun of the people in power — think political cartoons during the French Revolution, or Saturday Night Live's presidential impersonations.
Comrade Tripp, another Minneapolis comedian, said he can't help but punch up right now.
“When you're going down swinging, you're always punching up,” he said. “It's the elephant in the room. It's the donkey on our necks.”
At shows and on social media, Tripp delivers dry criticism of the federal and local government at a trademark, gravely low decibel.
Tripp is headlining a show at 8:30 p.m. Thursday night at the Comedy Corner Underground that will raise money for the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, or MIRAC. And he continues to donate proceeds from other weekly shows.
National comedians haven't exactly been punching up quite the same way.
In January, a Texas-based comedian made jokes delighting in Renee Good's death. Backlash was swift. St. Paul comedy venue Camp Bar canceled six planned shows with the performer.
Some comedy venues have had to make careful calculations about hosting shows, for fear staff could be targeted. The ICE surge has both threatened immigrant employees and lowered business traffic.
Comedy Corner Underground owner Bob Edwards said he doesn't view comedy clubs as inherently political. But he also didn't think twice about using the space as a venue to raise money for the community.
“I'm an Iraq War vet. I spent time in the service,” Edwards said. “And coming back to dance around, because the federal government might have issues with what my comics are saying, no way on earth is that something I would even do.”
There is also a personal risk to making these jokes. As MPR News has reported, ICE has used private data to track and intimidate observers and activists — in addition to killing two U.S. citizens.
Katzner saw a video of ICE agents tackling and arresting local rapper Nur-D, who Katzner had recently hosted on a podcast.
“That could easily be me,” Katzner said. “There's no reason it wouldn't be, because of the indiscriminate nature of how our government and our police and our agencies all act towards people of color and people in the community. So yeah, it is a fear all the time.”
Then again, if you're a Minneapolis comedian who makes jokes about your personal anxieties, frustrations and fears, talking about ICE right now just makes sense.
“If Lake Street shuts down, then I'm not going to be able to do the open mics there. It's self-serving,” Tripp said.
“As long as I'm selfish, I'll help my community. So that's probably forever.”
Even as ICE has reduced its numbers in Minnesota, the effects of the surge linger. And these comedians still have their focus on community.
