Protest Sit Tonight (4/16) @ Hennepin County Govt Center

We hope this message finds each of you safe and as well as you can be during these troubling times.

We write to invite you to attend a BIPoC led protest sit that we are organizing to skillfully respond to the ongoing social and legal conflict unfolding in the Twin Cities Metro Area.  The recent killing of Daunte Wright and the ongoing trial of Derek Chauvin have all of us on edge. Many of us are fearful, numb, outraged, uncertain, and heartbroken. These are the conditions that we are called to practice in at this moment.

We are organizing a direct action at 4:30pm this Friday, April 16 near the circle benches at the Hennepin County Government Center Plaza in downtown Minneapolis.  We hope that you will invite your respective sanghas or practice groups to join us at the sit, including especially other BIPOC-identified folks in your community (neighbors and friends) who feel the need to practice peaceful protest for racial justice and against the use of lethal force by police officers.

We ask you, in particular, to come and sit with us. Beginning at 4:30, we will have 3 twenty-minute silent sits, holding our protest signs. We will begin our first sit with the Brahma Viharas, or the Divine Abodes Chant. In between each protest sit we will chat and offer each other greetings, caring words, and hopefully brainstorm toward a larger collective action.

If you decide to attend, we ask that you wear a bright-colored shirt so that our group is easily identifiable, something to sit on, and a protest sign. Clergy are also welcome to wear their vestments. Make sure to dress appropriately for the weather, and to bring water.

Please don’t hesitate to be in touch with us if you have any questions or concerns about this style of protest. And please spread the word. This message is also going out to the respective list serves that Arleta and I have access to.

Zenzele Isoke & Arleta Little