After completing the Creswell (2004) reading about places
being a social construction and that social processes build place I thought about
the phrase, “Minnesota Nice.” It is a socially constructed shorthand to say Minnesota
is a nice place filled with nice people. On the surface, that phrase is true. If a
Minnesotan says, “you are one of my people,” you have a friend for life who
will go out of their way to help you, including feeding you hot dishes and desserts That Midwestern Mom calls “Minnesota salads that aren’t really salads,” like the Orange Jello Salad and Oreo Cookie Salad.
Outside of countless community potlucks, the George Floyd and
Anti-ICE protests and community organization that happened in response to both events, reflect a state where people care for their
neighbors. Frankly, there’s a reason the Rebel Loon, which is a reinterpretation of the Star Wars Rebell Alliance symbol (pictured below) took up
prominence at this year’s state fair’s many art contests, including crop art.
Yet despite all the social construction around Minnesota
Nice and neighbors caring, most locals also acknowledge Minnesota Passive Aggressive:
Minnesotans are nice to your face and say mean things once you are no longer in
the room. For example, Tim Walz is stepping away from public life even though
he could have run for Governor again, or to run for one of the two soon to be
open US Senate seats in MN because the far right in the state still come after him
and his family.
Or take the Shabazz (2026) lecture and the social constructions of race. It was recorded at Gustavus Adolphis College (GAC). GAC is frankly the whitest college I have ever been to, and is outside of Mankato, Minnesota. Mankator and by extension South Eastern Minnesota is a region still toting a lot of Trump flags and almost every person I know who lives there with a marginalized identity can’t wait to leave because of the bigotry and racism. And speaking of the Shabazz lecture, his discussions on racist zoning and redlining also applies to the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul). In fact, the Minnesota History Museum has a permanent exhibit about how the Highway decimated Black neighborhoods in both cities.
Frankly the clash between Minnesota Nice and Passive
Aggressive was what immediately came to mind when I read “In other words home,
for Tuan, is a kind ideal place. ‘Home, insofar as it is an intimately lived
place, is imbued with moral meaning’ (Tuan 1991b, 105).” Because the tension between
the socially constructed nice and passive aggressive is coming to a head in the
Detroit Lakes School system as we speak.
Detroit Lakes is a city about two and half hours Northwest
of the Twin Cities and about an hour away from the Fargo-Moorhead area. It is
one of the bigger towns in Western Minnesota. As MPR staffer, Harshawn Ratanpal
(2026) reported, during the July Detroit Lakes School Board meeting, two board
members pushed through a vote to ban teachers from having rainbow decorations,
targeting the “Safe Space” stickers, akin to the one pictured below, that
teachers had up to indicate they are a safe person for LGBTQ+ students. Because
of public backlash there was another public meeting in August. That meeting led
to deciding to consult lawyers before enforcing any bans. The article concludes
by discussing the fact give years ago, Marshall, MN banned the Pride flag at
their middle school.
Photo Credit Link: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51IfFNeCQrL.jpg
Yet in each situation members of the town are rallying to ensure Queer students and Queer members of the community have places they can be their authentic selves without fear of repercussions. For example, Julie Walker, who is professor and the co-founder of the LGBTQ+ Center at the university in Marshall (and is frankly the embodiment of who I want to be when I grow up) took community’s outrage from the flag ban to spur the town’s Pride festival, which has become an annual event. Hopefully people like Julie and those fighting the ban in Detroit Lakes keep upholding the values of Minnesota Nice to counter the Minnesota Passive Aggressive, so it is a place I can consider to make my next home after I finish this degree and graduate.
Works Cited:
Appiah, Kwame Anthony. 2020. “I’m Jewish and I
Don’t Identify as White: Why Must I Check that Box?” The New York
Times, October 13, 2020.
Cresswell, Tim. 2004. Place: A Short Introduction. Oxford:
Blackwell Publishing. Pp. 1-12 & Pp. 109-117.
Shabazz, Rashad. 2016. “Why Geography Matters in the
Struggle for Racial Justice.” Public lecture given at Gustavus Adolphus
College, St. Peter, MN, January 18, 2016. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2016/02/09/mpr_news_presents
Ratanpal, Harshawn. 2026. “Detroit Lakes banned rainbows in
school. But they’re still up, for now” Minnesota Public Radio, September 21,
2026. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/09/21/detroit-lakes-school-bans-rainbow-stickers-flags-and-buttons-but-that-could-change
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