Statement on the Irrefutable Escalation of a Democracy in Crisis
Democracy is a system meant to create government for the people and by the people where everyone should have a say, and everyone should be protected.
Autocracy is a system of government by one person with absolute power.
Fascism is a system meant to overturn the needs of people and focus power in the hands of a singular leader (a dictator or authoritarian leader) and their chosen few who work to divide and conquer a nation.
Since the 2024 Presidential Election, the current Federal Administration has demonstrated clear actions toward establishing autocracy and fascism within the United States. Former Georgia State Representative Stacey Abrams has outlined 10 steps toward authoritarianism that we must recognize and fight back against. I recently watched her interview with Anthony Anderson and was inspired by how simply she laid out both the steps this Federal Administration is taking to grab ultimate power as well as how we can fight back against it. One of those steps is sharing the facts and consistently pushing back against false narratives and the propaganda attempting to divide us.
On July 10, I released a Statement on the Federal Approach to Immigration and the Current Crisis of Democracy. Since then, the urgency, severity, and generational damage of this crisis has only escalated even further. We are witnessing the systemic unraveling of our democracy, and an inhumane disregard for due process that has led to mass family separation across the country. We are also witnessing the reversal of 50+ years of bipartisan policies that feed children and infants, provide for elderly and pregnant people, and care for people with disabilities or families who are in vulnerable circumstances. Most infuriatingly, the decimation of the social safety net and upending of healthcare access has occurred in order to limit access to care for those who need it the most, for the sole purpose of further enriching the wealthiest Americans through unprecedented tax breaks. I firmly reject the notion that our society does not have the funds or resources to care for the vulnerable; when in actuality, it seems we do not have the funds or resources to satisfy the ultra-wealthy.
As a proud kid-of-immigrants with an extended family of healthcare workers, and as a local elected official who has been entrusted with representing the residents of Hennepin County District 2, I steadfastly renew my promises to advocate for those who are marginalized or disenfranchised, to partner across all layers of government to advance our most complex issues, and to expand who sees themselves in the story of leadership and politics. I firmly believe that shared humanity will prevail; we must be brave, and I’ve found it’s most impactful and comfortable when we choose to be brave together.
What Has Changed On Immigration Enforcement
To start, the United States protects every person’s right to “due process” — meaning, the right to be innocent until proven guilty, the right to counsel or public defense, and if it comes to it, the right to a fair trial with a jury of peers who live in the same geography. Currently, immigration enforcement has become more similar to kidnapping because residents are being overtly racially profiled, and are being stopped or detained — often with no legal cause or warrant. There are numerous verified reports of legal U.S. citizens being wrongfully detained, as well as unimaginable reports of people being “deported” to countries they have never lived in or visited.
Locally, across Hennepin County’s 45 cities, we are currently experiencing explicit targeting of our Somali and Latino neighbors at the overt direction of the Federal Administration. We’ve seen plainclothes “officers” with masks on, no identification, and no warrant — literally grab legal residents of the street because of how they look or the languages they speak. Just recently in Minneapolis, we saw ICE assault a pregnant person and physically drag her through the street. These are not isolated incidents or mistakes by specific officers.
Historically, rights to due process and other Constitutional protections have been clarified in Court; this is an important aspect of the “checks and balances” that our three-branch system of government allows. However, we’ve seen federal courts side with this Federal Administration and codify every horrifying action with a judicial seal of approval. This has deepened a crisis of democratic accountability and threatens the foundational norms that protect the rights and voices of all people. The overreach from the Federal Administration affects countless people, including me — from attempts to undermine birthright citizenship to the ongoing rollback of reproductive rights. These actions erode centuries-old protections and set dangerous precedents for future encroachments on civil liberties that were hard fought and won by the incredible bravery and sacrifice of countless civil rights leaders, and particularly by the leadership of Black women over generations. Their actions do not represent a narrow policy disagreement; they represent a reimagining of who is deserving of rights and who is not.
As we are seeing commonly with law enforcement operations, there is a deliberate withholding of information. People are disappearing, and there’s no easy way to track where they are disappearing to, or where they have been taken into custody. With countrywide immigration enforcement, we are seeing accompanying harmful misinformation that spreads quickly and increases harm. In this moment, we must fight harmful misinformation and ensure that clarity and truth prevails. These developments are not distant or abstract. They are happening now and they are part of a broader pattern: dismantling democratic safeguards, centralizing power, and bending institutions to serve ideology rather than justice and human dignity.
Crisis Beyond Immigration Enforcement
The goal of this Federal Administration is to instill fear, sow division, and turn vulnerable communities against each other while pushing a white supremacist and hateful agenda. They want us to blame each other for the problems created by unequal systems that were never made to work for everyone. We must stand united against fascism.
Beyond attempts to tear apart families and divide us, there is a deliberate targeting of elected leaders, community organizers, and public servants with threats, intimidation, and violence. Here in Minnesota an individual inspired by these efforts stalked and shot multiple of our state representatives in June. This rhetoric led to Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman being killed alongside her husband, Mark, and led to the assassination attempt on Senator John Hoffman, his wife, Yvette, and their daughter Hope. Fear is sown both by turning communities against each other while also actively attacking leaders who embody hope and love for their communities. These are dangerous times, we must all be vigilant.
We have seen in real time as the federal government dehumanizes and criminalizes entire populations — whether immigrants, people in poverty, people of color, individuals and their families with disabilities, LGBTQ+ identifying persons especially our trans neighbors, or other marginalized groups. Recently it was reported that US Attorney General Pam Bondi instructed the FBI to put a cash bounty on anyone who supports or believes in the humanity of trans people, and that U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is moving to cut children's access to gender-affirming care.
These actions are not isolated incidents or partisan disagreements; this is a deliberate strategy to weaken public trust, fracture communities, and consolidate power by targeting those who are most vulnerable. Hennepin County believes that governments should work for all people, not just those approved of by the White House. It is essential we reject policy and actions that punish those with the least and enrich those with the most. We must recognize that the policy we’re seeing enacted is sustained through deliberate misinformation and overt lies.
The health of a democracy is reflected in its environment of information, in which information must not only be accessible, but also stable, trustworthy, and usable by ordinary people and grounded enough that people can make informed decisions without confusion. Disinformation efforts spread by the federal government are extremely powerful because they appear to be whole and factual by using official channels. This Federal Administration uses .gov and official government websites to sow racism and spread misinformation and overt lies. This erodes trust in institutions and will eventually lessen civic participation. This must be called out and countered.
This is not remotely normal. Information should be used to protect rights, inform people accurately, and enable collective decision-making – not to intimidate, mislead, or divide. People should not have to feel confused about what to trust and believe; people should be entitled to accurate, honest information from their governments that makes things easy and accessible. A healthy democracy protects free speech, distinguishes fact from fear, and it does not exploit uncertainty and use official channels to spread bias or misinformation to control people. Leaders in this moment must name harm accurately, acknowledge fear, and center facts. A healthy democratic system treats information as a public good, not a weapon.
Conclusion
Democracy is about serving people and fighting to ensure everyone has what they need to thrive. It’s about equal protection under the law, it’s about due process, and strengthening democracy is our strongest tool to ensure tyranny does not take hold in our nation. Democracy is about using our voices and our power to counteract the evils in the world for a world that supports all its people. It’s about amplifying people's power.
We cannot let democracy fail. To protect it means strengthening local institutions, defending civil liberties, supporting safe and inclusive communities, and advocating for policies that expand opportunity rather than restrict it. I am committed to governing for the communal and generational benefit of all communities, while lifting up those with the least. Local government acts as the last line of defense – Hennepin County is gearing up for this reality to ensure a continuation of service and financial sustainability. Hennepin County stands firmly against all forms of hate and discrimination, and will continue to show up in a way this moment demands.