Know Your Enemy On the Ground in Minneapolis (w/ Lydia Polgreen) [Teaser]
Feb 2, 2026
A reporter’s on-the-ground perspective from Minneapolis as activists and neighbors organize in tense, unpredictable streets. The conversation explores how networks forged during George Floyd protests shape current resistance and response to ICE and BP. Ordinary Minnesotans acting with bravery appear alongside warnings about rising militant impulses and a sense of a fracturing civic life.
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Episode notes
Misreading Grassroots Protest
- Right-wing critics assume protests are externally funded because they lack experience with grassroots civic action.
- Matthew Sitman argues protest is a normal democratic response, not always orchestrated by elites.
Leader-Centered Versus Collective Organizing
- Trump-style politics binds people to a leader rather than to each other, creating weak horizontal ties.
- Sam Adler-Bell describes this as serial political activity where the figurehead replaces durable community bonds.
Alienation Among Traditional Conservatives
- Traditional-values conservatives often feel alienated from their local communities.
- Matthew Sitman notes this alienation helps explain their bewilderment at local collective action.
