Weekend Reformer: 250 years

Good morning, Reformers. 

Happy 4th of July. 

ICYMI, we published the Declaration of Independence, adopted on this day 250 years ago, as well as excerpts from Frederick Douglass’s July 5, 1852, speech on the hypocrisy of America’s celebration of the holiday given the over 3 million people enslaved at the time. 

His evocative and forceful rebukes of the country — eg. “The existence of slavery in this country brands your republicanism as a sham, your humanity as a base pretence, and your Christianity as a lie” — were sandwiched by hope for the future and respect for the signers of the Declaration of Independence. 

Part of his reason for hope was the youth of the country, which at that point was only 76 years old, as well as growing global commerce which, to Douglass, meant that nations would no longer be able to “do their evil work” behind walls. 

I’ll reprint part of our reprint here:

“Long established customs of hurtful character could formerly fence themselves in, and do their evil work with social impunity. Knowledge was then confined and enjoyed by the privileged few, and the multitude walked on in mental darkness. But a change has now come over the affairs of mankind. Walled cities and empires have become unfashionable. The arm of commerce has borne away the gates of the strong city. Intelligence is penetrating the darkest corners of the globe. It makes its pathway over and under the sea, as well as on the earth. Wind, steam, and lightning are its chartered agents. Oceans no longer divide, but link nations together. From Boston to London is now a holiday excursion. Space is comparatively annihilated. Thoughts expressed on one side of the Atlantic, are distinctly heard on the other.” 

I wonder if a time-traveling Douglass would say the same today, in the age of a global supply chain dependent on millions of forced laborers; mass incarceration and barely-paid prison labor in the U.S.; the U.S.-Mexico border wall; and tech oligarchs, many of whom built their wealth on digital information sharing — that our nation is still young at 250 years, and that global interconnectedness will save us yet.

Fourteen Minnesota anti-ICE protesters pleaded not guilty to federal charges alleging they engaged in a conspiracy to impede or injure federal agents during Operation Metro Surge, Michelle Griffith and Ria Gupta reported. During their appearances, U.S. Magistrate Judge David Schultz asked federal prosecutors about the 20 terabytes of data on the protesters they say they have in their possession; he said that he inferred that some of the data in the government’s possession may have been obtained without a warrant. 

More than 130 unionized doctors at Allina Health’s Mercy and Unity hospitals are threatening to strike after negotiations over the past two years failed to produce an agreement with the health system giant on wages, benefits and working conditions, Max Nesterak reported. 

Minnesota could be on the hook for as much as $250 million in its next budget to pay for a share of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, thanks to a provision in the Republican megalaw on tax cuts and spending passed a year ago, Madi McVan reported. 

Minnesota will receive 2 million eggs as part of a settlement agreement with egg producers accused of hatching a years-long scheme to inflate egg prices nationwide, Ria reported. The full $3.3 million settlement came after the DOJ and 17 states sued five defendants accused of collaborating to place high-price bids to Urner Barry, a pricing service provider used for egg supply contracts. 

A political action committee associated with House Speaker Lisa Demuth has received about $1.1 million from a national PAC largely funded by Richard Uihlein, a Republican megadonor who owns the shipping company Uline, Michelle reported. 

Minnesota’s suicide rate was up 4% in 2025, according to preliminary data, I reported. Despite the increase, suicide rates continue to be lower than a peak in 2022.

Jennifer Schultz, a health economist and former DFL state legislator, encouraged Minnesota lawmakers to make policies preventing hospitals from charging so much for health care, referencing a new report from North Star Policy Action. 

Chuck Johnson, former deputy commissioner at the Minnesota Department of Human Services, reflected on his family’s history of immigration and the good he saw while volunteering at a food bank during Operation Metro Surge.  

Ad man Sheldon Clay wrote that Minnesota’s response to Operation Metro Surge has endowed the state with a reputation for being a generous place where neighbors courageously stand up for each other, and that the state can leverage that to bolster its brand.

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