Researcher
| The Minnehaha Free State: Collective Action Between Cross-Cultural Groups | Participation in the Minnehaha Free State: A Frame Analysis of Mobilization |
Abstract
The research involves a case study of the occupation in Minnehaha Regional Park that has come to be known as the Minnehaha Free State. The Free State protest, from Aug. 10, 1998, to Dec. 11, 1999, attempted to stop the proposed reroute of Highway 55. It was one of the longest urban occupations within the United States. It was also one of the first successful coalitions between Earth First! and Native American groups.
The study focuses on the structure of the Free State and the interactions between the different groups (primarily neighborhood groups, the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community, and Earth First!) that resisted the highway reroute. Data was collected through qualitative interviews with participants, supporters and observers involved in the Free State. Supplementary data was collected from published resources, including news articles, interviews and participant narratives.
Abstract
In the summer of 1998, an occupation began of Minnehaha Regional Park in Minneapolis. The protest was an attempt to stop the controversial reroute of Highway 55 through neighborhoods, Minnehaha Park, and land sacred to the Dakota people. This occupation brought together a number of divergent groups affected by the project uniting them in a struggle that would come to be known as the Minnehaha Free State. The study focuses on the participating groups made up of neighborhood residents, environmental activists, and the local Dakota community. In particular, frame analysis is used to examine how groups articulate injustices and mobilize participants.
