Minnesota Evolution

Diverse forms of protesting are used across the globe to snowball the immediate government to meet the demands of the protesters. Minnesota residents have consistently used different forms of protesting to ensure the government of the day plays to their demands (Diss 4). The residents began using protests as a means to public participation before the state joined the union. Striking, sit-ins, demonstrations, and social movements are the most commonly used forms of protests in the state. Workers have regularly used strikes to ensure the employers meet their demands, especially after the formation of giant unions representing different employees in the state. The Farmers Alliance regularly demonstrated against the government’s inaction in marketing their produce, at which the state was an agricultural produce export hub. Ignatius Donnelly protested with residents especially after blacks were denied the right to vote and even after the mining, timber and railroad barons enacted policies that limited the economic prospects of the poor (Gilman 12).
Protests have negatively and positively impacted on Minnesota’s economy. Populists used alliances and unions such as Knights of labour and unions to critique a growing number of large corporations in the state. The companies formed cartels that ensured the companies reigned over the workers by reducing wages and increasing working periods in the factories. However, workers protests led by Donnelly resulted in the creation of super companies such as the NSC (National Securities Company).

Roosevelt liquidated the company through the president’s policies on anti-trust, ensuring that development was equal in the state (Cudahy and Alan 59). However, multinationals have threatened to relocate to safer areas after Occupy Minnesota Homes and the Black Lives Matter movements wrecked havoc to several days in the state. The revelations imply that the protests have undermined and also positively impacted on development in the state.
Workers undertook the majority of strikes in the state in the late 19th century. The workers used their large numbers to ensure the strikes would decimate the employers. However, The AIM (American Indian Movement) used social movements’ tools of protesting to make sure that both the state and national government implemented their policies (Wittstock and Elaine 8). The demonstrations similar to actions taken by rights and black movements kept the government at bay and forced the states to enact laws to protect the Indians, who were a marginalized community in the nation. The group’s preference for demonstrations succeeded in changing the government’s attitudes against Indians. However, peaceful protests witnessed during the Black Lives Matter were largely uneventful until the protesters became uncouth and violent. The incident left tens of people dead while hundreds injured, forcing the state to commission investigations into the matter while also pursuing legal changes to ensure stiffer rules are enacted to fight off the vice. Consequently, demonstrations have succeeded as a form of protest, especially in Minnesota.
The success and failure of protests in the state in articulating their concerns illustrate the importance of seasons in undertaking protests. The Black Lives Matter campaigns after tens of African Americans were killed across the nation by white police officers. The Fergusson event became the tipping point, forcing thousands of supporters to protests in streets across the country. AIM began protesting against Indian violations after the rights movement became synonymous in the society for their call on reforms to ensure equity before the law (Wilkes 520). The two campaigns were launched during opportune periods which worked perfectly for the groups. The public supported the activities of the two groups, due to the events occurring in the state.
Works Cited
Cudahy, Hon, D. Richard, and Alan J. Devlin. “Anticompetitive Effect.” Minnesota Law Review
95 (2010): 59. Print.
Diss. UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, 2008. Print.
Gilman, Rhoda R. Stand Up!: The Story of Minnesota’s Protest Tradition. Minnesota Historical
Society Press, 2012. Print.
Columbia University Press, 2013. Print.
Wilkes, Rima. “The Protest Actions of Indigenous Peoples A Canadian-US Comparison of
Social Movement Emergence.” American Behavioral Scientist 50.4 (2006): 510-525.
Print.
Wittstock, Laura Waterman, and Elaine J. Salinas. “A Brief History of the American Indian
Movement.” American Indian Movement (2008). Print.