Day Three: Leadership is What We Build Together

Element Hotel breakfast is a delight…. Egg whites topped with the tiniest slice of avocado…we’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto!

A hallmark of the California Ag Leadership Program is its consistent approach of building upon and deepening the significance of topics established in preceding days. Today was no exception. Yesterday provided us with a Zoomed Out perspective on the racial justice issues impacting Minnesota and the world. These Zoomed Out concepts paved the way for a temporal zoom-out, guiding us to critically examine the historical roots that have led us to our current moment.

We began the morning with an eye-opening presentation from Dr. Artika Tyner, founder of the Planting People, Growing Justice Leadership Institute.  Dr. Tyner shed light on the alarming phenomenon of the school-to-prison pipeline. Through compelling data, she illustrated how biases and policies disproportionately affect young Black individuals, leading to an increased likelihood of incarceration later in life.

Dr. Tyner shared eye-opening statistics, revealing that while the US represents only 5% of the world’s population, it accounts for 20% of the world’s prisoners. Moreover, nationwide, empirical data tells us that students of color experience harsher punishment for identical behavior compared to their white peers. She highlighted issues such as truancy in Black communities and the predictive nature of 3rd-grade reading scores on future incarceration. She also imparted wisdom about restorative justice, emphasizing the role of visionary leaders in realizing a more equitable future. This revelation compelled us to reflect on the systemic issues permeating our educational and judicial systems.

“Your leadership journey isn’t about you as an individual, and it isn’t a spectator sport; it’s about what we can build together.”

Dr. Tyner

As the morning unfolded, our understanding deepened with a session from Kirsten Delegard introducing us to The Mapping Prejudice Project, an initiative focused on the enduring impact of racial covenants and housing policies on our communities. A project which aims to untangle the intricate web of historical decisions that continue to shape racially segregated communities, revealing the persistent housing inequalities that remain deeply embedded in our society today.

We spent time learning about the history of racial covenants in housing deeds, discovering how these restrictions still reverberate in Minneapolis. The mapping exercise vividly illustrated the lasting effects of long-gone policies, which was surprising to many of us who haven’t experienced this history firsthand. We collectively realized the weight of history we each carry, often unaware of its impact. Today guided us to better understand how this history plays a role in our lives today and how, as leaders, we are called to develop a vision for the future and use it to guide our leadership.

As we concluded our morning session, a common thread emerged—the imperative for informed, empathetic leadership to dismantle systemic barriers. The convergence of personal narratives, historical revelations, and community insights helped create a holistic understanding of the challenges faced by many communities. Through this exploration of our past, we garnered valuable insights that will undoubtedly shape our roles as leaders in agriculture, compelling us to question assumptions and actively engage in dismantling systemic injustices.

After our lunch break we were able to sink our teeth into our first bites of Southeast Asian history, culture and cuisine.  We visited the Hmong Museum whose vision is to have a thriving community of Hmong consciousness.  The Hmong people are an indigenous mountain group in China that were classified as a sub-group of the Miao people. Fleeing communist China, many of these people went to other parts of Southeast Asia (Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand) and later during the Vietnam war, sided with America, leading to even more displacement and resettlement in various countries.

Dr. Mark Pfeifer is one of very few American historians who have contributed efforts to studying this beautifully unique group of people.  People who are not individualistically oriented, but instead place their identity in the value of the family, clan and community.  Hmong culture emphasizes relationships with other clan members, giving much respect to their elders and their strong families.  The Hmong people were farmers, living in small villages high in the mountains.  Their tapestries on display were used to tell stories that have commonality to many of our fellows including working the land, the use of machinery for their agricultural product, and an emphasis on family.  Their aid to the Secret Service during the war led them to have a tie back to Minnesota and hence why there is currently a large population of Hmong here in Minneapolis.  Currently there are 95,000 Hmong people here, second to California, which is home to 107,000 Hmong of the 335,000 total in the US.  Mark also shared with us the importance of religion and music within their culture and we heard the sounds from the Qeej, a bamboo instrument similar to bagpipes.

Stairs, houses and snails were common on their tapestries so up the stairs we went into the Cultural Center to hear from Mai Na M. Lee in a small classroom devoted to teaching Hmong immigrants English.  She welcomed us with the saying:

“Even if the house is tight, the people are not cramped.”

We got to take an even deeper look, or a further ZOOM OUT,  at the history of the Hmong people and the influence that the French colonizers had on the world at that time in the late 1800’s.  Dr. Lee was able to draw more parallels for this agriculture audience to how these people farmed, the climate with which they did so and the governmental constraints they had at the time.  Searching America for farmland and cities where they can prosper, they are currently going through a migration to inland Florida.

Our next stop was to the Sanneh Foundation where we got to meet the famous defender/midfielder soccer star Tony Sanneh who played for the US National Team in the 2002 World Cup. His foundation has a mission to empower youth, improve lives and unite communities and does so in the most comprehensive way.  Not only does this after school program give kids in an underprivileged area a place to go after school, but they have found ways to focus even deeper to overall wellness through providing food and health care, all for free.  It isn’t enough for the Sanneh Foundation to provide a playing surface for these youth – they provide them with the professional level synthetic turf with extra cushion to prevent injuries.  It isn’t enough for the Sanneh Foundation to provide free food, they provide fresh produce, proteins, and balanced meals that are curated based on the cultural needs of the various communities they serve.  The warmth of the well being in the children there was palatable and best displayed by the enthusiastic fist bump of the first kid we made contact with… and honestly Joe and Ari look pretty happy too.  We couldn’t leave without sharing our green thumbs with the kids so we helped them toss some seeds into decorated cups and plant vegetables. Tony was particularly impressive; he shepherds the broader work of the foundation and knows the intricacies of each of their initiatives, welcoming us warmly and excitedly as he shared his vision and the impact he seeks to make. Not one to settle for just using his name for publicity or to fundraise, he’s a passionate, committed example of a leader who loves his people and goes the extra mile to make sure the members of his community who need him are served with compassion and love.

To end another great day on our journey, we were able to sample some Cambodian food to preview our upcoming fall International Trip.  Eating at the 5th highest ranked restaurant in Minneapolis, we dined as a family on bright new flavor combinations that included mint, cucumbers, rice noodles, new spices and flavored teas.  We can not wait to get to the real thing in SE Asia!

Gratefully,

Joe, Jodi, and Krystal
Class 53