Peggy Flanagan, Minnesota’s lieutenant governor to Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, has not minced words when it comes to race relations, arguing the state is only a good place to live for white people and supporting the removal of historic statues.
Flanagan has previously said life in Minnesota remains problematic for people of color, even after Walz became governor.
“Minnesota is a great place for white people to live, work and raise their children. But for people of color, if you live in a certain zip code, your opportunities to thrive are limited. In fact, your ability to simply live or survive is called into question,” she said in July 2020. Walz was first elected governor in 2018.
If Walz becomes vice president in a Kamala Harris administration, Flanagan would likely become governor.
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Peggy Flanagan is Minnesota’s 50th Lieutenant Governor, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibway, and the nation’s highest-ranking Indigenous woman currently elected to executive branch. (Minnesota | Getty)
Flanagan added that he believes state government was created as a means of genocide.
“When I walk through the doors of the State Capitol, I take a second breath… [A] “Because we know we are walking into a building that was built to exclude us and silence us, and by we I mean people of color and Indigenous people.” she said in 2020.
Flanagan, who identifies as “White Earth” Native American, has spoken out against acts of supposed colonialism – for example, she supported the rioters who destroyed a statue of Christopher Columbus at the Minnesota State Capitol during the height of the George Floyd unrest.
Many buildings and businesses were burned during the incident, particularly in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. The unrest began as protests against police brutality and systemic racism, but quickly escalated into violence, property damage, and mass looting.
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The statue toppled by the mob had stood on the state Capitol grounds for nearly 90 years and had been funded by Italian Americans as an acknowledgement of their heritage.
The Waltz Administration The statue was not restoredand went a step further by removing monuments celebrating Columbus’s exploits as a explorer, a move that infuriated Italian Americans in Minnesota.
“Italians across the state came together and purchased this statue with their hard-earned money,” local restaurant owner Pat Mancini told reporters.
Flanagan responded to rioters toppling a statue of Christopher Columbus.
“You may have noticed that a statue was toppled from the Capitol recently. As a Native woman who has held public office in Minnesota, I was asked how I felt about the statue. I cannot express my disappointment in seeing it toppled,” she said. “We are at a time when our leaders need to be less concerned with statues and more concerned with the systemic change that needs to happen, for which we are all responsible in this moment.”
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Vice President Kamala Harris, Doug Emhoff and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz attend the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August 2024. (Reuters/Mike Seeger)
This is not the first time the lieutenant governor has voiced support for the unrest.
“I’m not going to perform for people,” she said. Radio Stations in June 2020“I’m not going to feign sadness. I’m not going to shed a tear over the loss of the statue.”
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The Walz administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
