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Minnesota News
Alex Haddon

Red Wing Public Schools cancel event with Attorney General Keith Ellison as speaker

Keith Ellison
Attorney General of Minnesota Keith Ellison answers a question during the State Attorneys General Association meeting in Boston.
Charles Krupa | AP 2023

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Red Wing Public Schools canceled a Black History Month event where Attorney General Keith Ellison was scheduled to speak. 

Superintendent Bob Jaszczak wrote in an email to parents the event was canceled over concerns of “significant disruption,” but didn’t specify what those disruptions could be.

Ellison’s office declined to comment. Red Wing school officials forwarded the email sent to parents but did not provide additional comment.

Ellison has been outspoken against White House immigration policies and the banning of transgender athletes from women’s and girls’ sports. 

The White House targeted Ellison, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and City Council Vice President Hwa Jeong Kim in a memo earlier this week accusing St. Paul of refusing to cooperate with immigration efforts. St. Paul has a separation ordinance, meaning city employees won’t question people about their immigration status.

The White House specifically called out Ellison for a video he posted on X, where the state attorney general said, “There’s nothing in American law that requires local officials to cooperate with federal law enforcement officials.”

“It’s not the job of local law enforcement to carry out the dictates of the Trump administration,” Ellison said in the video.

In his email to parents, Jaszczak said the district is committed to uplifting marginalized students despite the cancellation. 

“Educating students about racial harm is essential to help them recognize how words and actions, whether intentional or unintentional, can perpetuate discrimination and inequality,” he wrote.

Jaszczak wrote the event had been planned in order to celebrate the historic achievements of Black leaders, especially those in public service. Ellison is the first Black person to be elected to a statewide office in Minnesota and the first Muslim elected to Congress.

St. Paul is joining a lawsuit with other cities against an executive order that threatens to withhold federal funds from cities the Trump administration says don’t support its immigration efforts. Mayor Melvin Carter said St. Paul’s policy does not oppose lawful immigration enforcement.

Ellison joined a lawsuit with 18 other attorneys general protesting the Department of Government Efficiency’s access to private information.