To the editor:

What I maybe love most about living in Minnesota’s First Congressional District is its diversity; that people from all walks of life call this area their home. Our differencing backgrounds and experiences allow for eye-opening, educational opportunities when we share our worldviews with one another. The stories we share about where we come from, and who we are, only strengthen and add value to our community. It increases our sense of unity, something we so desperately need during a time such as this, defined by division.

Unfortunately, Republican representative Jim Hagedorn doesn’t see it this way. In an act of profound cowardice, he chooses to further fan the flames of hatred and hostility that many of his constituents are working tirelessly to combat. He hunkered down behind his computer screen, using his words as weapons as he so often has, at the height of the critically important and overdue reckoning for racial justice earlier this summer, writing in a Facebook post that the “Democrat ‘Black Lives Matter’ Party” and its “army of rioters” were at war with America and “western culture.” This statement is, of course, irrefutably racist and ridiculous. The army of activists that make up the Black Lives Matter marches are not at war with anyone. They march and speak and write because they see where America and its promises of equality and inclusion have failed them. They hold values and convictions that we should not only want, but expect, of our leaders — to make this country a better place to live for everyone, especially its most marginalized citizens.

Luckily, Congressional candidate Dan Feehan shares these beliefs and recognizes the urgency and opportunity for unity that these troubled times demand. In his own words, “either everyone matters or no one matters.” At its core, isn’t that what the Black Lives Matter movement is all about? None of our lives can matter until Black lives do. Dan knows that we must, now more than ever before, come together and amplify our voices for change as the Constitution allows. The cost of being so loud in our cries for change is that it may make some people uncomfortable. Well, that’s a price we should all be willing to pay. Personally, I’d rather be on the right side of history than be represented by yet another self-serving, right-wing bigot who prefers the sound of, and prioritizes, his own hateful speech over the voices of the oppressed.

That’s why I’ll be proudly voting for Dan Feehan to not only represent our district in Congress, but also to represent our values and vision for the future. I hope that you, too, will vote — no matter for whom you cast your ballot.

Kaci Schneidawind

Mankato