This afternoon, my son played for me an interview with Thomas Friedman, the New York Times. columnist. Friedman had, in May 2019, invited President Trump to Willmar Minnesota, to see how immigration works, Minnesota style. Trump didn’t go, and it’s too bad.
When I was ten, my dad bought my uncle’s 1940 Buick Special. The Buick was an olive green, straight out of Private Ryan, but it held our family of seven – my dad and mom, grandmother, and four kids – for the 90 mile trip from North Minneapolis to Wilmar. My dad’s firemen buddies told him that Green Lake in Willmar was the place to catch sunfish and crappies in the summer and they were right.
Willmar and Green Lake were a ten year old’s dream. Every day, we loaded up the rental wooden boat, tied down the 10 foot cane poles, and found a spot for a tackle box, a bucket of minnows, and a can of night crawlers, and within a couple of hours, we had our limit.
After cleaning the fish, we drove into town for ice cream. I never noticed that everyone was white, mostly Germans and Scandinavians.
But something happened between 1955 and now. Wilmar welcomed immigrants. 17% are foreign-born. Now, 40% of its residents identify as not white. 25% of Willmar’s residents identify as Hispanic and 10% identify as black. The population has grown 10% from 2010 to now. And a town that was dying is now vibrantly alive. In addition to the Kandiyohi County Fair, Willmar hosts an International Heritage Festival to reflect the diversity of its community.
Perhaps, if Donald Trump had seen Willmar, he might have had a different view of Minneapolis. He might have realized that a big city, like a small town, can welcome those who look different and sound different. Today, two beautiful, productive and valued Minneapolis citizens might still be alive.
This summer, Steve Lasley, whom I wrote about in a previous issue of the Times, are going to Willmar to go fishing. Steve is an avid fisherman. Steve also happens to be African American, a former teacher at North High, and a coach who has touched the lives of many youngsters. Steve and I will enjoy a few days of fishing in Green Lake, and an evening or two at one of the ethnic restaurants in downtown.
I am sure I will feel a mix of nostalgia and sadness as I pull a few fish from the lake and wonder what life might have held for Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Certainly, they were cheated out of an opportunity to spend a wonderful day and evening on a lake in Central Minnesota where immigrants are welcome and a community works. And maybe they would still be alive had Trump taken up Friedman’s offer to spend a little time in Willmar too.
This was article was written 7 years ago. Now that time has passed and culture has been established by an immigrant population, I’m curious if you think it is for the better. Has the city improved its infrastructure, are the streets well maintained, and how do the former residents feel about the current situations?
As someone born & raised there (and still a property owner), the town name is spelled Willmar — 2 L’s. The author sometimes gets itr right, but mostly wrong. (That’s still more accurate than Trump.)
And by grouping both Norwegians and Swedes into ‘Scandinavians’, you are glossing over a lot of differences in town!
Thanks for catching the misspelling, the article has been updated.
Thank you for the reminder of Friedman’s opinion piece and for better times in MN.