An annual “art sled rally” in Minneapolis’ Powderhorn Park Saturday featured a replica of a burning Third Precinct police station, which was destroyed by rioters during the 2020 George Floyd riots.
Video shows a crowd of residents, including children, cheering as the sled makes its way down the side of a hill. Inside was a driver dressed as a pig. The display was praised by a teacher at Patrick Henry High School.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said he was “outraged” and “frustrated” by the “disgusting display,” according to an internal email obtained by Crime Watch Minneapolis.
“I am confident the members of this particular group today have never experienced this type of day-to-day terror nor the trauma that results. I’m also certain they don’t value the work that you do every day — placing your lives on the line to protect our most vulnerable residents, who continue to hear gunfire as regular background noise in their neighborhoods — because this group doesn’t have to live with those fears every day,” he wrote.
Imran Ali, general counsel for the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, also reacted to the display, saying “it’s hard to understand how anyone could find this incident funny.”
“Let’s remember the devastating impact those riots had on the community. Dozens of minority-owned businesses were lost, grocery stores burned, and even the post office was set on fire. People lost their lives, and countless police officers left the force,” he wrote. “The community was left to rebuild from the ashes. We are still struggling and now made worse with a head prosecutor targeting police officers in prosecution while letting murderers free to roam our streets.”
