Kelly Pannek had something weighty on her mind.
The former University of Minnesota and current Minnesota Frost standout from Plymouth, recently named to her third U.S. Olympic team, took a seat Sunday next to Taylor Heise in the Grand Casino Arena press conference room after the Frost’s 6-2 victory over New York. She didn’t wait for questions, just started talking. No notes. Straight from the heart.
The killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents on the streets of South Minneapolis the day before had been the talk of the Frost locker room in St. Paul. The Frost asked for a pregame moment of silence for Pretti, as it did for Renee Good after her murder earlier this month — something the Wild, the arena’s primary tenant, failed to do. (Frost fans filled the silence with “Go Home ICE!” and similar sentiments.)
But that wasn’t enough for Pannek, a Frost alternate captain and one of eight Minnesotans on the roster. She asked to talk about it publicly.
“I wanted to take the time to recognize what’s been happening in our state, with Alex and Renee, thinking about their families,” Pannek began, her hand over her chest. Pannek’s voice began to crack, and Heise, of Lake City, rubbed Pannek’s back as she gathered herself.
“It’s obviously really heavy,” Pannek said. “People have been asking us a lot what it’s like to represent our state and our country. I think what I’m most proud to represent is the thousands, tens of thousands of people that showed up on one of the coldest days of the year to stand and fight for what they believe in.”
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That referenced the downtown march Jan. 23 in Minneapolis to protest Operation Metro Surge, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) campaign that has seen federal agents aggressively target and terrorize Minnesotans of color regardless of their immigration status. Marchers in below-zero weather included Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve and Minnesota Aurora co-founder Andrea Yoch.
“I think it’s just really important for us to acknowledge what’s happening in our community, but also the amount of hope and strength,” Pannek said. “I think that the people of Minnesota are showing and standing up for what’s right, among the unnecessary and just horrifying things that are happening.”
Heise agreed. “It’s the harsh reality that we live in,” she said. “And I think Minnesota, we’re coming together and we’re finding ways to support one another.”
Pannek and Heise were among the first Twin Cities pro athletes to speak out about the dual tragedies, and it wasn’t surprising to see women take the lead. It usually starts with the Lynx, going back a decade to the “Change Starts With Us — Justice and Accountability” campaign following the shooting deaths of Philando Castile, Alton Sterling and five Dallas police officers. In Minnesota, women athletes are frequently first to use their public platforms to address social justice issues.
This time, they had company. Across town in Minneapolis, at the Target Center, Timberwolves Coach Chris Finch and Golden State counterpart Steve Kerr each commented on Pretti’s killing. The Timberwolves postponed their game from Saturday night to “prioritize the safety and security of the Minneapolis community,” according to a club statement. The Wolves also offered a pregame moment of silence for Pretti.
“As an organization, we are heartbroken for what we are having to witness and endure and watch,” Finch told reporters before the game. “We just want to extend our thoughts, prayers and concern for Mr. Pretti, family, all the loved ones and everyone involved in such an unconscionable situation in a community that we really love, full of people who are, by nature, peaceful and prideful. We just stand in support of our great community here.”
When the game started, the Wolves seemed distracted and played poorly in a 111-85 loss. “I thought the vibe in the stands, it was one of the most bizarre, sad games I’ve ever been a part of,” Kerr told reporters afterward. “You can feel the somber atmosphere. They were struggling with everything that’s been going on.”
Other local sports figures spoke up as well. Lynx assistant coach Rebekkah Brunson, one of the leaders of the “Change Starts With Us” effort, reacted on X shortly after the Pretti shooting:
“America, what is going to be our excuse now. This wasn’t an immigrant, a domestic terrorist, a crazed lesbian, a woman, a liberal that wants to take all your guns away! It was a white male who was using his right to observe, who was protecting two other women, who was carrying his legally owned gun and was attacked and then eventually executed on our streets. What are we doing! Wake up. Don’t be indifferent! That always allows evil to prevail!”
Brunson, also a Timberwolves television analyst, followed up on Sunday’s pregame show.
Local athletes “Stand With Minnesota”
From afar, Lynx guards Natisha Hiedeman and DiJonai Carrington offered support via social media. Same with former Timberwolf Karl-Anthony Towns, now with the Knicks.
Paige Bueckers, the Hopkins product, went a step further, donating the $50,000 she won in the Unrivaled Free Throw Challenge to the Hopkins Strong Relief Fund, a matching pledge to help immigrant families put food on the table and pay bills. Thursday night the Minnesota Fastbreak Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the Wolves and Lynx, pledged $200,000 for local organizations that support the community. The Wolves also wore “Stand With Minnesota” warmup shirts before Thursday’s game with Oklahoma City, and the club released a statement of support from the players.
Twins players in town last weekend for TwinsFest generally avoided comment on what was happening, though pitchers Bailey Ober and Simeon Woods Richardson posted photos of the Jan. 23 march on Instagram.
Tom Pohlad, the new Twins executive chair, took social media heat for his response to a TwinsFest Town Hall question about what his family was doing to protect the community. Reddit users criticized Pohlad’s choice of words (“I want to be careful to not necessarily take sides, so to speak”) and failure to strongly condemn the ICE operation. Judge for yourself.
Pohlad, still adapting to his role as the public voice of ownership, handled an ICE-related question with more savvy the day before at the annual Twins media luncheon, when asked if the club considered cancelling TwinsFest.
“No matter what you think, we all see what’s going on in our community, and we’ve seen what we’ve all been through the last five years. It’s heartbreaking,” Pohlad said. “Is there an argument to be made to cancel TwinsFest? Sure. But the Twins are about bringing people together and the community together. It’s for a good cause. The Twins Community Fund is a great thing. It was a difficult call, but I think it was the right thing to do to move forward with the event.”
And over in Switzerland on the World Cup circuit, Olympic cross country skiing gold medalist Jessie Diggins of Afton posted this nod to her home state on her Facebook page:
“Honestly, this week was mentally and emotionally stressful for me for many different reasons, all of which were outside of sport. Primarily, it’s been devastating following the news of what has been happening in Minnesota right now and it’s really hard feeling like I can do nothing about it.
“So today, I tried really hard to bring a little joy to people back home watching the races and to leave it all out there — and do what I can here to fight for every second and honor all the people who have been working really hard to get us good skis, and honor all the people back home who are working hard to protect their neighbors.”
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