Disapproving Rabbits Return

Disapproving Rabbits merch available on Red Bubble. Proceeds go to The Bond Between

After living in Occupied Minnesota and witnessing the many constitutional violations perpetrated by ICE, I have dragged Disapproving Rabbits Merch back out as part of the Resistance. Proceeds will benefit The Bond Between, a group dedicated to taking care of pets left behind after people have been disappeared by ICE.

I’ve been editing this site with the intent of keeping it more about bird info and less about personal stuff, hoping to switch that to Substack. However, these are unprecedented times and I’m taking all steps to speak out about what’s happening. I’m also leaving various chat groups that I’ve been in when people don’t want to talk about it. WE HAVE TO TALK. Here’s a letter that I wrote to family and friends:

Hello,

I left the chat, and I want to explain why.

I’m sharing this not to argue or change anyone’s politics, but because what’s happening here in Minnesota is deeply affecting me, and I need you to understand where I’m coming from.

I worked for the federal government for 17 years, primarily in communications and media. Over that time, I worked closely with law enforcement at the federal, state, and local levels, across political administrations. I’ve been part of incident command teams and public-safety responses. I know what professional, constitutional, de-escalatory law enforcement looks like.

What I am seeing right now with ICE and DHS operations in Minnesota does not resemble that.

There is a level of escalation here that feels dangerous and destabilizing. People are afraid to leave their homes. Tensions are high in ways that are hard to convey unless you’re living inside it. I am seeing practices that raise serious concerns about civil liberties, de-escalation, and public safety — not in theory, but on the ground, in neighborhoods I know.

I want to be very clear about what I am not asking: I am not asking you to change your views on immigration policy, gun ownership, or who you vote for.

What I am asking is that you take seriously the idea that unchecked, highly escalated federal enforcement tactics — especially when they lack transparency — should concern all of us, regardless of politics. These are issues that affect citizens, legal residents, and communities broadly.

I know that depending on the news sources people follow, what’s happening here can sound exaggerated or distant. All I can tell you is that it isn’t. I’ve lived in Minneapolis for twenty years. I’ve worked inside government. I understand how messaging and media framing work. And I’m telling you, as someone you know personally, that this is real and it’s alarming.

I’m just going to use yesterday as an example, the day after a peaceful march with 50,000 people happened in downtown Minneapolis. Yesterday, mere blocks from my home is Glam Doll Donuts where I have hosted book signings. Next door is the Black Forest which is the restaurant where we host the meetup I created called Birds and Beers and a place I perform at in storytelling shows about once a month.

Just outside their doors, a VA nurse who is an American citizen and had a valid conceal carry permit was protesting ICE in the area. He was there filming, his gun never left his waist. He went to help a woman who was pepper sprayed without warning directly in her face. While many officers subdued him, one took his gun from his waistband and while he was being held down, he was sprayed point blank in the face with pepper spray and hit several times with the can of spray in the face. While being held down and—screaming because pepper spray…one of them shot him several times. He wasn’t holding a gun, they had already taken it away. Video footage shows that he never had it out and that ICE had taken it. My friends and neighbors who weren’t already at the scene went to there to hold a vigil and peacefully protest. Jana Shortal from NBC affiliate KARE 11 was there filming, wearing her vetted press credentials and was at the line ICE established for press. They went up to her and told her to get back. She did. They pushed her further and without warning pepper sprayed her in the face. My friend Allison who I have known for 20 years and whose husband is my massage therapist, was there observing and protesting with hundreds of others. Some brought their children. Some were in their seventies. Without warning, ICE released pepper sprayed, tear gassed, and fired rubber bullets. Allison got hit in the chest. She was doing nothing violent, just filming, and shouting, “Ice Out.”

That is not how you are supposed to use pepper spray for crowd control. Law enforcement doesn’t escalate because people are saying mean things. Even when I’ve taken bear spray training, you give warning if you can and you deploy it at a distance. If you are spraying a grizzly bear point blank in the face, you’ve made several mistakes to be in that position.

I don’t want this for any other city or state. And I fear it’s coming for all of us.

It’s been especially hard to hold all of this while watching it go unacknowledged in the chat. That’s why I’ve stepped back a bit.

You don’t have to agree with me. I’m not asking for debate. I just needed you to know why I’m struggling, and why this matters so much to me. I loved being a federal employee and creating communications strategies to keep the American public safe. That is not what DHS and ICE is doing right now.

If you genuinely want to understand what I’m seeing here, I’m open to questions.

I’ve attached a photo of me on top of the Lincoln Memorial during a crowd control event. What you can’t see in that photo is that right next to me are two federal snipers. That is how closely I’ve worked with law enforcement. I know what real law enforcement looks like and ICE is not it.

Sent with love and care for you and the entire United States,

Sharon