2021 in review: Bias in foster care, unsolved shootings and Line 3 resistance
BY: RILYN EISCHENS - DECEMBER 27, 2021 7:18 AM
Roughly 2,000 people rallied at the state Capitol Aug. 25, 2021 to protest Enbridge’s Line 3 oil pipeline. Photo by Rilyn Eischens/Minnesota Reformer
What a year! It’s hard to know what to say about the year that we’ve all had, but I do know that I’m incredibly grateful to be wrapping up another 12 months with the Reformer team. I feel lucky to be doing this work with such a smart, kind, scrappy newsroom.
This was a year of many new experiences, including my first time covering a full legislative session (I don’t think last year really counts), a few trips up north to cover Line 3 and reporting on other new-to-me topics like social services.
Here are three stories I wanted to revisit from 2021:
Oil and water: Resistance, construction intensify on Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline
Just under a year ago, I made my first trip to Aitkin County to report on Enbridge’s Line 3 oil pipeline. Those few days were a crash course for me in getting to know the lay of the land — both literally and figuratively — for this project that was both complex and contentious in just about every way imaginable.
Opponents of Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline protested at a pump station near Cloquet on Aug. 20, 2021. Participants were encouraged to wear drag in support of Two-Spirit and LGBTQ members of the anti-Line 3 movement. Photo by Rilyn Eischens/Minnesota Reformer.
The fight against Line 3 had been going on for years, but it kicked off big-time when construction started in late 2019. It’s strange to think how one of the biggest stories in Minnesota for the past 12 months has, for the most part, fallen off the radar. I think it’s something that will be worth revisiting as we continue to grapple with the central issues behind the debate.