Everyday USA

If I learned anything last year it was how resilient the human spirit can be. How resilient joy could be found in community, dance, family, friends, and sometimes, election results. Here a couple is embracing after it was announced Biden was the projected winner in Pennsylvania. Thank you to @everydayusa for allowing me to takeover their feed. Follow and support my work at @itsdrw 🙏🏽💛. // My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

During my (@itsdrw ) takeover, I've been hesitant to share any photos of Trump supporters and white supremacists. Last week's attempted coup was triggering for myself and friends for a multitude of reasons. Nonetheless, I thought it was worthwhile to share photos from November in DC where local police were in riot gear with their backs facing Trump supporters who threw objects and violently threatened journalists and BLM activists. // My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

As of October 2020, 545 migrant children have been unable to reunite with their parents since being separated at the US-Mexico border. Under Trump’s zero-tolerance immigration policy, more than 2,800 families were separated by his administration. When the US government is unable to locate parents of children, they rely on non-profits like Justice in Motion (@justiceinmotion ) and human rights lawyers to physically track down families on the ground in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. //  My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

I've (@itsdrw ) always been enthralled by dance. It's one of the things that has kept me sane over the last year (and week). It has the ability to transcend and tap into our collective humanity. In these series of photos, Ananya Chatterjea, Founder of the Ananya Dance Theatre, shares a dance at a rally condemning mass hysterectomies being performed on women at ICE facilities.  This summer, Dawn Wooten, a nurse at a Georgia ICE facility, exposed mass hysterectomies were being performed on women for unexplained reasons. 19 women also at this facility came forward confirming Dawn's complaints and sharing doctors performed, or pressured them to undergo “medically unnecessary” surgery without their consent, including procedures that limit their ability to have children. //  My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

In this photo, Amariana Burrell and Myon Burrell Jr, embrace each other while listening to activists demand the release of their father, Myon Burrell Sr.. “As a kid, other kids’ dreams were they wanted to be a movie star or rapper or something,” said 19-year-old Myon Burrell Jr. “My dream was to have my dad.” At 16 years old, Myon Burrell Sr., was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted for the 2002 first-degree murder of 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards. Tyesha was shot by a stray bullet while doing homework inside her house. In February 2020, an Associated Press report revealed there were several flaws with Burrell's prosecution. With no weapons found, the case against Burrell largely relied on testimony from a teen who changed his story several times during the investigation. The report also revealed investigators offered cash for names of potential suspects, even to individuals who said they knew nothing about the crime. Four weeks after documenting this rally, Burrell was released from prison after 18 years. An independent national legal panel organized to review the case and provide a recommendation found that evidence that could have helped exonerate Burrell was either ignored or minimized. /// My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

Toshira Garraway (pictured center) is another community leader who is fighting for justice and at the same time navigating her own grieving process.  Almost a decade ago, she was engaged to Justin Teigen, a 24-year-old at the time, who was stopped by Saint Paul police in the Midway Shopping Center. After this interaction with the police, Tiegen's body was found by workers at an Inver Grove Heights recycling facility amid a heap of recycling material. It is still unclear on how Tiegen ended up in the dumpster that was taken to a recycling facility. The St. Paul Police Department claimed Tiegen fled on foot and climbed in the recycling bin to hide from them. Garraway believes, after the foot chase, the police beat Justin to death and threw his body into the recycling bin. Garraway continues to raise awareness and demands Justin Teigen’s case be further investigated and reopened.  // My name is Andrew Arrieta - @itsdrw  . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

Long before George Floyd, Minnesota has a long history of deaths caused by police. During my @everydayusa takeover, I (@itsdrw ) will highlight just a few stories where families are fighting for justice while at the same time navigating their own grieving process.  Sumaya Aden (pictured right) is the brother of Isak Aden, a 23 year old Somali-American entrepreneur and student at the University of Minnesota who was murdered in 2019 by Eagan and Bloomington, MN police officers.  Responding to a 911 call where an individual claimed Aden had a gun on him -- 90 law enforcement officers in SWAT gear, armored vehicles, two snipers, K9 units, tactical arrest teams, and negotiators were deployed to "deescalate" the situation. Aden had a handgun on the ground when police charged towards him and there is s no conclusive evidence proving that he aimed it at any of the officers at the scene. The two officers who used lethal force -- Bloomington Police Officer Anthony Kiehl and Eagan’s Jacob Peterson -- have killed individuals before as police officers. In 2015, Kiehl, one of the snipers who shot Aden, killed 24-year-old Quincy Reindl in Bloomington, MN. In 2013, Peterson killed 26-year-old Zachary Premo in Duluth, MN. Aden’s family filed a $20 million federal lawsuit against the police authorities and officers responsible for Isak's death. // This is Drew Arrieta -- @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues.

What's up, everyone! My name is Drew Arrieta - @itsdrw . I'm a St. Paul / Imnížaska Othúŋwe, MN based photographer with an urge to tell local and human stories — calling attention to race and human rights issues. I'll be taking over Everyday USA over the next few days.  I'm a born-and-raised New Yorker who relocated to Minnesota almost four years ago. I'm an activist turned photographer and my work tries to balance those aspects. I started organizing as a teenager, knocking on doors of public housing buildings to help tenants prevent their homes from being sold to private developers. I also worked as a political organizer for a union which represents hotel workers in New York City and New Jersey.  Once I heard of George Floyd's murder, I immediately went over to where it occured. Unlike previous times, I decided to bring my camera and felt an urge to document what I was seeing. Over the next couple days and months, I realized how my photography allowed me to play a positive impact in my community and elevate issues important to me. This is the first photo I took outside of Cup Foods. Over the next couple days, I will be highlighting stories from Minnesota that haven't received wide attention and what I've witnessed in the field.

This is the last post I, @thejadewilson , will make on this account. It shouldn’t take much of an effort for basic needs to be met. The cities most vulnerable people are not protected and don’t have access to resources. A place like downtown Raleigh will remodel a park for the gentrifiers and increase the policing on people who do not look like them. Stay dangerous, y’all. ✌🏾

The woman in the first photo tragically lost her 12-year-old son this summer to gun violence. Our political leaders do not take enough accountability for these violent crimes they commit. Stay tuned for more images and thoughts for the next couple of days as I, @thejadewilson , takeover this account.

FUCK 12. They’re a false sense of security. A world without police is not just a fantasy or a dream. We can make our imaginations our reality right now! REAL change is possible. Photo taken in downtown Raleigh on March 10th, 2020 after finding out RPD shot another person of color. Stay tuned for more images and thoughts for the next couple of days as I, @thejadewilson , takeover this account.

In February, I met a family who was displaced because of the life threatening issues that needed to be addressed at McDougald Terrace. They moved into a hotel. Since the pandemic, displaced residents moved back into their homes, but I don’t know if changes were made. I photograph and edit in a way that tells a story without revealing individual identity, depending on the topic or what’s going on. Too often have we’ve seen people capitalize off of other people’s struggles and feel like they have the right to access and exploit someone’s story. How can you abuse your power and trust like that? The way we capture stories, especially stories we’re not directly impacted by, we must tread carefully when informing the public. Stay tuned for more images and thoughts for the next week as I, @thejadewilson , takeover this account.