Minnesota Lawyer Blog

I spent this morning over at Civic Fest, which bills itself as a very Minnesota celebration (whatever that means). For those of you who have not been following it, Civic Fest is a family-friendly "multimedia experience" focusing on local and national history, including the American presidency. Among the traveling exhibits are a miniature recreation of the White House, historical documents (including the Declaration of Independence), a display of first lady gowns, a mock Oval Office and a very impressive collection of historical memorabilia. The exhibits, which are at the Minneapolis Convention Center, have been timed to coincide with the Republican National Convention. It's a great way to share in the convention excitement, catch up on your history and have some fun. There's definitely a lot there of interest to lawyers, plus lots of entertaining stuff for kids and other family members. I'd encourage everybody to attend.

I was there in the capacity of a volunteer, having responded to Mayor R.T. Rybak's call for local citizens to pitch in. Most of the time I spent directing folks onto the Air Force One exhibit and stationed at a prototype of Ronald Reagan's presidential limo. My favorite comment came from a precocious little girl who stuck her head by the open door of the frequently mothballed limo, took a deep whiff and exclaimed, "It smells like my grampy."

In any event, here are two pictures I took during off periods on my iPhone. The first (at left) is of the message informing members of the public that one of the electronic speakers at the presidents' exhibit was experiencing technical difficulties. (Poor Dick Nixon still can't catch a break.) I like the fact that whoever wrote the "pardon" message apparently had a sense humor. (If you can't see the writing, click on the photo to make it bigger.)

The second photo (at right) is of a Lincoln impersonator who circulated around the exhibit hall. Someone said to me that this faux Lincoln was in fact a little taller than the real McCoy, but the hat used was a bit shorter, so it all evened out. I have no idea if this is actually true, but I like the symmetry if it is. In any event, I could not hear what Lincoln was saying to this woman standing in line at the miniature White House. Perhaps he dropped by to tell her to make sure she checks out the Lincoln bedroom. (File that one under great presidential pickup lines.)

Speaking of the race for Justice Lorie Gildea's seat, high court candidate Jill Clark is in the news over at the Minnesota Independent, which reports on a case in which a client she represents has charged the Minneapolis City Attorney's Office with discrimination. ("Does Minneapolis City Attorney's Office discriminate against minorities for promotions?")

Clark represents Julie Delgado O'Neil, who has worked as an attorney in the office for 11 years. Delgado O'Neil, who is of Mexican decent, contends that people of color, including herself, have been unfairly passed over for promotions as a result of their ethnicity. (The Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights found probable cause that the City Attorney's screening process for internally promoting attorneys has a disparate impact on minorities.)

Interestingly (particularly given how few and far between judicial challenges are), Delgado O'Neil herself ran for a judgeship in 2004. She unsuccessfully challenged Judge Thor Anderson for a seat on the Hennepin County bench.

UPDATE: An astute reader points out that Delgado O'Neil also ran for the Hennepin County bench in 2002, and was defeated by the incumbent, Judge Lloyd Zimmerman. It's an interesting point given that Clark also ran for the Hennepin County bench in 2002, losing to the incumbent, Judge Thomas Wexler. In that heated campaign, Clark accused her opponent of demonstrating bias on the bench, a charge he vehemently denied.

Minneapolis has been much in the national news lately. Both Newsweek and The NewsHour on PBS covered the culture wars as exemplified at airport taxi stands and some supermarket checkouts and now George Will has weighed in on the Minneapolis "taxi cartel." I daresay he may have seen that catchy phrase in Nick Dranias's pleadings for the Institute for Justice.

The city opened up the number of taxi licenses, much to the chagrin of the existing license holders. The "cartel" now is suing for deprivation of an economic right, and the IJ has intervened. The IJ does get an approving mention in Will's column that ran in the Strib on Sunday. (For Minnesota Lawyer coverage of the IJ and the taxi cartel, click here, password required.)