Justin Ellis, a native of South Minneapolis and author, has released a new book titled *The Cruelty of Nice Folks*, which offers a critical examination of Minneapolis’s history with race and inequality. Though inspired by the 2020 murder of George Floyd, Ellis’s work delves deeper into the longstanding challenges faced by Black residents in the city, uncovering a pattern of systemic issues that have persisted across generations.

Ellis, who now lives in New York, returned to Minnesota during the COVID-19 pandemic to care for his mother as she underwent chemotherapy. His experiences prompted him to explore the divide between the city’s liberal reputation and the harsh realities endured by Black Minnesotans. Originally a shorter piece for a major magazine, the project expanded into a book that combines history, personal narrative, and social analysis.

Drawing from historical records, media reports, and his family’s experiences, Ellis highlights a recurring theme: despite Minneapolis’s self-image as a progressive city, racial disparities and injustices have remained largely unaddressed. He traces these issues back to at least the 19th century, citing activist Frederick Douglass’s 1873 visit to Minneapolis, where Douglass described feeling both isolated and in danger despite the town’s courteous facade.

Ellis points to the subtle ways structural racism has been normalized, noting that by the time he grew up in the 1980s, overtly discriminatory practices like racial covenants and redlining had ended, yet racial segregation and economic disparities persisted as if self-sustaining features of the urban landscape. This normalization, he argues, obscures the systemic nature of the problem and allows its perpetuation without clear accountability.

One of the more surprising critiques in Ellis’s book targets Hubert H. Humphrey, the beloved Minnesota politician renowned for his civil rights work. While acknowledging Humphrey’s contributions, Ellis contends that his brand of politicking—aimed at reassuring White residents while offering limited reforms—helped entrench a political culture that tolerates deep-rooted inequalities without fully addressing them.

Ellis also reflects on his family’s multigenerational encounters with discrimination and systemic barriers, noting that the core problems faced by his great-grandmother, grandmother, mother, and himself remain strikingly similar. He was initially reluctant to incorporate personal details but came to see the value in illustrating how pervasive these challenges are for Black Minnesotans.

Policing is a recurring subject in *The Cruelty of Nice Folks*. Ellis discusses the aftermath of Minneapolis City Council members’ 2020 declarations in favor of defunding the police, a move that generated significant public attention but, in practice, led to minimal change. His research underscores a frustrating cycle in which the city repeatedly attempts reforms but fails to achieve lasting progress.

As the book neared completion in early 2026, the impact of Operation Metro Surge—an immigration enforcement initiative—once again centered Minneapolis on the national stage. Ellis added an epilogue addressing the city’s community response to the federal action, which he views as a hopeful indication of Minneapolis seeking “radically different” approaches to justice.

Ultimately, Ellis’s *The Cruelty of Nice Folks* questions whether Minneapolis will break from its history of racial inequity and fulfill its promises of equality, presenting the city at a potential turning point amid ongoing social and political challenges.