Paradox: Echoes of Reform and the Minneapolis Police

The Maryland Lynching Memorial Project and the Institute for Common Power have partnered to present a new documentary by University of St. Thomas professor, Dr. Yohuru Williams, Paradox: Echoes of Reform and the Minneapolis Police.

Historian Yohuru Williams explores the history of reforming the Minneapolis Police and how George Floyd’s murder was a century in the making. The three-part series is a compelling blend of deep research, candid interviews, and rare archival footage. Paradox peers into the past of mayoral politics, community activism, and police union pushback to better consider our public safety future.

In a recent interview, Dr. Williams reflected: "...it's not a question of history repeating itself... It's really the echoes and our opportunity in our contemporary moment to use this history as a compass to rethink public safety in a way that would be holistic and affirming, in the way that some of the reforming activists and officers that you encounter in the film talk about."

The online screening of the 30-minute film will be followed by a conversation with special guests including:

• Dr. Yohuru Williams, historian and film contributor, is the Distinguished University Chair and Professor of History and Founding Director of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas. He is the author, co-author, and editor of eleven books, including Call Him Jack: The Story of Jackie Robinson, Black Freedom Fighter and More Than A Dream: The Radical March on Washington for Jobs & Freedom, which was longlisted for the National Book Award in Young People's Literature. Dr. Williams has appeared on a variety of local and national television and radio programs, including the History Channel, CNN, Fox Business News, NPR, BET, and ABC. His scholarly articles have been published in the American Bar Association’s Insights on Law and Society and the Journal of Civil and Human Rights.
• Dr. Terry Anne Scott is an award-winning historian, author, and speaker. She is the Director of the Institute for Common Power, an educational 501(c)3 branch of Common Power. She is a former Professor of African American History and Chair of the Department of History at Hood College, is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Sports History, and a member of the Editorial Staff for the Journal of American History. Dr. Scott serves as the Vice President of the MLMP.
• Amy S. Millin is the is the President of the MLMP where her passion rests in the ways that community programming creates opportunity for conversation in local, state, and national spaces. She serves as a Commissioner on the Maryland Lynching Truth & Reconciliation Commission—the only such Commission in the country. She is adjunct in the MA in Cultural Sustainability and MA in Historic Preservation programs at Goucher College.

Paradox was released in the fall of 2025, on the eve of the recent high-profile killings of Minneapolis residents Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good by federal ICE agents.