MINNEAPOLIS — Maya Thin Elk ordered a mango smoothie and breakfast burrito at Pow Wow Grounds Coffee before going to the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center to pick up supplies for families homebound with newborns and pregnant mothers who are unable to leave their homes.
The Sicangu Lakota woman is eight months pregnant, and is a doula for expecting mothers. Thin Elk’s deliveries have increased since January, when federal immigration raids became a daily, violent, occurrence in the Twin Cities and left some families unable to go out for basic supplies. For instance, she said the husband for a family she helps was recently picked up and is now detained in Texas at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. Her deliveries offer some protection from encounters with ICE.
“It’s really about getting them the supplies they need. As an Indigenous doula, it’s really about supporting them emotionally,” Thin Elk said…