Carin Mrotz: Justice Fighter in the Far North
Carin Mrotz
As concerns about anti-Semitism on the left have grown, Carin Mrotz and her Minnesota-based organization Jewish Community Action have trained dozens of progressive activists in unconscious bias. Mrotz, in a personal capacity, also led such a training for local Rep. Ilhan Omar, whom she considers a friend. JCA’s advocacy helped strengthen tenant protection laws in multiple Minneapolis suburbs and temporarily shut down local Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities to protest deportations and family separations. And as the threat of violent white nationalism increased, Mrotz has stressed the importance of solidarity, co-writing well-received op-eds with Muslim leaders about the need for minorities to stand together. She is also the co-host of “Wrong About Everything,” a podcast about politics hosted by two Democrats and two Republicans.
Carin Mrotz
Breakfast: A grain-free hot cereal with plenty of protein. I need breakfast to stay with me until mid-afternoon!
What’s the last thing you listened to on your phone? An episode of the podcast “You’re Wrong About” about the O.J. Simpson trial.
Earliest Jewish memory: Being the Shabbat Queen. I went to Jewish preschool and we all had a turn. I cherished mine because I wore a paper crown and was in charge of who got challah in what order.
Heroes: Ady Barkan, Emma Goldman and Gilda Radner.
2019 memory: I got to attend the governor’s fishing opener this year! That probably sounds nerdy, but Minnesota has gorgeous lakes and getting to go fishing with a guide was a real treat. It’s very niche Minnesota.
What is your favorite thing about being Jewish? Humor and ritual.
What app can you not live without? Weather. I’m not kidding — in Minnesota it can drop 30 degrees overnight and I want to know that from under the covers in bed before I get up.
Weekend ritual: Staying in pajamas and making breakfast for my kids.
Read more:
Carin Mrotz’s Forward op-ed co-written with Jaylani Hussein, titled “Our Solidarity Is Stronger Than Your Hate,” published after the Christchurch mosque shooting.
Mrotz’s Forward op-ed co-written with Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, titled “Only One Thing Can Stop White Supremacy: Solidarity Between Muslims And Jews,” published after the Poway synagogue shooting.
Follow Jewish Community Action on Twitter and Instagram and Carin Mrotz on Twitter and Instagram
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
