That the tour’s first show was held in Minnesota’s capital was not just a coincidence. Springsteen has repeatedly expressed anger at the city’s over two-month occupation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, a Trump administration order that resulted in the killings of two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti. In the midst of the turmoil, Springsteen released the protest song “Streets of Minneapolis,” expressing his support for the Twin Cities. This past Saturday, Springsteen made an appearance at St. Paul’s No Kings rally, performing the anthem alongside civil rights advocates Jane Fonda and Joan Baez.
The E Street Band played “Streets of Minneapolis” again on Tuesday, as well as heavily-inflected renditions of Edwin Starr’s 1970 protest song “War” and Springsteen’s own “Born in the U.S.A.,” a ballad currently being used by the ACLU to protest President Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship as the case heads to the Supreme Court. “We are living through some very dark times,” Springsteen told the audience in his typical gravelly voice. “Our American values that have sustained us for 250 years are being challenged as never before.” Crowds whooped and held cell phones in the air. “ICE out now!” they shouted.
Springsteen also ripped into Pam Bondi, disparaging the Attorney General for taking “her marching orders straight from a corrupt White House.” A refrain of Springsteen’s, one that echoed through each of his speeches and carried a ritualistic quality by the night’s end, was simple and chilling: “This is happening now.” The tour’s opening night closed out with Minnesota icon Bob Dylan’s own protest song, “Chimes of Freedom.” The Boss has long used his platform to draw attention to social justice issues, advocating for labor unions, speaking against economic disparities, and denouncing the ongoing war in the Middle East. The tour wraps in Trump’s backyard in Washington, D.C., just after Memorial Day Weekend.
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