Organizer Meg Riley on living in a lesbian co-op, the history of radical resistance in Minneapolis, and the ICE surge

Organizer Meg Riley on living in a lesbian co-op, the history of radical resistance in Minneapolis, and the ICE surge

From Cruising | Queer History and Culture by Sarah Gabrielli, Rachel Karp, and Jennifer McGinity

May 12, 2026 · 1h 28m · Season 3 · Episode 29

About this episode

Meg Riley discusses her experiences in lesbian co-op living and activism in Minneapolis.

This week, we're digging into the rich history activism and resistance in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Our guest, Meg Riley, is a political organizer, advocate, and Unitarian Universalist Minister. Meg first moved to the twin cities in 1976, where she very quickly started living in cooperative community housing and immersing herself in local lesbian activism. In 1981, Meg moved into what would become Sweet Willa - a cooperatively owned, lesbian home. Today, she still lives in Minneapolis, where she's settling into her new role as movement elder. Meg joins the podcast to discuss: -the ins and outs of community living with a bunch of lesbians -the local lesbian coffeehouse, bookstore, lez brunch, and more queer infrastructure -why so many sober people come to Minneapolis -the struggle to pass down leadership and knowledge to the next generation of queers -her experience with ICE and local mutual aid networks ... Buy tickets and browse the schedule for our BOOK TOUR Submit a story for our COMMUNITY STORY SHARE ... Thank you for listening to Cruising Podcast! -Reviews help other listeners find Cruising! If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave us a 5-star review! -For more…

People in this episode

Hosts: Sarah Gabrielli, Rachel Karp, Jennifer McGinity

Guest: Meg Riley

Topics covered

  • lesbian activism
  • community living
  • radical resistance
  • Minneapolis history
  • ICE
  • mutual aid

Keywords

  • lesbian co-op
  • activism
  • Minneapolis
  • ICE
  • community housing
  • queer infrastructure
  • mutual aid

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Unitarian Universalist

Places: Minneapolis, Sweet Willa, Minnesota, Twin Cities

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