Thinking About Past Covers

About eight years ago, Minnesota Women’s Press began to regularly feature photographs on the cover. I have been the photographer for most of those images. Meeting these people, who are moving the dial to the good in Minnesota, has been the honor of my life.

In 2018, our cover subject was the same person who graces this April 2025 issue: Winona LaDuke. I had just begun my full-time role at Minnesota Women’s Press. I drove many hours to and from the White Earth reservation where she lived, both excited and nervous to meet a woman I had heard so much about. She met me in a random spot in town in order to show me the way to her new hemp farm.

LaDuke never stopped moving. As soon as she stepped out of her truck, she began giving me a tour of the farm. As I photographed her, she wandered through the horses, talking about the personality of each. Then she invited me inside to warm up with tea. She was just as animated in the cozy house.

We talked for over two hours, covering topics from pipelines to parentage. Her ideas and energy left me just as in awe of her as before I had arrived.

If I were to photograph her again, I would do many things differently: make sure we could see the fire in her eyes, use the portable lighting setup that I didn’t own back then, push harder to show the essence of a powerhouse. She is a woman who clearly will never stop fighting for the things and people she believes in. We are fortunate to be able to feature her, and so many others, in this magazine, year after year.