Minneapolis Greek Festival cancels 2021 event due to Uptown unrest

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minneapolis Greek Festival says its 2021 Taste of Greece event won't go on next month as officials cite unrest in Uptown.

In a message on the festival's website, officials say: "Due to the recent unrest in the Uptown district and the realization that we would be unable to find a successful solution to ensure the safety and security of our Festival guests, volunteers, and grounds, we have made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s Festival. We have every intent of holding our Festival next year."

The 2021 festival was scheduled to run from Friday, September 10 through Sunday, September 12. The 2022 schedule is tentatively scheduled for the weekend of September 9.

Uptown has been the site of regular protests and unrest since the shooting of Winston Smith in June. Smith was killed as a U.S. Marshals Task Force attempted to arrest him at a parking ramp of Girard Avenue.