Bulwark Takes - A Colleague Remembers Alex Pretti (w/ Dr. Aasma Shaukat)

Episode Date: January 25, 2026

Sam Stein speaks with Dr. Aasma Shaukat, Alex Pretti’s former boss, about the moment she learned he’d been killed, and what kind of coworker and caregiver he was.

Hey everybody. It's me Sam Stein, managing editor at the Bullwork, and I am joined by Dr. Asma Shugut, who is an associate friend of Alex Pretti, who was tragically killed yesterday, as everyone now knows, in Minneapolis. We've been doing a lot of videos about what happened in Minneapolis. A lot of videos have focused on the actions of ICE. A lot of videos have focused on the response of politicians. A lot of videos have channeled a lot of rage that people feel. What we haven't done is properly focus on Alex's life. And so we are asking Dr. Shukit to talk about Alex. So thank you so much for joining us. And let me just start with your history.

How did you meet Alex and tell us about your time together? Thank you so much for having me on. I met Alex when he was looking to get his first job in the healthcare area. So he applied to be a research assistant in our clinical research studies program at the Minneapolis VA. And so I interviewed him and decided to hire him and bring him on our team. How old was he around then? And what were his interests? He was, I want to say, in his 20s, but Alex was a slight build. And honestly, he looked like a young kid. So he just looked somebody who was really eager to get into healthcare. He didn't have much experience.

but he had a lot of enthusiasm, and he did express this interest that he really wanted to take care of patients and vulnerable patients in particular, and wanted to get engaged into research and eventually build a career towards healthcare. So it was just kind of how earnest he was that really made us take him on and train him on the job and continue from there. Tell me a little bit about the work that he did in those earlier. So in the early years, he was a research coordinator, which means a lot of his work was, screening potentially eligible individuals for different studies. Our studies are mostly related to colon cancer screening, then speaking with them, interviewing them,

telling them information about the study, and then consenting them, and then following up with them. It actually does require somebody that has good people skills and likes to connect with people. And, you know, Alex did that really well. I heard nothing but good things. And I think it was his empathy that let him kind of connect with

patients and veterans in particular that made him a really good research coordinator. He was also good at every other task, keeping paperwork organized, and then eventually, you know, never shied away from extra work and just, you know, continue to grow with the role. Yeah, I read, I think it might have been you who said it, that he delivered pizzas or was thinking about becoming an Uber driver to take on extra cash. Was that just a function of the pay or necessity that he had because of, a need for finances. Yeah, so Alex was dedicated to a career in healthcare,

and a research assistant job doesn't pay very much. So we used to kind of do these team outings every few weeks, and we would share what we were doing in our other life outside work, and he would share that he delivered pizzas at night to make ends meet, and he was trying to qualify to be an Uber driver, but his car was too old. You know, we really supported him, and he was a great team member.

He always took care of us and did what we needed. And in return, we were always looking out for Alex, making sure he got enough food. If there was leftover pizza or something, we did invite him to take away all the leftovers. What was he like? And maybe you didn't get a good view of it, but what was he like in his personal life?

Was he, did he have hobbies or passions that you knew about, good friend network? What was his family life like? Yeah, I mean, he was on the quieter side, and he loved spending time with nature. He was very outdoorsy. So very often we talk about kind of the hiking and biking trails around Minneapolis. And I remember at one point he got into biking. So we spoke about what kind of bike he was looking for and, you know, what kind of trails he would use.

And he really enjoyed being in the outdoor. And, you know, our team lunches used to be in this beautiful park called Minnehaha Park near our hospital. And there's an outdoor restaurant there called Seasalt. So, you know, he really appreciated being out in nature and just, you know, the beautiful environment and our role in protecting it. How long did you two work together? For about six years. So, you know, after working for us for a few years, he expressed an interest to start nursing school. So we supported his application.

I wrote letters for his nursing school application. So he got in and then he asked if he could kind of rearrange his work hours in order to do some nursing courses part-time because that would allow him to keep his job as well as do his nursing coursework. So we let him do that, honestly. We just wanted to help him. And after he did that, then finally when he had to kind of do nursing full time, that's when he left our group. And, you know, we had nothing but good wishes for him. And then he did say that he would come back to work at the same hospital, which he did.

And that's where he was until yesterday as a nurse. There's this video that's been made public by the son of one of the patients that he tended to, a veteran who I believe they called the last rights, but I might be butchering that. And I apologize if I am. But you could see in the bedside manner, I suppose, but also just this kind of calm, almost serenity about how he read the speech. It was obviously an incredibly emotional moment, but he seemed professional, calm.

I don't know. It gave you a glimpse into the type of personality he had, but I'm wondering if that's just a glimpse I've had. I don't know anything about the man. Is that indicative of the type of person that you saw when you worked with him? Yeah, Sam, your reading is spot on. That's actually what Alex was like. He was just very calm.

And, you know, you could talk to him about any, there was no pretense. And he was always about helping everybody around him, his community, his colleagues. He was the kind of person that would open doors, you know, or hold the door open. He would hold the elevator door open if there was somebody trying to get in. If you saw somebody lost walking around the corridors of the hospital, which happens often, he would definitely, you know, be the one saying, hey, can I help you? Where are you trying to go? Let me direct you. So he was somebody that you could count on for that help. And he was just a calm, sweet person at work, because it takes a lot to be an ICU nurse. But the fact that he was so dedicated

to that also speaks to how dedicated he was to taking care of vulnerable individuals. I was going to ask you that, it's a natural lead. And did it surprise you to find out that he had been going out and protesting ICE and what ICE is doing in Minneapolis. Yeah, you know, that doesn't surprise me because we were together when the George Floyd riots were happening in the Twin Cities also. And, you know, we often talk about standing up for, you know, lending our voice to what we think is right and standing up for our community and supporting each other. So he was a good upstanding citizen. And I think he really cared about his community about taking care of individuals that were vulnerable or he thought were in harm's

way. So it wasn't a surprise to me that he was part of the protests. Did he go out in the George Floyd protests? I mean, we spoke about, you know, how difficult those times were. And I don't recall whether, you know, we talked about it specifically because it was also the pandemic and our contact was limited. But yeah, we did talk about how important it was to have. your voice heard. How did you find out that he had been killed? So my colleagues, you know, our research team that we were all together at the Minneapolis via, you know, they texted me. And it was, again, very shocking and just very surprising. I mean, the Alex V knew, you would never guess that he would be the kind of person, you know, that would try to go out

and look for trouble or be caught up in something like this. Helping people that, we could see him doing. But, you know, instigating violence or creating trouble, that was not Alex. Did you think that he instigated violence? Not at all. Or did you think that the account, did you think the account was wrong from what you heard? So, I mean, it genuinely seemed, and from what I know and remember of Alex, that if there was somebody that he thought was in harm's way or had fallen and he needed to help them or protect them or support them, he would do that. Did you watch the video of what happened?

I did. Can you talk about what it was like to watch that? I mean, it was gut-wrenching and very, very horrifying. You know, to see somebody trying to protect another citizen that was vulnerable. you could see Alex in that moment and then even trying to use his phone to maybe take pictures or film the whole thing. And then just the brutal events that followed where he's thrown to the ground and pinned with his hands to his back and then brutally shot. I mean, Alex was not a big guy. He was always on the slimmer, very leaner side.

So he was not threatening in any way, shape or form. And I just see somebody kind of supporting another community member or a citizen. Did you ever know him to carry a gun? I'm just sort of curious about that element. I did not. Honestly, that never came up. So I'm curious whether that was in, you know, kind of the recent years with everything going on and the unrest. And he did live in an area in South Minneapolis where there's, you know, a lot of active activity.

with ice. So I don't know if it was for self-protection or in what context. Also, after the pandemic, you know, there was more crime and unrest in the city in certain parts. So I don't know if he just, you know, had it. But it was perfectly legal for him to do so. And, you know, again, can't fault him for that. When it began to register that it was indeed Alex, and you did see the videos. I'm assuming there was conversations that you and your contemporaries were having, those who had worked with Alex. What were those conversations like? Universally, we were all shocked and we all couldn't believe that this was the same Alex that we knew and worked with every single day. He was you and I. He was, you know, a good co-worker, a good

colleague, was an upstanding citizen, did the right things, you know, stood up for the right causes and was peaceful. And there was never any suspicion that he had any intent other than to just help others. And finally, in the aftermath of it, you've seen some people in this administration and people who defend the administration say, well, he was an instigator. He shouldn't have been there. Some have called him an assassin, likened him to a terrorist. This morning, he was accused of trying to essentially take out a number of vice agents. And if, you know, he would have a feeling, if he hadn't been stopped, ascribing motivations to him that I don't think are fair, accurate, or anything like that. But as someone who knew him, as you watch

this happen, what do you make of it? I think those narratives just don't fit. And, you know, what I see is an upstanding citizen exerting his right and participating in a peaceful protest. And then coming to the aid of another fellow citizen and, you know, trying to get these brutal officers away from this woman and trying to make some sense of the situation. Clearly, he is not threatening or looking for trouble. And I think it was way excessive what happened afterwards and very unfortunate. I agree with that. All right.

Dr. Osama Shukat, thank you so much. I really do appreciate you taking the time, sharing your memories of Alex. I can't imagine how hard it is to process this. But I think it's really important to at least have people who can explain what a person he was. because ultimately at the end of the day, we lost a person. And you need to remember that as well as all the politics and stuff. So thank you for taking this time on a Sunday to do this. We really appreciate it.

Thank you so much for having you.