Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” is reshaping SNAP eligibility, kicking asylees and refugees off benefits and adding new work requirements, while shifting billions in costs onto states starting in 2026. Contributing writer Ella Stern breaks down the impact on Minnesota, where over a quarter of SNAP recipients are Black.
Ella Stern
Posted inLocal & State
Sabathani Community Center’s block party celebrates 60 years of service
South Minneapolis’ Sabathani Community Center celebrated 60 years of community care with a block party headlined by Sounds of Blackness. Neighbors and leaders reflected on six decades of serving as a vital lifeline for Black Minnesota.
Posted inLocal & State
Following policing and surveillance concerns, Minneapolis to receive audit of ShotSpotter technology
Minneapolis is the only city in Minnesota using ShotSpotter’s gunshot detection microphones. With a city audit dropping next month, community members and council members question whether the tech reduces violence or drives discriminatory policing.
Posted inMSR In the News
In MSR’s 92nd year, publisher and CEO reflects on her grandfather’s legacy
MSR turns 92. CEO Tracey Williams-Dillard reflects on grandfather Cecil Newman’s founding of Minnesota’s Black press legacy.
Posted inArts + Culture
Local artist weaves community connection through Rondo library art project
Visual artist Briauna Williams is using paintbrush and canvas to combat the national loneliness epidemic. Through her interactive project at the Rondo Community Library, she’s creating a space where youth, parents, and elders can heal together.
Posted inArts + Culture
After Operation Metro Surge, Mixed Blood Theatre turns to storytelling to heal
Following the taxing impact of Operation Metro Surge, Mixed Blood Theatre is leveraging story circles, a tool rooted in Indigenous history and Civil Rights organizing, to help Twin Cities residents reconnect, heal, and find strength in shared joy.
Posted inBooks
Shannon Gibney breaks taboo with new children’s book on infant loss
Local author Shannon Gibney’s new children’s book, “Where Is My Sister?,” tackles a subject rarely addressed in kids’ literature: how young children process infant loss. Contributing writer Ella Stern has the story behind the book.
Posted inLocal & State
Community pushes back on Minneapolis drone pilot program
Forty community members spoke out against a proposed MPD drone pilot at a July 8 committee meeting, none in favor. Contributing writer Ella Stern breaks down the surveillance, data and Skydio-Israel concerns headed to a full council vote July 16.
Posted inLocal & State
ICE detentions surge to 2,000 a day to meet new agency quota
ICE detained over 10,000 people nationwide in a five-day span, doubling its daily quota to 2,000 detentions, according to new reporting. Contributing writer Ella Stern breaks down what’s driving the surge, and why it’s happening more quietly than past operations.
Posted inTheater
Rose McGee’s ‘Kumbayah’ marks 30 years of telling freedom’s story
Rose McGee’s “Kumbayah The Juneteenth Story” marked 30 years at St. Paul’s The O’Shaughnessy, with cast members drawing direct lines from the play’s history to Operation Metro Surge and police brutality today. Ella Stern reports.
Posted inLocal & State
14 activists plead not guilty in anti-ICE case
Fourteen of the 15 activists federally charged for anti-ICE activity pleaded not guilty in Minneapolis on July 1. Contributing writer Ella Stern reports from the arraignment, where prosecutors revealed 20 terabytes of evidence and a judge rejected their bid for a 90-day extension.
Posted inFinance
First Independence Bank opens new St. Paul location on University Avenue
First Independence Bank, the Twin Cities’ first Black-owned full-service bank, opened a new St. Paul location at 627 University Avenue West on June 24, bringing banking services to the Frogtown and Rondo neighborhoods with a mission to close the racial wealth gap.
Posted inLocal & State
Minneapolis City Council votes on three measures affecting George Floyd Square
The Minneapolis City Council voted June 11 to deny special assessments for homeowners and businesses near George Floyd Square, reject exclusive development rights for Agape Movement at People’s Way and request a report on the 38th Street THRIVE Plan.
Posted inLocal & State
Miss Juneteenth Minnesota royalty speak to continued power of the pageant
At 54, Zina Alston Fizer was crowned First Lady Juneteenth Minnesota at the third annual Miss Juneteenth Minnesota State Pageant, fulfilling a lifelong dream for a woman who grew up watching beauty pageants and never seeing herself reflected in them.
Posted inHealth + Wellness
Turning Point celebrates 50 years of culturally specific care
Turning Point, Inc. MN, a North Minneapolis substance abuse treatment center serving the African American community with a culturally specific approach, celebrated its 50th anniversary this week, having served more than 25,000 clients since 1976.