Ex-offender exemplifies power of personal change At age 15, most individuals are thinking about what clothes and shoes to wear to school, taking driver education to get their first car, and being the coolest kid on the block without crossing parental authority. One individual, however, faced an entirely different situation, one that would change his […]
Ivan Phifer
Ivan B. Phifer is contributing writer at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. He can be reached at iphifer@spokesman-recorder.com
Posted inNews
UROC celebrates eight years of partnerships, research
Former director Heidi Barajas honored Where once stood a hair shop, Snow Foods, and the legendary Lucille’s Kitchen, and where, according to Northside Job Creation Team Community Director Bill English, you could “find anything illegal in that parking lot on a Saturday morning,” the University of Minnesota developed its Urban Research Outreach Engagement Center (UROC) […]
Posted inNews
Residents protest housing authority rehab plans
A tense and surreal feeling hung over the crowd of 50-75 people in the conference room on Wednesday, September 27 at the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA), at 1001 Washington Avenue North. Among the crowd were signs that read “We stand by Glendale,” “Do not lie to us” “Put people over profits” and “Housing is […]
Posted inNews
U of M panel examines campus racism in the 1930s
The history of Jim Crow is well known in the South from personal accounts and in history books. However, you have to dig a little deeper to find history of segregated times and events in the North. Some examples of northern racism are well documented right here on the University of Minnesota campus. On Wednesday, […]
Posted inNews
Mpls Park Board candidates mix it up at North High
The first of four community meetings to introduce Park Board candidates was held in the North High School auditorium on Thursday, September 7. Resmaa Menakem and Kenya McKnight moderated the event of 50-80 people. Parks & Power, a campaign dedicated to grassroots community organizing for racial equity and justice in Minneapolis’ parks system, and Northside […]
Posted inNews
Public hearing on MPD chief aired pros and cons
Majority spoke in support of ‘Rondo’ Arradondo Recent killings by Minneapolis police and the subsequent resignation of former police chief Janeé Harteau have brought national attention to Minneapolis, most recently over who will be her successor. On Wednesday, August 9, 75-100 community members showed up at the Minneapolis City Council’s Public Safety, Civil Rights and […]
Posted inSister Spokesman
Legacy Boat Cruise 2017: Revelers party on the St. Croix for a worthy cause
The forecast may have called for scattered showers, but for the third year in a row, the rain was held at bay as the Legacy Boat Cruise set sail for a four-hour cruise down the St. Croix River on August 5. The cruise, sponsored by the Medtronic Foundation, featured a buffet-style meal with salad, lasagna, […]
Posted inNews
Recollections of a Buffalo Soldier
Jamaican reggae singer Bob Marley popularized the song “Buffalo Soldier” released in 1983. He equated the tune to the Black struggle for survival. But not everyone knows the true origin of the name “Buffalo Soldier.” Following the U.S. Civil War, regiments of Buffalo Soldiers served on the western frontier protecting settlers. Congress passed legislation in […]
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Community members voice support for Arradondo as chief
You may not be familiar with the 2002 release of the movie Dark Blue, starring Kurt Russell, Ving Rhames and Kurupt, among others. Rhames plays Assistant Chief Arthur Holland. Although not based on a true story, the film is filled with actual historical events, which ironically have a similar cadence of topic with current events. […]
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Mr. Music helps others get heard
When you have a passion for something, you pursue it with all your energy, blood, sweat and tears. Ethan Horace — aka Mr. Music — has been following his passion for music, broadcasting and journalism for quite some time. This year, Horace’s work paid off. In February 2017, Horace won the Journalism Award at The […]
Posted inNews
Annual festival keeps Rondo spirit alive
On a scorching hot 95-degree July 15, a few hundred people gathered at the Martin Luther King Center in Minnesota’s capitol city for the 34th annual Rondo Days celebration. There was live entertainment, delectable BBQ food, frozen eats, two dozen community-based organizations and several sponsors, including St. Paul Public Schools, Metro Transit, Minnesota Historic Society, […]
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Governor calls proposed GOP bill ‘devastating…obscene…shameful’
By now, most Americans have heard that President Donald Trump plans “massive cuts” to Medicaid, which is part of the Affordable Care Act. The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) provides better healthcare security for millions of citizens with comprehensive health insurance reform. It expands Medicaid coverage to millions of low-income families and disabled Americans. If passed, […]
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Black Business Spotlight: Party planner works hard to be her own boss
There is a saying: “If you do what is easy, your life will be hard; if you do what is hard your life will be easy.” Even though it is a cliché and it seems like a rather easy concept, it is complicated when put into practice. At least one person, however, is making the […]
Posted inNews
WWI: a war for justice Black soldiers didn’t win
America has always touted the heroism of her men in uniform who fought bravely for justice, country, and the American way of life. The battles won and lost were historic chapters in schoolbooks. Great conflicts such as the Civil War, World War I and World War II were proof of America’s fight for democracy. The […]
Posted inLocal & State, News
Northside native beats mostly-White-male dentistry odds
When we go looking for a dentist, what we will most likely find are White males. According to the 2014-2015 “Minnesota Dentists Workforce Survey,” 67 percent of dentists are male, 92 percent are White, and 0.7 percent are African American. A young African American woman from North Minneapolis has successfully challenged those odds. Shakeyla Barber […]
Posted inLocal & State
After the verdict: The fight for justice continues
On a seemingly appropriate cloudy Friday afternoon, just minutes before sprinkles of rain fell, many reporters, community members and what seemed like the entire nation, waited outside the Ramsey County Courthouse in downtown St. Paul for the verdict in the case against former Police Officer Jeronimo Yanez. Around 2:35 pm on June 16, an individual […]
Posted inNews
Catching up with Walter “Q Bear” Banks
Radio veteran reflects on his storied career, health concerns and community support Walter Banks, better known as “Q Bear,” is well-known in the Twin Cities as a KMOJ radio personality with over 30 years of broadcasting experience. He has held many positions and met many celebrities over the years, including James Brown, Gerald Levert, The […]
Posted inBlack History Month
Hidden history reveals Pullman porters’ link to Black Press
Conclusion of a four-part series In this final installment of our series about African Americans who fought for dignity and equal rights on the U.S. railways as railroad sleeping car porters and maids, we explore how the porters, traveling by rail across the country, were instrumental in spreading news about African American communities and starting […]
Posted inLocal & State
Hidden history leads to bus boycott, 1963 march
Third of an on-going series In this installment of our series about African Americans who fought for dignity and equal rights on the U.S. railways as railroad sleeping car porters and maids, we explore how union organizing and the cancelled 1941 March on Washington led to later developments in the Civil Rights Movement. The proposed […]
Posted inLocal & State, News
Women helped build porters’ Brotherhood
Their hidden history also needs telling Second of a three-part story In this installment of our series about African Americans who fought for dignity and equal rights on the U.S. railways as railroad sleeping car porters and maids, we explore the work of porter maids, their organizations and unions, and the March on Washington. Various […]