By Sheila Regan TC Daily Planet “When I say Freedom, you say School!” ”Freedom!” “School!” “Freedom!” “School!” The 118 kids gathered in the atrium at the Saint Paul Neighborhood Freedom School enthusiastically call back to Emmanuel Donaby, who, microphone in hand, leads a good half hour of cheering, chanting, singing and dancing. There’s no end […]
MSR News Online
Reach the MSR staff at msrnewsonline@spokesman-recorder.com.
Posted inArts + Culture
Black female bandleaders/vocalists heading the music parade
If you haven’t noticed, African American female bandleaders are enjoying tremendous success these days and getting plenty of attention via print, digital and social media, among other avenues. And the Twin Cities is in line to experience an abundance of talent in the weeks and months ahead. Eight-time Grammy Award-winning R&B singer Anita Baker is […]
Posted inArts + Culture
KMOJ-FM station manager receives national recognition
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer KMOJ-FM Radio General Manager Kelvin Quarles will be honored this fall by American Urban Radio Networks (AURN) at their 10thAnnual Urban Knight Awards in Dallas, Texas. The awards event, scheduled for September 19 during the NAB/RAB Radio Show annually hosted by AURN, is designed to honor selected individuals who have […]
Posted inSports
International teams converge here for RBI World Series
Media coverage of play leaves much to be desired The ever-present debate on why today’s Black youth aren’t playing baseball was put on hold, at least for a few days, at the 2012 Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) World Series, hosted by the Minnesota Twins last week. “We’re one of the top teams in […]
Posted inSports
Hall of Fame Game kicks off NFL preseason
Saints win, but ‘bounty-gate’ suspensions hurt CANTON, OHIO — The sports world is flying with the spectacular Summer Olympics of London, NFL training camps underway, preseason games starting up and MLB getting to the dog days of summer. I’ve been covering the NFL 34 years now, and for the first time I paid a visit […]
Posted inSports
Olympic competition should energize Lynx stars
As the Minnesota Lynx and the rest of the WNBA continue their Olympic break — the regu lar season will resume August 17 — it appears as though the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis is vacant. The Lynx have three players on the Women’s USA team: Seimone Augustus, Maya Moore and Lindsey Whalen. In their […]
Posted inSports
More top preps’ updates
BREIANNA CARTER, a 5-9 forward who helped Minneapolis Washburn reach the Class 2A Section 4 championship, will attend Wilberforce University this fall and will be a member of the women’s basketball team at the Historically Black institution. Carter, who excelled defensively and offensively for the Millers last season, is expected to make an immediate impact […]
Posted inNews
Nat’l Democratic Party hammers out 2012 campaign priorities in Mpls
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Dr. Maya Rockeymoore, of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare Representatives from various interest groups — Blacks, Latinos, farmers, elected officials, union, LGBT, immigration reform advocates, teachers, persons with disabilities, faith-based organizations, seniors and business — and the public testified before an 18-person Democratic National Committee (DNC) […]
Posted inOpinion
The Dark “night” has always been with us
“Now, even as we learn how this happened, and who’s responsible, we may never understand what leads anybody to terrorize their fellow human beings like this. Such violence, such evil is senseless. It’s beyond reason,” said President Obama in the wake of the Aurora, Colorado movie theater shootings. The words of the president have surely […]
Posted inOpinion
Minneapolis Police Department tears itself apart from the inside
Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) truth and lies were on display during the trial that began July 16, 2012. Mainstream media reporting is either silent or soft. What I report is what I heard in court. I was there. The betting in many quarters was that Lt. Andrew Smith and Sgt. Patrick King would win their […]
Posted inOpinion
Press releases: what every reader needs to know about them
Here at the MSR, like every other medium, we are daily bombarded with hundreds of press releases from hundreds of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations promoting their products and services. These releases can serve a useful purpose and help us in our newsgathering efforts by providing basic information and ideas for future stories. However, what every […]
Posted inOpinion
‘Justice’ sweeps transwoman’s self-defense aside
Travesty on top of tragedy, Chrishaun ”CeCe” McDonald, railroaded to prison, was further victimized, demeaned in court this past June 5. CeCe McDonald shouldn’t be serving 25 minutes, let alone the three-and-a-half-year sentence she’s serving courtesy of let’s-make-a-deal justice. But she got caught out there, the wrong color and sexual persuasion in the worst possible […]
Posted inHealth + Wellness
N. Mpls. native Darren D. Moore earns Ph.D.
Twenty-eight-year-old Darren D. Moore of North Minneapolis received a Ph.D. in marriage and family therapy from Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg, VA on May 11, 2012. An open house to celebrate his accomplishment was held June 24 at Heritage Park community room, 1000 Olson Mem. Highway in North Minneapolis. A delicious meal was served to […]
Posted inHealth + Wellness
Same Sex domestic violence
Domestic abuse is domestic abuse. Doesn’t matter who perpetrates violence against whom. To the point, regardless of gender or sexual orientation. Men beat women up, physically, mentally, emotionally. Women victimize men, physically, mentally, emotionally. Men do the same to men, women do it women and there’s no reason to assume transgender couples automatically escape the […]
Posted inArts + Culture
Jonathan Butler: Gospel a part of versatile music veteran’s tapestry of sounds
By Charles Hallman Staff Writer Jonathan Butler’s latest collection, Grace and Mercy, was recorded at his home studio in Encino, California, and is set for release September 25 on Rendezvous Music. The youngest of 12 children, Butler began singing and playing the guitar at age seven. “I grew up in South Africa with a taste […]
Posted inNews
Local march supports need for Black role models
Activist highlights importance of positive mentors for youth of color By Jamal Denman Contributing Writer On Thursday, July 26, various members of the community concerned about the well-being of young people convened at the Southside Village Boys & Girls Club to take part in March for Men Mentoring. This event was intended to bring attention […]
Posted inNews
Sherman Hemsley: The Jeffersons star had long stage and screen career
By Dwight Hobbes Contributing Writer Sherman Hemsley held delighted television viewers in complete hysterics as George Jefferson (All in the Family, The Jeffersons), the feisty little Bantam rooster of a man who was tight with a buck and hard on White folk. Hemsley passed away July 24 of natural causes. Beyond his most noted work […]
Posted inNews
N. Mpls grassroots art effort founded by high school friends
Juxtaposition Arts transforms urban community from bleak to vibrant By Dwight Hobbes Contributing Writer There are people who think the arts are a waste of money during hard times, especially in economically and socially challenged environments, the inner city. They are dead wrong. DeAnna Dodds Cummings, executive director and cofounder of Juxtaposition Arts (JXTA), will […]
Posted inSports
WNBA rookies report: Newcomers offer surprises by mid-season
Swish Appeal’s Nate Parham last week offered his mid-season assessment on the first-year WNBA players, who have now completed a half-season of their inaugural pro campaigns. Surprises — Phoenix un-drafted rookie center Avery Warley “is by far the biggest surprise of the first half this season,” Parham told the MSR by phone. “Right now…she is […]