Minneapolis activists rallied outside Mayday Bookstore on Oct. 17 calling for U.S. forces to leave Africa and for the abolition of AFRICOM. Organizers also pointed to Honeywell’s Minneapolis navigation-device production. Contributing writer Izzy Canizares has the story.
Local & State
A space for original local news with an emphasis on stories pertaining to African Americans
Posted inLocal & State
Panel warns surveillance and AI outpace Twin Cities laws
Minneapolis police used fake social media accounts to surveil Black residents and organizations, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights found in 2022. At a St. Paul community panel, Council Member Robin Wonsley and others warned that surveillance and AI are outpacing local oversight. Contributing writer Clint Combs has the story.
Posted inArts + Culture, Local & State
Ms. Nique turns her story into a community writing experience
Years after MSR reviewed her memoir, author Monique Crusoe-Cheeks, known as Ms. Nique, is back with Empowering the Pen, a judgment-free writing experience for people who have never thought of themselves as writers. She hopes to bring it to Minnesota. Editor Jasmine McBride has her story.
Posted inHealth + Wellness
Activists say Hennepin County tracked HERC opponents
Activists working to close the HERC trash burner in North Minneapolis say county records show Hennepin County staff tracked their organizing for years and shared details with the company that runs the facility. One leader demanded two staff members resign. Editor Jasmine McBride has the report.
Posted inHealth + Wellness
Black Minnesotans rally for affordable, equitable health care
Black Minnesotans gathered at Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church two weeks before the midterms to demand affordable, quality health care. Faith in Minnesota’s “Our Lives, Not Their Profits” rally featured Attorney General Keith Ellison and state Rep. Cedrick Frazier. Contributing writer Izzy Canizares has the story.
Posted inLocal & State
Black unemployment in Minnesota hits 10.5%
Black Minnesotans are out of work at more than twice the rate of the state’s overall workforce, with unemployment at 10.5% in August. State economists say they can’t yet explain why Minnesota’s rate has stayed above the national rate all year. Editor Jasmine McBride has the story.
Posted inLocal & State
St. Paul residents rally against police drone contract with Skydio
St. Paul residents rallied outside City Hall demanding the city release its police department’s contract with drone maker Skydio, end it, and stop expanding AI surveillance. The contract has not been made public. Contributing writer Izzy Canizares reports.
Posted inPolitics
Folk, Frazier spar over experience and victims in Hennepin County attorney debate
State Rep. Cedrick Frazier and former acting U.S. Attorney Anders Folk traded laughs and then jabs at an Oct. 13 debate over what qualifies someone to lead the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. Contributing writer Clint Combs has the full report.
Posted inPolitics
Supporters rally for Omar after federal agents search her Washington home
Three weeks before the midterms, federal agents searched Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington home. Hundreds rallied at Powderhorn Park in Minneapolis, calling the search politically motivated. No charges have been announced. Contributing writer Clint Combs reports.
Posted inLocal & State
Families of people killed by police rally for Justin Teigen outside Hennepin County Government Center
Seventeen years after her fiancé Justin Teigen died after a 2009 encounter with St. Paul police, Toshira Garraway brought families who say they have been denied records and answers to the steps of the Hennepin County Government Center.
Posted inMSR In the News
Minneapolis commission backs National Register listing for Spokesman-Recorder building
The Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission voted unanimously to recommend that the Minneapolis Spokesman and St. Paul Recorder Headquarters Building be listed on the National Register of Historic Places, calling the recognition long overdue.
Posted inLocal & State
Cultural Wellness Center breaks ground on Dreamland on 38th, a Black-led hub in South Minneapolis
Community elders, county leaders and longtime supporters broke ground Oct. 10 on Dreamland on 38th, the future home of the Cultural Wellness Center’s Cultural Wellness University, an $8 million Black-owned, Black-developed and Black-led project.
Posted inPolitics
Noecker presses Ramsey County on voter protections as county bars federal monitors from polls
St. Paul City Council President Rebecca Noecker is pressing Ramsey County to set clear rules for protecting voters and election workers before the Nov. 3 general election, as federal authorities step up their focus on alleged voting violations in Minnesota.
Posted inLocal & State
Tenants at five Rental Minnesota buildings unionize, push landlord to negotiate
Tenants in five Minneapolis apartment buildings have formed the Rental Minnesota Tenant Union, demanding their landlord recognize them and negotiate over long-neglected repairs and fears of a shift to short-term rentals. The company disputes much of their account.
Posted inLocal & State
As city reopens People’s Way search, Rise and Remember says new rules shut it out
Minneapolis has reopened its search for a partner to redevelop the People’s Way at George Floyd Square, and Rise and Remember, the group with the strongest community support in the city’s own survey, says the new rules are written to shut it out.
Posted inLocal & State
Coalition delivers ‘report card’ failing Mayor Frey, MPD at City Hall press conference
Advocates gathered at Minneapolis City Hall to demand police accountability, highlighting investigative failures, ICE collaboration, and Mayor Frey’s budget.
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Dreams can become possibilities, and possibilities can become reality
Mary K. Boyd turned a birthday celebration into a lasting scholarship fund for Walker West Music Academy, honoring her father, the “singing mailman,” and a Rondo upbringing rooted in community. This piece from the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation traces her family’s legacy of possibility.
Posted inLocal & State
Jeremiah Program convenes local leaders to discuss policy pressures facing single mothers
Jeremiah Program brought leadership, alumni and community members together for “A Community Conversation,” breaking down how looming SNAP and Medicaid changes will hit single mothers as states absorb a larger administrative burden starting Oct. 1.
Posted inLocal & State
Flow Foundation’s ‘Crown Within’ event creates space for healing during Alopecia Awareness Month
Flow Foundation’s “The Crown Within” brought women navigating alopecia and medical hair loss together for a day of community and self-acceptance, while Pfizer pledged its support after finding few organizations doing similar work.
Posted inLocal & State
Families gather at annual Stolen Lives March, renew calls for accountability across state lines
Families of people killed by police or lost in state custody gathered in St. Paul for the annual Stolen Lives March, demanding independent investigations and policy reform.