Minnesota will receive an additional $59 million in opioid settlement funding from Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family, but community organizations serving Black Minnesotans say questions remain about whether funds are reaching the communities most impacted.
News
Timely national, state, and local articles, including profile stories from an African American perspective.
Posted inTelevision
Minneapolis Leaders Demand Accountability From Netflix, Kevin Hart Over George Floyd Joke
Minneapolis community leaders and civil rights advocates gathered at the Hennepin County Government Center to condemn a joke about George Floyd made during Netflix’s Roast of Kevin Hart and demand accountability from the comedian, Hart and Netflix.
Posted inGeorge Floyd Square
Agape Movement Recommended as Development Partner for the People’s Way Project in South Minneapolis
Agape Movement has been recommended as the development partner for the People’s Way project in South Minneapolis, marking a significant milestone in a years-long community effort to shape the future of one of the city’s most historically significant spaces.
Posted inLocal & State
Judge Orders Trump Administration to Hand Over Unredacted Documents in Case Against 39 Activists
A federal judge ordered prosecutors to turn over unredacted discovery documents in the case against the 39, as defense attorneys argued nearly every name of law enforcement officers and witnesses had been redacted, making a legal defense functionally impossible.
Posted inBusiness
Golden Thyme marks one year under new stewardship, carrying Rondo’s legacy forward
Golden Thyme Restaurant and Bar on Selby Avenue marked one year under new leadership with a community celebration that brought generations of Rondo residents together for food, music and reflection.
Posted inLocal & State
St. Paul publisher named to national list of top solo entrepreneurs
Dr. Artika R. Tyner, founder of Planting People Growing Justice Press and Bookstore in St. Paul, has been named a 2026 Zoom Solopreneur 50 honoree, selected from nearly 2,800 applicants across 48 states.
Posted inPolitics
Clock ticks as MN gun bill stalls in House
A sweeping gun reform bill banning semi-automatic assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines passed the Minnesota Senate 34-33 on May 4, but faces an uncertain future in the House as the legislative session nears its end.
Posted inLocal & State
As food insecurity grows in North Minneapolis, neighbors turn to technology and community farming for solutions
Fourteen Twin Cities advocates traveled to Duluth for the Metro Food Justice Network summit, returning with renewed purpose and a clearer picture of the work ahead, including a new digital platform designed to address food insecurity block by block in North Minneapolis.
Posted inLocal & State
Former Uptown YWCA to Become Job Training Center for BIPOC and Immigrant Workers
A coalition of labor and community organizations is transforming a former Uptown YWCA into the Rise Up Center, a 70,000-square-foot job training hub designed to move BIPOC workers into middle-class union careers.
Posted inLocal & State
Gunfire, criticism and a walkout that never happened
A gunman opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, forcing an evacuation and sparking criticism of Minnesota attendees including Mayor Jacob Frey for normalizing an administration that has repeatedly attacked the free press.
Posted inLocal & State
How redlining and systemic gaps leave communities vulnerable to disaster
Natural disasters hit low-income communities and communities of color hardest. MSR staff writer Damenica Ellis examines why, from the 2011 North Minneapolis tornado to the role of redlining in shaping disaster vulnerability today.
Posted inLocal & State
FBI raids more than 20 Minnesota daycares, but only five involve Medicaid fraud
The FBI raided 22 Minnesota childcare centers on April 28 in an ongoing fraud investigation, sparking a public dispute between federal and state officials and raising concerns from immigrant and refugee communities.
Posted inPolitics
Supreme Court guts Voting Rights Act, what it means for Minnesota
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais has gutted the federal Voting Rights Act. Minnesota advocates and Attorney General Keith Ellison say the state’s own Voting Rights Act is now a critical line of defense.
Posted inPolitics
Bipartisan bill to create independent inspector general moves toward final vote
A bipartisan bill creating a new, independent Minnesota Office of Inspector General has passed the Senate and cleared the House Ways and Means Committee, awaiting a floor vote.
Posted inLocal & State
Turning Point USA Contributor Savanah Hernandez Has a Pattern. The Ostroushko Indictments Are the Latest Result.
A federal grand jury has indicted three members of the Ostroushko family following a physical altercation at a Fort Snelling protest, with Turning Point USA contributor Savanah Hernandez at the center of the confrontation.
Posted inPolitics
Housing advocates push to extend bipartisan state tax credit program beyond 2028
Minnesota State Housing Tax Credit Program extension is being pushed at the Capitol as advocates and legislators say the bipartisan affordable housing program has drawn 1,100-plus contributors and consistently outpaced its funding supply.
Posted inPolitics
Boundary Waters mining ban overturned in narrow Senate vote
Boundary Waters copper mining ban has been lifted after the Senate passed H.J.Res.140 50-49, revoking a 20-year moratorium on copper sulfide mining in the Rainy River Watershed despite opposition from Sen. Tina Smith and a broad coalition of Minnesotans.
Posted inLocal & State
Bill targets cash bail’s racial disparity
Minnesota cash bail reform legislation would eliminate wealth-based detention in favor of an intentional release and detain approach as advocates say Black Minnesotans make up 36 percent of the pretrial jail population.
Posted inLocal & State
From the farm to the neighborhood: Michael Chaney’s lifelong harvest
Project Sweetie Pie founder Michael Chaney has spent more than 30 years weaving together climate justice, urban farming and community organizing in North Minneapolis rooted in a tradition of community-led, community-fed change.
Posted inLocal & State
Building tables, breaking barriers: Honorees of color shine at 40 Under 40 awards
Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal 40 Under 40 honorees of color brought stories of immigration, community building and entrepreneurship to the annual celebration at the Metropolitan Ballroom in Wayzata.