As winter tightens its grip, Minnesota shelters are facing record demand with little room to expand. Providers like People Serving People and Catholic Charities say families are staying longer, funding is shrinking, and many are left without safe options. Advocates warn that without long-term investment in housing and support services, shelters alone cannot stop the crisis from worsening.
St Paul
Posted inDigital Editions
MSR Digital Edition for December 11 – December 17, 2025
The MSR Digital Edition for December 11 – December 17, 2025 is now live. Explore community news, sports, arts, and events. Edition 19, Volume 92.
Posted inLocal & State
Kicks and Coats for Kids: Helping Minneapolis Students Stay Warm This Winter
Be The Change MN is helping Minneapolis families weather the winter through its Kicks and Coats Initiative. The program will provide one thousand elementary students with new winter coats and quality shoes, offering comfort, safety, and dignity for children across four underrepresented schools. Donations help lift a financial burden from families and ensure every child enters winter prepared.
Posted inDigital Editions
MSR Digital Edition for December 4 – December 10, 2025
The MSR Digital Edition for December 4 – December 10, 2025 is now live. Explore community news, sports, arts, and events. Edition 18, Volume 92.
Posted inSister Spokesman
Sister Spokesman participants pause to breathe and heal
At Sister Spokesman’s Pause. Breathe. Heal. event, Black women filled a glass lined community space near NorthPoint for an afternoon that felt less like a program and more like a communal exhale. Publisher Tracey Williams Dillard, therapist Venus Burney, and trauma specialist Dr. Resmaa Menakem led a candid conversation about stress, survival, and the weight Black bodies carry, while vendors, laughter, and connection turned the room into a living space of healing and joy.
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Minneapolis South High Overpowers Cooper in Early Season Statement Win
South opened its season with authority, blowing past Cooper 91 to 41 behind an aggressive defense, fast paced offense, and standout performances from Jamair Wright and Laviance Gales. The Tigers looked deeper and more disciplined than last season, making an early statement in the Minneapolis City Conference.
Posted inTracey’s Keepin' It Real
The Cost of the Grind: When Entrepreneurship Breaks Your Health
Episode 6 of Tracey’s Keepin’ it Real with Business tackles burnout head on. Tracey Williams Dillard, Octavia “Tav” Treadway, and Tommy McNeal break down how exhaustion, anxiety, and unhealthy work habits are hurting entrepreneurs and why modeling wellness is essential for leadership and growth.
Posted inEvents
Winter Wonderland Returns Sunday to Bring Joy and Community to Minneapolis Families
Winter Wonderland returns to the Mall of America on Sunday, December 7, bringing more than one thousand Minneapolis children and their families together for a free morning of rides, food, gifts, and community connection. Hosted by Be The Change MN, the event removes financial barriers and creates a holiday celebration many families would not otherwise experience.
Posted inEvents
This Giving Tuesday, Support the Black Press That Tells Our Stories and Protects Our Voice
Independent Black media has carried our stories for generations. This Giving Tuesday, the Minnesota Spokesman Recorder is asking the community to help preserve that legacy. Your support strengthens Black journalism, funds mentorship for young storytellers, and ensures our history continues to be documented with accuracy and care.
Posted inTracey’s Keepin' It Real
Strength & Strategy Series – Episode 5: Networking and Mentorship Podcast
In Episode 5 of the Strength and Strategy Series, Tracey’s Keepin’ it Real with Business focuses on networking and mentorship as non-negotiables for long term success. Tracey, Octavia “Tav” Treadway, and Tommy McNeal talk about stepping into Black chambers, community cooperatives, incubators, and peer circles that are built to help you level up. If you have ever felt like you are building your business alone, this episode offers clear steps to move from isolated to supported.
Posted inEvents
Echoes of Unity: Honoring 40 Years of Minnesota’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration
Echoes of Unity is a special edition created to honor the 40th anniversary of Minnesota’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday celebration. The commemorative publication highlights the history of the event, spotlights community leaders and lifts up the voices continuing Dr. King’s work in neighborhoods, schools and public institutions across Minnesota. Sponsorship opportunities are now open.
Posted inAnother View
Black athletes too often dehumanized, commodified
At United Theological Seminary in St. Paul, first time author and newly tenured professor Dr. Gary F. Green introduced his book “Playing the Game” with a panel that included Minnesota Vikings fullback CJ Ham, scholar Dr. Lakisha R. Lockhart Rusch and United student Tamice Spencer Helms. Together they explored how terms like “beast” and coded commentary about “natural talent” versus “intelligence” shape the way Black athletes are seen, valued and limited, and how Green’s work offers a powerful challenge to those narratives.
Posted inLocal & State
Federal ‘POLICE’ raid on St. Paul business creates fear, confusion
Masked federal agents raided the Bro Tex facility in St. Paul without warning, detaining workers and frightening nearby families. City officials say they had no advance notice and stressed that St. Paul police were not involved. Advocates and civil rights groups condemned the use of unidentified agents and the use of force on protesters, warning that the raid eroded public trust and left immigrant and marginalized communities feeling unsafe.
Posted inLocal & State
National boycott brings Target ‘to its knees’
Days before the holiday shopping rush, civil rights leaders gathered in Minneapolis urging Minnesotans to continue the Target boycott. They argue the retailer rolled back its DEI commitments, harmed Black and immigrant communities, and is now relying on steep price cuts to recover from months of declining sales. Organizers say the boycott will continue until Target recommits to its racial equity promises made after George Floyd’s murder.
Posted inLocal & State
Target’s DE&I pullback leaves Black local suppliers in limbo
Target’s billion-dollar DEI and supplier diversity push helped some Twin Cities Black entrepreneurs secure national shelf space, jobs and new revenue streams. With the retailer now pulling back from those equity commitments, Black-owned businesses and community partners are feeling the ripple effects in hiring, contracts and long-term wealth building, and are left questioning how durable corporate promises to Black communities really are.
Posted inLocal & State
Federal Shutdown Ends and SNAP Benefits Return to Normal Schedule in Minnesota
SNAP and MFIP benefits are officially restored following the end of the federal shutdown. Minnesota families can now access regular payment schedules again. Here is how to apply, renew, replace EBT cards, and use WIC and document drop box locations.
Posted inSister Spokesman
Sister Spokesman presents: Pause. Breathe. Heal.
In a world that rarely slows down, Sister Spokesman continues to be a space where Black women and our broader community gather to learn, uplift one another, and grow stronger together. As we close out the year, we invite you to join us for an afternoon dedicated entirely to mental wellness, intentional rest, and the […]
Posted inAnother View
‘Playing the Game’ calls out stereotyping of Black athletes
United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities in St. Paul will host a new book launch on Wednesday, Nov. 19, of Rev. Dr. Gary F. Green III’s first book, “Playing the Game: Embodied Brilliance beyond the Moral Limits of Race in Sport” (Fortress Press). Green is a pastoral theology and social transformation associate professor and […]
Posted inDigital Editions
MSR Digital Edition for November 20 – November 26, 2025
The MSR Digital Edition for November 20 – November 26, 2025 is now live. Explore community news, sports, arts, and events. Edition 16, Volume 92.
Posted inSister Spokesman
Spokesman-Recorder aims to expand statewide with Give to the Max campaign
Spokesman-Recorder has launched a Give to the Max Day campaign to raise fifty thousand dollars to expand its community programs and Sister Spokesman events across Minnesota. Early giving is now open.