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Insight News January 7 - January 13, 2019

Vol. 46 No. 1• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

THE CHORDS THAT BIND

MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA Brings programming to North Minneapolis Minnesota Orchestra bassist William Schrickel during a Dec. 1 performance at Orchestra Hall

Harry Colbert, Jr. C OM OMMON M ON C H O OR RD D 11

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Insight News January 7 - January 13, 2019

Vol. 46 No. 1• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Rep. Ilhan Omar sworn in, takes historic first votes on House floor WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-5th) was sworn in Jan. 3 as the representative from Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, making her the first Somali-American member of Congress, the first woman of color to represent Minnesota, and one of the first two Muslim-American women elected to Congress.

At her ceremonial swearing in, Omar used a Quran that belonged to her grandfather. As a teenager, Omar acted as her grandfather’s translator at local caucuses in Minneapolis and he is the one who first sparked her interest in politics.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to have the opportunity to bring the voices of the people of my district to Washington and to fight for our shared values - values that put people at the center of our democracy,” said Omar. “I look forward to tackling many of the issues that I hear about most from my constituents – issues like investing in education and freeing students from the shackles of debt; ensuring a fair wage for a hard day’s work; creating a just immigration system and tackling the existential threat of climate change.”

Omar said she plans to resist the current administration’s “attempts to divide us and push destructive policies that chip away at our rights and freedoms.”

“We have the opportunity to

Rep. Ilhan Omar (second from the right) with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Center) and Omar’s family during her Jan. 3 swearing in. Omar was sworn in using her grandfather’s Quran. build a more inclusive and compassionate culture, one that will allow our economy to

flourish and encourage more Americans to participate in our democracy,” said Omar.

With her first votes in the House, Omar voted for Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to serve

as Speaker of the House and on legislation to bring an end to the government shutdown and

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison interview series: Part 1

Secretary of State Simon priority ‘Investing in Democracy’ agenda Secretary of State Steve Simon announced his “Investing in Democracy” agenda, alongside legislative leaders, county officials, advocates, and voters.

The agenda is Simon’s proposal for maintaining Minnesota’s role in protecting and advancing democratic institutions, most notably, the right to vote for all. The four key components of the agenda are increased security, decreased bar-

riers to voter registration, restoration of voting rights for those who were formerly incarcerated and protecting voter privacy.

“We have a law that says a person is safe enough to live in our community, but still too dangerous to be a voter,” said Simon. “That’s ridiculous.

Shutting out those who have already done their time does not make us safer. Investing in democracy means investing in

Minnesotans working to rebuild their lives to ensure they have a voice in their community.”

According to Simon, approximately 60,000 Minnesotans are currently barred from voting because they have been convicted of a felony and have not had their civil rights restored. The secretary proposes making Minnesota

SIMON 7

By Al McFarlane Editor-In-Chief al@insightnews.com On the government shutdown: Keith Ellison: You’ve got 800,000 people who don’t know when their check’s going to arrive. Trump doesn’t seem to care at all. It’s all about him fulfilling a specious campaign promise to build a wall and make Mexico pay for it..

Al McFarlane: Not going to happen.

Keith Ellison: Not going happen.

I do expect to be in DC quite a lot because as Attorney General for the state of Minnesota, there are a number of obligations, responsibilities I have as I look out for the people of the state of Minnesota to work perhaps with other states on everything from drug pricing to education to justice in our immigration system to fairness with regard to the census. There are so many critical issues that pull me to DC and other places.

I think my travel schedule is

Secretary of State Steve Simon

Year of Return Ghana 2019 BALTIMORE/ACCRA – NAACP President Derrick Johnson traveled to Ghana to meet with Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia in support of the upcoming “Year of Return Ghana 2019” project, a year-long journey to celebrate the reconnecting of Africans throughout the Diaspora to their African heritage.

In addition to meeting with officials and leaders, Johnson also met with officials from the Ministries of Tourism, Tourism Authority and the Diaspora Affairs Office to dis-

Launched in August 2018, by Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, ‘Year of Return Ghana 2019’will feature a number of activities, including a “Bra Fie” concert to be hosted

by Damian Marley, son of Bob Marley; a Back to Africa Festival to celebrate Black History Month, and a homecoming and investment summit.

News

Ellison names John Keller chief deputy attorney general

PAGE 4

Insight 2 Health Kimberly Elise advocates going vegan this new year

PAGE 5

reject Trump’s border wall – a wall she called, “hateful.”

cuss ways to reconnect greater numbers of African Americans to their roots in Ghana.

“Next year symbolizes a moment in time where people of African descent regardless of where they exist within our diaspora can reconnect and map out a future which establishes Africa and her descendants in their rightful place on the world stage,” said Johnson.

The yearlong event will commemorate the 400th year of the first arrival of en-

NAACP 7

Lifestyle

State parks and trails offer more than 30 candlelit events this winter

PAGE 6

Attorney General Keith Ellison going to go down a bit, but it’s not going to stop.

Al McFarlane: How many terms did you serve in Congress?

Keith Ellison: Six terms. I was there for 12 years. You get on a plane on a Mon-

ELLISON 6

AI

Walker acquires interdisciplinary works by Maria Hassabi and Jason Moran

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Community

Ellison names John Keller chief deputy attorney general Minnesota Attorney General-elect Keith Ellison has named John Keller to serve as Minnesota’s chief deputy attorney general.

“For many years, John has successfully managed and grown a well-respected non-profit legal practice that has helped people of all backgrounds navigate complex areas of the law so that they can afford their lives, reach new dreams, and live with dignity. He brings to the Attorney General’s Office a unique combination of deep grassroots understanding of the struggles that all Minnesotans face, and deep connection

to and recognition from the legal community in Minnesota and across the country. I can think of no one better suited to help me serve the people of Minnesota,” said Ellison.

Keller began his work at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota (ILCM) in 1998 as a staff attorney and later as legal director. ILCM is a nonprofit agency that provides immigration legal assistance to low-income immigrants and refugees in Minnesota. Since 2005 he has been ILCM’s executive director. In recent years, ILCM’s work has been commended by both the state and national Ameri-

can Immigration Bar Associations, the Minnesota State Bar Association, and Minnesota Lawyer, among others.

Keller received his law degree from Hamline University in 1996. He worked at the League of Minnesota Cities and the Minnesota Court of Appeals before joining ILCM. He has twice been named Minnesota Lawyer’s Attorney of the Year and has been honored with the American Immigration Lawyers Association Human Rights Award, the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association Access to Justice Award, and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Excel-

lence in Advocacy Award. The Minnesota Senate appointed Keller to the Legislature’s Ethnic Heritage and New American Working Group.

“I am honored to help implement Keith Ellison’s vision as chief deputy attorney general. It represents the perfect opportunity to continue on a larger scale the work to which I’ve dedicated my professional life: helping to transform lives and strengthen our democratic and legal systems and protections,” said Keller.

Ellison will be sworn in as Minnesota’s 30th attorney general on Monday (Jan. 7).

Immigrant Law Center

John Keller

Hennepin County board appoints Commissioner Marion Greene as chair The Hennepin County Board voted unanimously to appoint District 3 Commissioner Marion Greene as chair for 2019.

Greene has served as county commissioner since May 2014. Her district includes all of St. Louis Park, most of southwest Minneapolis and much of downtown.

“I’m humbled by your trust, and want to specifically thank Commissioner (Jan) Callison (District 6). I have appreciated the steady hand that she brings to the board and her value of stewardship – an example I plan to follow,” said Greene. “This is an amazing time to be in local government. I’m energized to embark on the new

Health and Human Services, Callison and Opat chairs of Intergovernmental Relations, Commissioner Jeff Johnson, District 7, chair of Public Safety and Opat chair of Public Works.

year of service to Hennepin County residents alongside colleagues and staff.”

Board elects Commissioner Mike Opat as vice chair District 1 Commissioner Mike Opat will serve as vice chair of the board. His district includes the cities of Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Crystal, New Hope, Osseo and Robbinsdale.

Opat was first elected to the board in 1992.

Regional Railroad Authority leadership

Committee chairs The board selected Commissioner Debbie Goettel, District 5, chair of Administration, Libraries and Budget, Commissioner Angela Conley, District 4, chair of

Commissioner Marion Greene

Acting as the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority, the board elected Commissioner Callison as chair and Opat as vice chair of the authority.

“I am honored to have been elected by my colleagues to serve as chair of the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority,” said Callison. “Hennepin County has been a leader in transit

and transportation and I look forward to working with our public and private sector partners in creating a transit system that meets the needs of all residents, businesses and visitors in our region.”

The county board usually meets Tuesdays at 1:30 p.m. at the Hennepin County Government Center, 300 S. 6th St., Minneapolis.

Find minutes, agendas and the 2019 calendar at www. hennepin.us/boardmeetings.

Board and committee meetings are live streamed on the web, broadcast live on Metropolitan Cable Network Channel 6, and re-broadcast on Channel 6 on Fridays at 8 p.m.

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Insight 2 Health Minneapolis native stars in PETA radio spot

Kimberly Elise advocates going vegan this new year “Do you know what medicine can reverse heart disease, curb obesity, ward off cancer, and keep you going strong? Vegan food.”

That’s the message of Minneapolis native and actor Kimberly Elise’s new PETA public service announcement (PSA), which is hitting the airwaves in her hometown.

“Stock your shelves with fruits, veggies, and grains, and try those veggie burgers and sausages you’ve seen on grocery store shelves,” Elise says in the PSA, which will air on KS95 (KSTP-FM). The placement of

the spots is curious as it seems one of the key target audiences for the PSA is African-American listeners who are tuning in with greater frequency on stations such as 89.9 FM (KMOJ), VIBE 105 (WGVX-FM) and GO95 (KZGO). The group is also running Elise’s PSA on radio stations in Atlanta, D.C., Detroit, Los Angeles, and New York.

African-American communities and low-income neighborhoods are often disproportionately affected by a lack of access to healthy, fresh food, said PETA in a press re-

lease announcing the spots.

But in Minneapolis, popular vegan-friendly restaurants include Ethiopian restaurant Fasika, as well as Trio Plant-based.

PETA notes that in addition to reducing their risk of suffering from heart disease, strokes, diabetes, cancer, and obesity, people who go vegan each save the lives of nearly 200 animals a year. Vegan meals are also a good choice for people who suffer from digestive problems if they consume cow’s milk – a condition affecting 70 percent of African-Americans.

In addition to her NAACP Image Award–winning performances in projects such as “For Colored Girls,” “Diary of a Mad Black Woman” and “Soul Food,” Elise is probably best known for her breakout role in the film “Set It Off.” She will next appear in “Ad Astra,” to be released later this year.

Elise is part of a long list of celebrities including Nia Long, Mýa, RZA, Forest Whitaker and Jermaine Dupri, who’ve teamed up with PETA to promote healthy and humane meat-free meals.

Minneapolis native, actor Kimberly Elise is encouraging AfricanAmericans to embrace the vegan lifestyle.

Environmental racism killing people of color

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Contributor WASHINGTON, D.C. – Decades ago, civil rights leader the Rev. Dr. Benjamin Chavis Jr., who now serves a president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, coined the term, “environmental racism.”

It not only proved a true term, but it also linked several eras to a present day that still harkens back to centuries of demeaning and demoralization of Black Americans since the beginning of the transatlantic slave trade 500 years ago. Once the slave trade ended, other oppressive eras ensued – the Antebellum period, the Dred Scott decision, the American Civil War; Jim Crow; racial terrorism, the Civil Rights Movement and, throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, environmental racism, which has kept an immovable wedge between African-Americans and the rest of America.

In noting that environmental justice is an important part of the struggle to improve and maintain a clean and healthful environment – particularly for African-Americans, who have traditionally lived, worked and played closest to the sources of pollution – Chavis said that environmental racism is racial discrimination in envi-

EPA

While talk of the environment rarely focuses on the impact on African-Americans, Blacks should be taking a closer look at how the environment affects their daily lives. ronmental policy making and the unequal enforcement of the environmental laws and regulations.

“It is the deliberate targeting of people-of-color communities for toxic waste facilities and the official sanctioning of a life-threatening of poisons and pollutants in people-ofcolor communities,” he said. “It is also manifested in the history of excluding people of color from leadership in the environmental movement.”

With President Donald Trump castigating the science of global warming, it’s little wonder that today’s environmental policies not only target people of color when it comes

to the placement and operation of unhealthy facilities, they also exclude people of color from being a part of the policy making process – even though they are the ones who are usually most directly negatively impacted by environmental injustices.

“The underlying message of environmentally racist tactics and strategies is that certain neighborhoods and certain people matter less than others, and that geographical vulnerability is inevitable, when in fact it is socially constructed to be this way,” said Dr. Deborah Cohan, an associate professor of Sociology in the Department of Social Sciences at the University of South Carolina

– Beaufort. “The message is that some groups of people and some neighborhoods are okay to be dumped on and treated as garbage. After all, garbage is trash; it is what we’ve decided we no longer need or have any use for. It’s what we wish to dispose of as we have decided it has no value. The problem with racism and society’s response to it is that we have failed to see this most basic thing; that in order to do that much damage to a community, one must so thoroughly objectify and dehumanize the people in it that they become things that can be discarded and forgotten about. People’s ability to thrive under these hostile conditions is greatly compromised.”

While many celebrated the end of Scott Pruitt’s time as head of the Environmental Protection Agency, others argued that his brief tenure could have a lasting impact on marginalized communities dealing with poor health, water contamination, or air pollution, because of environmental injustice. And, Trump’s policies revealed that the president himself cares little if at all about environmental racism.

Studies have shown that Black and Hispanic children are more likely to develop asthma than their white peers, as are poor children, with research suggesting that higher levels of smog and air pollution in communities of color is a factor.

A 2014 study, as reported by

VOX, found that people of color live in communities that have more nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant that exacerbates asthma.

The EPA’s own research further supported this.

Earlier this year, a paper from the EPA’s National Center for Environmental Assessment found that when it comes to air pollutants that contribute to issues like heart and lung disease, Blacks are exposed to 1.5 times more of the pollutant than whites, while Hispanics were exposed to about 1.2 times the amount of nonHispanic whites. People in poverty had 1.3 times the exposure of those not in poverty. Even so, under Pruitt enforcement at the EPA has dropped considerably, with civil rights cases suffering in particular.

“Environmental racism is real. As documented in Richard Rothstein’s 2017 book, ‘The Color of Law,’ extensive federal, state and local government practices designed to create and maintain housing segregation also assured that polluting facilities like industrial plants, refineries, and more were located near Black, Latino and Asian American neighborhoods,” said Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for The Greenlining Institute, a public policy advocacy group in Oakland. “Extensive data show that low-income communities of color still breathe the worst air and have excessive rates of pollution-related illnesses like asthma and other

respiratory problems. These problems won’t fix themselves.

As we move away from oil, coal and gas to fight climate change, we must consciously bring clean energy resources and investment into communities that were for too long used as toxic dumping grounds.

What’s more, a scan of environmental boards, Csuites, foundations, campaigns and funding, reveals a pronounced lack of diversity within the environmental movement that results in a white progressive world view that still values science and the physical landscape more than people – especially Black and brown people – according to Felicia Davis, founder and CEO of the HBCU Green Fund and sustainability director at Clark Atlanta University.

“These communities are also less affluent and more likely to be located near, and experience, environmental hazards. Katrina and Flint exemplify environmental racism addressed by environmental justice advocates,” said Davis, who’s also the author of “Air of Injustice,” and serves on the boards of Green 2.0, The Chattahoochee River Keepers, and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. “There is simply no denying the difference in response to predominantly Black compared to predominantly white communities.”

EPA pushes for more coal-fired power under Trump Administration

By Lauren Poteat NNPA Washington Correspondent A new proposal carved out by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), might be the jumpstart some companies looking for more energy independence may be craving.

During a recent press conference held at the Environmental Protection Agency, acting EPA administrator, Andrew Wheeler, a former coal lobbyist, announced more rollback regulations on coal-fired power plants.

The revised “New Source Performance Standards” (NSPS), a provision under the Clean Air Act, established in 2015, would loosen an Obama-era restriction on how much carbon dioxide new coal power plants would be able to emit and could potentially rescind the requirement for new coal plants to install carbon capture technologies – a method Wheeler believed, to be costly and disingenuous.

“Consistent with President Trump’s executive order promoting energy independence, EPA’s proposal would rescind excessive burdens on

America’s energy providers and level the playing field so that new energy technologies could be a part of America’s future,” said Wheeler. “By allowing the genius of the private sector to work, we can keep American energy reliable and abundant.”

If the new proposal, signed Dec. 6 passes, coal plant emissions could be relaxed from the previous limit of 1,400 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt-hour, to 1,900.

During the EPA conference, the National Black Chamber of Commerce president, Harry Alford, also in support of the agency’s new proposal, gave way to a recent study, conducted by the NBCC, surrounding the 2015 Clean Power Plan.

“The last administration’s war on coal was poised in increased spending cost, having negative impacts on low income groups and minorities, including individuals, families and minority-owned businesses,” Alford stated. “In fact, the NBCC did a study on the impacts on the so called ‘Clean Power Act,’ and found that the rule alone, would have increased Black poverty by 23 percent and spending poverty by 26 percent, resulting in cumulative job losses

EPA

The Trump administration has eased Obama era provisions of the Clean Air Act of 2015. of seven million for Blacks and 12 million for Hispanics.”

Heavily believing in the benefits that these new energy practices could bring to minority-owned businesses, the NBCC president also went on to pen an open letter, further expressing his views on the use of coal energy.

“Every now and then we, Congress, gets it right. When I worked at Procter and Gamble, we practiced a management tool known as “Management by Objectives–MBO.” The Clean Air Act is an example of that,” Alford wrote. “When things go wrong, we have a common ‘boogeyman’ known as ‘Climate

Change,’ Alford said. “In a way, it is like how the singer Stevie Wonder explained, ‘Superstition – when you believe in things you don’t understand; you suffer. Superstition ain’t the way.’”

However, despite all of these claims, many organizations such as the American Public Health Association, the NAACP and the Hip-Hop Caucus, strongly disagreed.

“Wheeler’s pollution rule rollback is yet another example of the Trump Administration putting polluter profits ahead of the American people, especially low-income communities and communities of color,” senior vice president of Climate, Environmental Justice and Community Revitalization for the Hip-Hop Caucus, Mustafa Santiago Ali said. “Solar and wind are the fastest growing sources of energy and jobs in our country and provide cheaper, more affordable energy for our homes and businesses.

And with 68 percent of AfricanAmericans and 40 percent of Latinos living within 30 miles of a coal-fired power plant, the carbon pollution combined with the other toxic chemicals these plants bring to our communities is absolutely unacceptable.”

The Rev. Ambrose

Carroll, founder of Green the Church (GTC), a coalition of Black churches devoted to expanding their environmental and economic footprints nationwide, also spoke out in opposition to the new EPA proposal.

“One of the main goals of GTC is to promote environmental and economic resilience, while empowering churches across the nation to develop practical solutions toward economic and environmental issues affecting the Black community,” said Carroll, also vice president of the California State Baptist Convention. “I don’t believe what the EPA or the NBCC has stated is valid, simply on the standpoint of what is ethical and righteous. My mother, who lives in Freeport, La., where their contaminated tap water still catches on fire, currently suffers from cancer. The views expressed by the EPA and the NBCC, I believe, are not in line with the ethics of the Black church, or the history or legacy of African-Americans in this country. While it is important to make money, there still has to be a balance between capital and ethics … If we continue to dig for dead things to energize our lives, then we will continue to die.”

Page 6 • January 7 - January 13, 2019 • Insight News

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Lifestyle

Winter light from above and below

State parks and trails offer more than 30 candlelit events this winter

By Deborah Locke Information Officer Minnesota DNR At night not too many decades into the past, Minnesotans lit the farmland and countryside only with the use of lanterns.

The image of a soft light when it falls on new snow, combined with lights from the moon and stars, is a sight to behold.

Move ahead to the winter of 2019 and you can witness the same image in a natural setting. Each year many of Minnesota’s state park staff line the perimeters of short trails with lanterns, candles and other luminaries, and invite the public in for a candlelit walk. Depending on snow depth, visitors may

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choose to snowshoe or crosscountry ski, depending on the park, trail location and snow amount. Following an evening walk, hot cocoa or hot cider will be available near a bonfire where your insides and outside will warm up simultaneously.

“Few things transform a winter evening like soft light on snow,” said Erika Rivers, director of Minnesota State Parks and Trails. “Lit candles and lanterns help to create an unforgettable experience, especially beneath the light from a starry sky and full moon.”

More than 30 candlelight events are scheduled at Minnesota state parks and trails this winter. They started on Dec. 31 and will continue through early March, according to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

A complete listing of events can be found at www.mndnr. gov/candlelight. A few events include 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. Dec. 31 (Monday) at Fort Snelling State Park, St. Paul, 5:30 p.m.

– 8 p.m. Feb. 2 (Friday) at Lake Maria State Park, Monticello and 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Feb. 16, Whitewater State Park, Altura Some parks rent snowshoes and skis; fees are usually $6 per day. Call the park in advance to see if the equipment is available. Many parks offer programs on how to snowshoe. For information on those programs and many others, get a copy of the winter programs and events brochure at the nearest state park, or get one through the DNR Information Center, (651) 296-6157.

The full park and trail events calendar may be found at www.mndnr.gov/ptcalendar.

Most programs including the candlelight events are free, but a vehicle permit is required to enter the park ($7 for a one-day permit or $35 for a year-round permit).

Events may be postponed or canceled because of severe weather. For information on the program you plan to attend, look for the “visitor alert” section on the park’s website, or send an email to info.dnr@state.mn.us.

Minnesota DNR

Many Minnesota state parks offer nighttime walking trails illuminated by lanterns, candles and other luminaries.

Doing it yourself

How to make an ice luminary You ventured out on a candlelight walk in a state park and now want to make your own luminary.

Linda Radimecky, Afton State Park naturalist, has created and displayed dozens and dozens of luminaries over the years, and offers two words to live by when it comes to creating ice candle holders. Timing. Temperature.

Timing, because the ideal luminary freezes nearly all the way through, with just enough water poured off the center to hold a light. Temperature because freeze times vary.

Usually Minnesotans can count on extreme cold in January. But not always.

The Afton State Park staff uses five-gallon buckets to make the luminaries used on candlelight walks. Check online

Eagan sailor Jonathan Pate serves aboard USS McCampbell

Photography David Bradley V. Rivera Garcia Uchechukwu Iroegbu Rebecca Rabb

Ellison From 3 day, and you come home on a Thursday, maybe Friday.

There were a few times where I didn’t get home at all. Then a few times that I did get home, I had to land and then go somewhere else. So, that’s 12 years solid of that, but I loved it. I was honored to do it. I can’t think of any greater honor than to serve the people of the Fifth Congressional District, other than to be a parent.

On the international arena:

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and you will see many methods of creating these seasonal beauties, from balloons filled with water and frozen, to the use of a bundt cake pan. It takes a certain finesse to make these, but when they are mastered, luminaries bring a lovely flicker to a winter evening.

The Afton State Park luminaries usually take 24 hours to freeze, and often an additional eight hours, Radimecky said. Here is how they are made.

Fill the bucket until it is an inch from the top of the bucket. Set the bucket outside on a flat, preferably insulated surface; the water freezes from the top down and the outside to the inside. It will take at least 24 hours to freeze. Ideally, anything below 15 degrees should do it. Bring the bucket inside,

U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class John Harris/Released

EAST CHINA SEA – Gas Turbine System Technician (Mechanical) 3rd Class Jonathan Pate, from Eagan, takes readings from a low pressure system aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS McCampbell. McCampbell is forward-deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Keith Ellison: Here’s the interesting thing about the international arena. It’s connected to everything right here in good old Minneapolis. There’s really nothing that happens abroad that is not impacting right here in Minneapolis. I had several visits to Colombia and Honduras. When you’re in Central America, and the US is funding some of these governments that are involved in Narco trafficking and there’s such a horrible condition people are living in, that means that the refugees will come here, right?

They’re fleeing for their very lives based on policies that we either directly or unwittingly play a role in, either through our trade policy, our security policy, or military to military policy. These things all play a role.

If you go buy flow-

tip it over in a large sink and run warm water on the outside.

It will pop out with the top of the luminary facing up. Use a screwdriver and hammer to tap a hole into what was the bottom of the ice mass and pour out any water that didn’t freeze solid.

That will create a cavern for a candle or tea light. The ice may have frozen solid and it will take longer to create the light cavern.

This is the old-fashioned and probably least expensive way to make a luminary.

Online you’ll see instructions for placing a smaller one-gallon bucket on the inside of the fivegallon bucket, which creates a space for adding the candle or light. The smaller container is weighted with rocks and is ducttaped into place before water is added to the larger container.

Sometimes greenery and berries are stuffed down the wall of the larger container which freeze into place and make a really beautiful luminary.

Keep an eye on your luminary in the event a raccoon or larger animal decide to knock it over. Your best and safest light source is a LED tea light, which can be found inexpensively at any dollar store. Don’t use a glass container which will break when it is frozen. Also, wear warm gloves under rubber gloves when you are working with the ice.

Again, trial and error will lead to what could be your neighborhood’s most beautifully lit yard. Meanwhile, if you’ve never seen a luminary, check out your Minnesota state parks. They are all over the place.

ers, just flowers for Mother’s Day, or Valentine’s Day’s coming up, there’s a good chance they come from Colombia or Ecuador. They used to be made in California, but the wage rates, and the oppression of the flower workers in Colombia is so great that they can pay workers next to nothing. So, you buy those flowers here.

I spent time in Africa. If you have a cell phone, then you have a little bit of Africa you’re carrying around in your pocket.

Al McFarlane: Explain that.

Keith Ellison: Well, Coltan is an indispensable mineral for cellphones that is found mostly in the Katanga region in Congo. If you drive a car, you’ve got a little bit of Africa because it’s rubber tires may well have come from a Firestone plantation in Liberia. If you happen to be getting medical services from a certified nurse assistant, that person’s probably Liberian.

Al McFarlane: Yeah.

Al McFarlane: Was your travel mostly Europe, Africa, and South America, or did you do Asia as well?

Keith Ellison: Well, if you could the Middle East as Asia, I did a lot of Asia. As a matter of fact, I made over 10 trips to Saudi Arabia alone. I went to Morocco, Libya, Egypt several times, Israel-Palestine many times. I went to Turkey, and Syria, and Jordan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, all these places. What I learned is everybody in all those countries

knew somebody back in the Twin Cities. I never went to a country where nobody had any contacts in either the United States or in Minnesota.

For example, one time I was in a refugee camp called Dadaab, which is in northern Kenya on the border near Somalia. I said I’m from Minnesota. Everybody goes, “Minnesota.” Everybody had a friend or relative in Minnesota. Same thing when I was in Monrovia, Liberia and driving through seeing all the rubber plantations, understanding that that country was established by the United States in 1822 by an act of Congress, which is why their capital is Monrovia, because it’s named after James Monroe.

So, we have a sense that, “Oh, we’re just sitting up here in little old Minneapolis and that’s all there is.” No, everything is connected to everything. That’s not a theoretical statement. It’s the absolutely solid truth. If there is war, disruption, environmental degradation abroad, clearly we’re going to be getting some new neighbors. Trust me on that.

Here’s another thing I learned from international travel: Everybody is absolutely unique. Cultures are unique.

But people all want the same things. Again, back to Dadaab for a moment, or to a place in Nairobi known as Eastleigh ...

A lot of Somalis, when they hear Eastleigh, they know Eastleigh. People were handing me letters because they

ELLISON 7

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Insight News • January 7 - January 13, 2019 • Page 7

Commentary

How zip codes relate to achievement gaps Commentary by Akil Wilson There’s no question that education quality has an extraordinary impact on the future lives of students.

As a parent of a new middle school student, I can personally attest to the importance of dedicated teachers, early childhood education and a focused, personalized approach to education. In numerous studies it has been shown that the quality of education, especially within the country’s public school system, varies widely by location. There are several factors that contribute to success in adulthood. However, routinely we find that early childhood education and the empowerment of excellent teachers plays a pivotal role.

Students from economically-disadvantaged areas of inner-city school dis-

tricts have a plethora of obstacles to overcome, including but not limited to: lack of economic mobility, reduced health care options, and exposure to crime. Where schools should provide some relief from these challenges, they often serve as a grim reminder of how difficult it can be to escape difficult circumstances.

Harvard University economist Raj Chetti has researched this topic extensively, compiling data from millions of Americans. He found that education quality relates to economic and social mobility. According to Chetti’s research, on average, “only about 7.5 percent of children from the bottom fifth of incomes will reach the top fifth of incomes nationwide.

However, those odds tend to rise to 14-15 percent in rural areas and places with higher social capital. They sometimes decrease to below 5 percent in

impoverished or socioeconomically-disadvantaged places.”

Children in lower income brackets disproportionately tend to be the recipients of sub-par educational

The fact that these lower-performing public schools tend to be found in more impoverished or socially/culturally isolated areas is not a coincidence.

“It’s important that parents, teachers, administrators and community members take strategic steps to address factors contributing to the educational shortcomings in some of our schools.”

resources. As Chetti points out on NPR’s “Hidden Brain” podcast, larger class sizes and less experienced teachers are all indicators that students are much less likely to obtain the cognitive and social skills necessary to advance themselves and their families.

Prior to the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in the 2017-2018 school year, education standards were largely determined by federal standards outlined in No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). This structure did very little to address

the specific needs of the most disadvantaged communities.

ESSA seeks to improve students’ chances at success by encouraging a more personalized approach to students’ needs, strengths and interests as well as improving and decreasing the emphasis on standardized testing.

Much of the research suggests this approach will do more to advance specific, individual state school system goals and impact students’ lives.

It’s important that parents, teachers, administrators and community members take strategic steps to address factors contributing to the educational shortcomings in some of our schools while working with policy makers to equitably utilize all the tools and resources available. The future is now, and if our community ever hopes to eliminate the disparities that are at the root of many of the issues we are often

confronted with (i.e. poverty, mass incarceration, chronic unemployment) we have to begin with education. By requiring states to identify and intervene with their lowestperforming schools and take a more tailored approach to their improvement, ESSA is poised to have a significant and measurable impact on the state of public education in America.

There is a very real correlation between underperforming schools and generational poverty. If we wish to eliminate the latter, we must tackle education with a focus and energy that is specifically tailored to the needs of our communities.

Akil Wilson is a native Washington, D.C.-based, podcaster, and parent. He is a contributing writer for the Washington Informer in addition to providing broadcast commentary for a variety of media outlets.

White churches have a moral responsibility to stand up Commentary by Rev. Jesse Jackson In 2019, we will commemorate 400 years since the first 20 slaves were transported by ship from Africa by white slave traders and landed in Jamestown, Va. Now four centuries later, race remains a central dividing line. Today, for example, the racial wealth gap exposes a stark difference. The median wealth of a white household (median means half are above and half below) is 12 times greater than that of a Black household. The median wealth of a white household is $134,430, of Blacks it is $11,030.

This is virtually all about equity in a home, the leading source of middleincome wealth. AfricanAmericans still suffer from de facto segregation, after years of being red-lined from decent neighborhoods.

In the financial collapse, African-American households suffered the worse.

Simon From 3 the 17th state in the nation in which voting rights are restored as soon as a person convicted of a felony is released from prison. Simon said if the justice system determines that an individual is worthy of release back into their community, that person should have the right to participate in our democracy.

The Democratic secretary of state is also calling for automatic voter registration (AVR). In Minnesota, AVR would be an update to the current “motor voter” law, which allows eligible Minnesotans to register to vote when they apply for a driver’s license.

“Automatic voter reg-

Ellison From 6 wanted their wife or husband or cousin in Minneapolis to

NAACP From 3

Black unemployment rose twice as much as white unemployment in the Great Recession. Middle-class Black families, lacking inherited wealth, were targeted for the most aggressive and leveraged home loans. When the bust came, they were the most at risk and suffered the greatest loss of homes.

The wealth gap is not erased by educational attainment, by full-time employment, by getting the right occupation. The typical Black family with a head of household working full time has less wealth than a white family whose head of household is unemployed. Median wealth for a Black family whose head has a college degree is about oneeighth that of a median white family similarly educated.

African-Americans are constantly told to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. In the Black church, for example, ministers repeatedly preach the need for discipline, self-reliance, faith and hard work. Yet even those who succeed still remain behind.

The divide has deep

historical roots. Two-hundred forty-six years of chattel slavery (1619-1865), only 12 years of Reconstruction (18651877), 19 years of Black Codes, KKK and white citizen council violence (1877-1896), 58 years of legal apartheid with nearly 5,000 AfricanAmericans lynched and, even since the 1954 Brown v.

Board of Education Topeka, Kan. decision, ongoing racial discrimination exist.

During the recent midterm elections, I was constantly asked whether AfricanAmericans would vote in high enough numbers and margins for Democrats so that candidates white and Black had a

istration will increase the number of Minnesotans who get registered,” said Simon. “Investing in Democracy means devoting resources to strengthen Minnesota’s nation-leading systems and the Minnesotans who rely on them. AVR removes barriers to registration, increases the number of voters on the rolls before Election Day, and enables our databases to automatically update your registration if you move. This is a small investment in democracy that will save money over time and grow participation.”

“It’s time to pass automatic voter registration in Minnesota,” said Rep. Jennifer Schultz (DFL-Duluth). “AVR will help protect the fundamental right of every Minnesotan to participate in our democracy, and it will improve our voting system by saving

chance to be elected. Democrats seem almost satisfied if 20 to 30 percent of whites turn out to vote for Black or progressive white candidates.

What responsibility do white people have to register and turnout for progressive Black and white Democrats running for office?

The nation is fac-

ing many morally relevant social, economic and political crises — voter suppression, income and wealth inequality, criminal justice reform and climate change — that now pose an existential threat to the next generation. Why does the white church remain so silent in the face of these

mounting crises and denial of justice and opportunity?

In Birmingham in 1963, with dogs biting children, high-pressure fire hoses knocking down peaceful protesters, bombers blowing up churches and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in jail, many white church leaders chose to attack King’s non-violent methodology rather than to fight for a non-discriminatory Public Accommodations Act. One would have thought when the four little girls were bombed in the 16th Street Baptist Church, white churches would have at least held prayer services or services of reconciliation.

Instead, most attacked King as an outside agitator, as if he had set the bombs.

Recently in Alabama, I witnessed a stark contrast. One extreme was the excitement in anticipation of the Georgia/Alabama SEC championship football game. When a young AfricanAmerican athlete, Jalen Hurts, replaced an injured Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback, every Alabamian of every politi-

cal persuasion, right, left and center, was pulling for him.

With Hurts’ remarkable display of skill, Alabama won the game. He not only won the game, he arguably beat George Wallace and the legislators who earlier locked Blacks out of the University of Alabama. He beat Bull Connor who unleashed the dogs on demonstrators and the KKK on Freedom Riders. He beat the KKK bombers who watched as the church was decimated and four little girls were murdered.

The other extreme was witnessed in Hoover, Ala., where E.J. Bradford was shot in the back by a policeman. That police officer is still on the payroll. The patterns and prejudices of the old South are hard to overcome.

Here once more, the white church has the opportunity and the responsibility to stand up, to serve as a Christian witness. White voices of moral authority and inclusive leadership are needed now as much or more than ever.

That is why the silence seems so deafening.

time and money. AVR will increase the efficiency of updating voter registration information and the process of voting.”

Passed in 2016 by the legislature, the Presidential Primary Law for 2020 requires separate ballots for each political party, requires that all voters disclose to election officials the party ballot that they choose, and makes that data public record.

“There is no good reason for the legislature to require public disclosure of voters’ party preference,” said Simon.

“Minnesota’s voter registration system has never required a voter to state a party affiliation, yet the legislature created a back-door system of party registration when they passed the Presidential Primary Law. I am calling for the legislature to repeal the public disclosure

requirement of this law. Minnesota does not need to change a system that has worked so well for us for so many years.”

In addition, Simon said the Presidential Primary Law neglects to account for all the increased costs to local and municipal taxpayers of funding a third statewide contest in a single calendar year. Traditionally, the cost of putting on presidential caucuses was borne by the individual political parties.

“The problems we anticipate with the 2020 Presidential Nomination Primary must be solved by the legislature,” said Simon. “I stand ready to work with members of both parties on behalf of the people of Minnesota to reduce the cost and burden to local governments.”

One potential solution for some of the privacy and cost issues associated with

the 2020 Presidential Nomination Primary is to conduct the primary through mail balloting. Simon said vote by mail could save millions of dollars in election administration costs, would allow voters to choose their party preference in the privacy of their own home, and has been shown in other states to increase voter participation.

Since Congress allocated more than $6.6 million in Help American Vote Act (HAVA) funds to Minnesota in March 2018 for election security, Simon said he has been working with election officials, legislators, and other stakeholders to determine the best use for these federal funds. But he said these funds were not allocated last year, making Minnesota the only state in the country not to access this federal investment in time for the 2018 election.

“This should’ve gotten done last year,” said Rep. Michael Nelson (DFL – Brooklyn Park). “I’m committed to working with Speaker Hortman and my counterparts in the Senate to make sure this gets done quickly and early in the session.”

“Protecting the security of our elections systems remains a critical need,” said Simon. “Though we have no evidence of a breach or even an attempt to breach our systems in 2018, we cannot rely on past successes alone to deter potential future attacks on our system. I am pleased that both Speaker-elect Hortman and Leader Gazelka agree that this important federal investment in our democracy should be allocated quickly so that my team can get to work on needed security.”

know that they were okay; that mama made it out of the surgery okay; that uncle is sick’ that I still love you and want to marry you.

Keith Ellison: This is the kind of stuff that people care about even in a refugee camp. That’s

what they’re concerned about.

What are people concerned about here? The same stuff.

So, that’s kinda an interesting thing. Whether you are in the middle of Pakistan or in north Minneapolis, people are concerned about food, healthcare,

safety, their children, their retirement. That is the human condition. I guess if I thought about it, it wouldn’t take me traveling all over the world to learn that, but I did learn that.

Keith Ellison: The hunger for dignity is a universal thing.

It’s in human beings no matter where you go. If you had the chance to travel, good keep it up. If you haven’t, try to make plans because you’ll learn some things about yourself and humanity that in some ways are obvious, but in so

many other ways are not obvious.

Al McFarlane: The truth is you can learn it in your neighborhood.

Keith Ellison: You can.

slaved Africans in Port Comfort/Hampton, Va. Launched in August 2018 by Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, “Year of Return Ghana 2019” will feature a

number of activities, including a “Bra Fie” concert to be hosted by Damian Marley, son of Bob Marley; a Back to Africa Festival to celebrate Black History Month, and a homecom-

ing and investment summit.

The event hopes to promote business, spiritual and cultural reconnection between the African diaspora and Africa, which many considered

damaged beyond repair due to the Maafa –a Kiswahili term denoting great disaster or horrific occurrence and used to describe the Atlantic Slave Trade where millions of Africans

were enslaved and transported across the ocean or died during the horrific Middle Passage.

“One would have thought when the four little girls were bombed in the 16th Street Baptist Church, white churches would have at least held prayer services or services of reconciliation. Instead, most attacked King as an outside agitator, as if he had set the bombs.”

Page 8 • January 7 - January 13, 2019 • Insight News

Monday, Jan. 7 NIGHTLIFE Chill Vibez: Reloaded Honey 205 E Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis 8 p.m. – midnight Ashley Mari hosts a night of performances and live painting with DJs Mixie DBest and DJ NanoByte, plus $kinny Hardaway, Kiya Karson Karson Blu, Hector Daniel Martinez Diaz, Phuture Hi Def, Osiris Lane, Toddi RodriguezXiong, and more.

Monday, Jan. 7 – Sunday, Jan. 20 Aesthetically It! is a list of picks from the editors of Aesthetically Speaking.

Aesthetically It! features venues, events, outings and more that are worthy of “It” status. If you have a venue, event or outing that you feel is It worthy, email us at aestheticallyit@insightnews. com.

Tuesday, Jan. 8 HIP-HOP A$AP Rocky: Injured Generation Tour The Armory 500 6th St. S., Minneapolis 6:30 p.m.

21-plus $42.50 - $114

The leader of A$AP Mob, A$AP Rocky, comes off a big year of releases and brings his Injured Generation Tour to The Armory in downtown Minneapolis.

Wednesday, Jan. 9 Reggae Dancehall Wednesdays The Red Sea 320 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis 6 p.m. – 2 a.m.

18-plus No cover

CAMP/KIDS

DJ Sound of Fujun plays a mix of the best in reggae, dancehall, soca, and hip-hop every week until 2 a.m.

Thursday, Jan. 10 FILM Pulp Fiction The Parkway Theater 4814 Chicago Ave,

FREE MUSIC EVENTS Community Meal and Sing-Along

Music Together: Finale Concert

Tue Jan 22 Sanctuary Covenant Church

Sat Jan 26 7pm North High School

6pm free meal / 7pm sing-along Catered by Breaking Bread Café.

Featuring the Minnesota Orchestra, trumpeter Charles Lazarus, The Steeles, Juxtaposition Arts and MacPhail Northside Youth Orchestra.

JOIN US!

Registration and information at minnesotaorchestra.org/commonchords

#mnorch

Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 masterpiece, “Pulp Fiction” plays at the Parkway in South Minneapolis.

Friday, Jan. 11

NORTH MINNEAPOLIS

/

Minneapolis 7:30 p.m.

17-plus $9

DANCEHALL

COMMON CHORDS

612-371-5656

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UMOJA MN Earle Brown Heritage Center 6155 Earle Brown Dr., Minneapolis 12 p.m.

All ages UMOJA MN is a Black Heritage camp created to empower adoptive, kinship and foster families. The event explores the history of AfricanAmerican poets, spoken word artists and rappers. This camp will feature local artists who will share their story of exploring Black identity.”

Saturday, Jan. 12 SALSA

Monday, Jan. 14 HIP-HOP/R&B TrapSoul | A Lit Affair Nomad World Pub 501 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis 9 p.m.

21-plus $5 DJ Cam Jones presents a night of new R&B with performances by Nuelz, Jus Will, Josiah Woods, Travid Ruffin, Shardae Robinson, ShayMarie WitIt and Cariah Brinae’.

Tuesday, Jan. 15 NIGHTLIFE/TRIVIA Drunk Queer History Bryant Lake Bowl & Theater 810 W. Lake St., Minneapolis 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. $10 advance, $12 door Drunk Queer History is a night of improv and comedy on queer issues.

Wednesday, Jan. 16 BIG BAND

Malamanya – Second Saturday Salsa James Ballentine “Uptown” VFW 2916 Lyndale Ave. S., Minneapolis 9 p.m. – 2 a.m.

Louis Armstrong Night with Southside Aces Vieux Carré 408 St. Peter St., St. Paul 8 p.m. $8

Enjoy a high-energy night of Afro-Cuban music and dancing at the Uptown VFW.

Enjoy a whole night of the music of Louis Armstrong with the Southside Aces Big Five.

Sunday, Jan. 13

Thursday, Jan. 17

LECTURE

STORYTELLING/OPEN MIC

Racism in Minnesota: How We Got Here Hennepin History Museum 2303 3rd Ave. S., Minneapolis 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Story Club Minneapolis Bryant Lake Bowl & Theater 810 W. Lake St., Minneapolis 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. $8-$15

Dr. William (Bill) Green will discuss Minnesota’s reputation regarding race relations.

Story Club Minneapolis is a monthly storytelling show featuring both an open mic segment and a curated set of

performers. This month check out poet and essayist Michael Kleber-Diggs.

Friday, Jan. 18 HIP-HOP/R&B ILLism - iLLuminate Album Release Show Amsterdam Bar and Hall 6 W. 6th St., St. Paul 8 p.m. – 1 a.m.

18-plus $7 iLLism along with their band will debut new music from their much anticipated second studio album, “iLLuminate.”

Additional sounds by DJ Huh What and hosted by Leviticus.

Saturday, Jan. 19 WRITING Black Lines Matter: Where Black Writers Meet The Loft Literary Center 1011 Washington Ave. S., Ste. 200, Minneapolis 6 p.m.

All ages No cover A public classroom covering Black poetry in the state of Minnesota.

Sunday, Jan. 20 KING CELEBRATION 38th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Tribute Concert Ted Mann Concert Hall 2128 4th St. S., Minneapolis 3 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

All ages No Cover The University of Minnesota will host the 38th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Tribute Concert, curated by G. Phillip Shoultz, will feature VocalEssence, Singers of this Age, Ginger Commodore, Jacob Dodd, Brian Grandison, Madalyn McCurdy and others.

New film honors the life of Harriet Tubman

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @SatcyBrownMedia When one speaks of freedom fighters, Harriet Tubman’s name should always be among the first – if not highlighted as the primary justice crusader.

For it was on Dec. 6, 1849 that Tubman escaped slavery.

The brave African-American who became known as the “Moses” of her people, didn’t stop with her own freedom but went back – repeatedly – to help others; and over the course of a decade, led countless slaves along the Underground Railroad so that they too could taste freedom. Tubman became a leader in the abolitionist movement, and during the Civil War she served as a nurse and spy for the federal forces.

During President Barack Obama’s administration, the White House announced that beginning in 2020, the $20 bill would feature Tubman.

Just last week, a film slated for a 2019 release wrapped and will highlight the life of Tubman.

The cast of the film titled, “Harriet,” includes Tony and Grammy Award winner Cynthia Erivo, who plays Harriet Tubman. Tony and Grammy winner Leslie Odum, Jr., along with singer-songwriter Janelle Monae, portray characters in the film. Gregory Allen Howard crafted the story and will produce the film along alongside Daniela Taplin Lundberg and Debra Martin Chase.

“Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”

As noted in a television broadcast on WTVR in Virginia, the story of the abolitionist, who died in June 1913, has been told in academic textbooks, television series, and even YouTube history segments, but her story has never been told in an exclusive featurelength project. Virginia Commonwealth University African American Studies professor Dr. Chioke I’Anson told WTVR that it’s absurd no feature film has previously been made.

“There is a growing tide of Black representation on television and in movies,” I’Anson said. “Old myths about the unprofitability of black-led films are slowly falling away. Maybe a film about Harriet Tubman, one of the greatest heroes of black history, isn’t getting here too late. Maybe it’s right on time.”

Said George Mason University NAACP President Diyonah Contee, “If the story is portrayed accurately, viewers will learn more about the harsh conditions of slavery and gain an understanding of the strength and courage needed to do what Harriet did.”

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Insight News • January 7 - January 13, 2019 • Page 9

Aesthetically Speaking Minnesota Orchestra presents Common Chords in North Minneapolis Minnesota Orchestra musicians will participate in approximately 25 events throughout North Minneapolis in the Orchestra’s first-ever Twin Cities-area Common Chords residency week.

The full orchestra will perform two concerts, led

by Music Director Osmo Vänskä. A community meal and sing-along at Sanctuary Covenant Church, 710 W. Broadway Ave., takes place on Jan. 22, and a finale concert occurs Jan. 26 at North Community High School, 1500 James Ave. N., where the orchestra will share the stage with individual artists and ensembles from the North Minneapolis community.

Highlights of the residency include musician visits to elementary and high schools plus chamber performances at locations ranging from the University of Minnesota Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC), the Cora

McCorvey Health and Wellness Center and La Doña Cervecería to Wilson’s Image Barbers and Stylists and Sammy’s Avenue Eatery. The residency has been designed over the past 12 months by a steering committee of North Minneapolis leaders who represent a broad crosssection of the community involving schools, businesses, and civic and cultural organizations.

When the orchestra launched the Common Chords program in 2011, it was designed to be a week-long immersion in a Greater Minnesota city. More recently, orchestra staff and musicians began discussing ways to adapt the project for a Twin Cities residency.

“Common Chords North Minneapolis has really grown out of the Orchestra’s relationships with Shiloh Temple International Ministries and MacPhail’s programs in North Minneapolis,” said Minnesota

Orchestra President and CEO Michelle Miller Burns. “Over the last 12 months, so many North Minneapolis leaders have dedicated time to make this experience meaningful and unique to the northside and we are thankful for their involvement.

We hope to set the stage for lasting partnerships that will continue beyond this January week.”

Many of the events and performances of this Common Chords week are free and open to the public. Concert details for the two full-Orchestra concerts as well as a complete schedule of events are online at www.minnesotaorchestra.org.

In all Common Chords residencies, musical activities take place in both traditional and non-traditional settings, ranging from concert halls and schools to coffee shops, pubs and community centers. These varied settings provide opportunities to experi-

ence classical music in surprising venues or simply “happen upon” a musical performance.

The North Minneapolis Steering Committee identified four key priorities – to help build and grow existing Northside youth music programs, to bring music to places people are already gathered, to invest in organizations and small businesses in North Minneapolis; and to highlight North Minneapolis talent.

“The Steering Committee had a very clear vision for how this project could best work in North Minneapolis,” said Beth Kellar-Long, the orchestra’s vice president of Orchestra Administration. “We are particularly excited by the prospect of a community Sing-Along—and, of course, the culminating concert at North High School is going to be a remarkable night.”

Minnesota Orchestra

Through Common Chords the Minnesota Orchestra is hoping to offer North Minneapolis youth greater access to classical music and inspire young musicians to consider a career in the genre.

Walker acquires interdisciplinary works by Maria Hassabi and Jason Moran The Walker Art Center announced the acquisition of two interdisciplinary artworks, the installation “STAGED: Slugs’ Saloon” by jazz pianist Jason Moran and the live installation “STAGING: solo” by the Cypriot choreographer Maria Hassabi.

Commissioned by the Walker, Moran and Hassabi’s works have been presented across the museum’s galleries, stage and building spaces as part of the ongoing three-and-a-half-year Interdisciplinary Initiative. The acquisitions mark the first works

by Moran and Hassabi to enter a museum’s permanent collection.

“These two acquisitions represent a tremendously exciting step for the Walker and its collection, one which recognizes how leading artists today are proactively blurring the lines

between visual and performing arts; between object, body and sound; and between the past and the future,” said Philip Bither, McGuire director and senior curator for Performing Arts. “Jason Moran and Maria Hassabi are two of the leading innovators in their respective fields of jazz and dance, expanding and reimagining how those disciplines might live in our times and the times ahead,” Moran’s installation, which was exhibited at the Walker as part of the artist’s 2018 solo exhibition, pays homage to the iconic New York jazz club, Slugs’ Saloon (19641972). Complete with instruments, furniture, a jukebox and a stage, it reimagines the club’s interior to memorialize a lost cultural space. Speaking of the

Walker Art Center

Slugs’ Saloon” by jazz pianist Jason Moran is on display at the Walker Art Center.

“STAGED” series, Moran remarked, “considering America’s

desire to raze cultural landmarks, why not fabricate those

spaces as well. Architecture continues to inform music, from the vast ballroom to the tiny corner stage.”

“STAGED: Slugs’ Saloon” is a discreet installation that doubles as a stage for concerts, with musicians invited to perform at the artist’s discretion during his lifetime, and afterwards according to determined guidelines. At the opening of Moran’s recent exhibition at the Walker, the artist inaugurated the installation with a performance by Moran and legendary saxophonist Charles Lloyd, who frequently performed at the original Slugs.

Since the early 2000s, Hassabi has developed a distinct choreographic practice involved with the relation of the body to the image, defined by sculptural physicality and extended

Somali dance and weaving featured at Minnesota History Center Following the civil war that broke out in Somalia in 1991, large numbers of immigrants began arriving in Minnesota and today the state is home to the largest population of Somalis in the United States.

Through the migration process, traditional life ways are often disrupted. But Somalis in Minnesota are working to preserve and share their cultural traditions including Somali dance and weaving.

On Tuesday (Jan. 8), from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. the Somali Museum Dance Troupe will lead a free Traditional Somali Dance Night. The troupe will teach dances like the Jaandheer, which means big leap or step. The dance originates in northern Somalia and is danced at most Somali weddings and festive occasions.

The young men and women of the Somali Museum Dance Troupe study and perform traditional dances from all regions of Somalia. The dancers are high school and college students passion-

MNHS.ORG

Minnesota Historical Society

The Minnesota Historical Society is celebrating Somali culture at the Minnesota History Center. ate about sharing their culture.

On March 19 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. visitors can take part in a free Somali weaving workshop. Women design and build the traditional nomadic house called an Aqal Soomaali, including using a finger weaving technique to create colorful mats that cover their homes. In this workshop participants will learn weaving basics from some of the women who built the Aqal Soomaali

for the exhibit, Ardho Ismail, Amina Shire, and Halwa Aden.

These programs are suitable for all ages and for Somali and non-Somali alike.

“Somalis + Minnesota” is created in partnership with the Somali Museum of Minnesota to tell the story of Somali immigrants, their arrival in their newly adopted home of Minnesota and the successes and struggles they have faced. It is on view through June 9.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking against war in Vietnam, St. Paul, 1967, MNHS collections.

MNHS: HISTORY FOR ALL Join us at the Minnesota History Center, January 19–21, for MLK Weekend and the final days of The 1968 Exhibit.

Celebrate the life of Dr. King and reflect on the legacy of 1968 with art activities, service projects, and performances throughout the weekend for visitors of all ages. It is a great opportunity to visit The 1968 Exhibit one last time and participate in an engaging experience with friends and family over our shared history.

Like cold, hard cash? Get your mitts on the new Bold North scratch game. It has a top prize of $100,000. And you don’t need to put on your hat and gloves to play.

mnlottery.com/bold-north

duration. A live installation performed by a single dancer, “STAGING: solo” unfolds as a progression of highly formal choreographies, composed of stillness and decelerated movements in space. Oscillating between dance and sculpture, subject and object, live body and still image, the work tests conventional forms of viewership.

In addition to the live dance, Hassabi also conceived of archival and sculptural iterations of the work, which can be exhibited independently of the dance.

“STAGING: solo” is the third live work to enter the Walker’s permanent collection, following acquisitions of work by Tino Sehgal and Ralph Lemon.

To celebrate the success of 1968 and the legacy of Dr. King, MNHS is happy to partner with the VocalEssence Together We Sing Festival on January 19 to present a day of music and inspiration.

Every social movement in modern history has been inspired by music that rouses the people, speaks truth to power, and cements public consciousness. We invite you to join VocalEssence and guest artists

to raise your voice and give back.

Sing songs of protest and progress, move your feet to the rhythm of justice, try your hand at spoken word performance, and participate in an optional service project.

Participating artists include VocalEssence Singers of This Age, G. Phillip Shoultz III, Cameroon Choir, and Mila Vocal Ensemble.

The VocalEssence Together We Sing Festival event is free, but registration is required at mnhs.org/calendar.

Discounted exhibit admission is also available. We hope to see you there!

MELANIE ADAMS Melanie Adams, PhD, is the senior director of Guest Experience and Educational Services at the Minnesota Historical Society. In this role she oversees MNHS programs, exhibits, and historic sites located throughout the state, which serve one million people per year.

Page 10 • January 7 - January 13, 2019 • Insight News

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