Lia Renee Dior Loving the skin she’s in MORE ON PAGE 5
July 8 - July 14, 2013
Vol. 40 No. 28 • The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com
Sex offender overload
By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer Concerned residents of neighborhoods in north Minneapolis are calling on state, county and city officials to address the concentration of registered sex offenders in the community. As of July 2, there were 130 registered level 3 sex offenders residing in Minneapolis. Of that, 63 lived in north Minneapolis zip codes of 55405, 55411 and 55412. The heaviest concentration of level 3 offenders – 35 – dwelled in the 55411 zip code. In contrast, during the same time there was only one level 3 sex offender residing in the more affluent 55419 zip code of south Minneapolis. As of July 2, there were 32 registered level 3 sex offenders residing in all of St. Paul. Level 3 sex offenders are those considered most likely to re-offend. A community meeting held at the North Regional Library, 1315 Lowry Ave. N., presented by the Jordan Area Community Council, allowed residents to hear from state, county and city officials on what can be done to deconcentrate the number of sex offenders in the area. Harry Colbert, Jr.
Minneapolis City Councilman Don Samuels addresses concerned north Minneapolis residents regarding the high number of sex offenders residing in the area.
NORTH TURN TO 12
Trade Africa: Obama launches new partnerships THE WHITE HOUSE – President Obama announced the launch of Trade Africa, a new partnership between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa that seeks to increase internal and regional trade within Africa, and expand trade and economic ties between Africa, the United States, and other global markets.
The announcement came on July 1. Trade Africa will initially focus on the member states of the East African Community (EAC) -- Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. The EAC is an economic success story, and represents a market with significant opportunity for
U.S. exports and investment. The five states of the EAC, with a population of more than 130 million people, have increasingly stable and probusiness regulations. They are home to promising local enterprises that are forming creative partnerships with multinational companies. And EAC countries are benefiting
from the emergence of an educated, globalized middle class. Intra-EAC trade has doubled in the past five years, and the region’s GDP has risen to more than $80 billion – quadrupling in only 10 years. In its initial phase, Trade Africa aims to double intra-
AFRICA TURN TO 2
President Barack Obama
Voting rights advocates Insight News wins NNPA Best Layout and Design face uphill battle By Freddie Allen, NNPA Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON (NNPA) – In the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Shelby County v. Holder, striking down section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, civil rights organizations and voting rights advocates are preparing to battle against an expected the avalanche of new voting laws that threaten to wipe out the incredible gains ushered in the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The ruling effectively ended voting rights protections under section 5, forcing Congress to update the coverage formula
NNPA
Kimberlé Crenshaw says voting rights advocates must move beyond the status quo.
that required nine states and the counties and jurisdictions in six other states to preclear any changes to state and local voting laws with the Justice Department
MAAM Building Legacy Oral History Project
PAGE 2
or a federal court. Writing the majority opinion for the Supreme Court’s decision, Justice Anthony Kennedy acknowledged that “voting discrimination still exists,” but challenged the relevancy of the section 4 coverage formula originally crafted nearly 50 years ago. However, Congress has extended the law for times, saying it is still needed. Hours after the Supreme Court decision, state officials in Texas and South Carolina announced that they were moving forward with new voting regulations that civil rights groups say will disproportionately
VOTE TURN TO 12
The winning layout
NASHVILLE, TENN - Insight News took first place for the newspaper Layout and Design category in National Newspaper Publisher’s Association Merit Awards last week. “We have a great product and a great team producing a high quality journalism experience for our readers,” said Al McFarlane, Insight News editor. The St. Louis American won the top award for general excellence for the second consecutive year Thursday night at the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s (NNPA) Annual Merit Awards ceremony. For the first time, the NNPA also presented excellence awards for two smaller categories. Winning in Category B was the Houston Defender. The Miami Times won
in Category C. “There were many exceptional entries this year,” said Karl B. Rodney, Merit Awards Chairman and publisher of the Carib News. “We congratulate not only the winners, but other papers that exemplify excellence every week.” Mary Alice Thatch, publisher of the Wilmington Journal, was selected “Publisher of the Year” by her colleagues. Thatch was the driving force behind the NNPA’s successful national campaign win pardons of innocence for the Wilmington Ten. Her paper provided the lead coverage of the issue. The stories were then distributed to member newspapers by the NNPA News
NNPA TURN TO 12
Education
Business
Full Circle
Keeping students strong, safe, smart over summer
Is this your first job? How to take time off
Brief history of the Rondo Days celebration
PAGE 3
PAGE 4
PAGE 9