THE VOICE OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY SINCE 1934
August 6-12, 2020 Vol. 87 No. 1
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“AS IT WAS SPOKEN ... LET US RECORD.”
Ilhan Omar and Antone Melton-Meaux vie for 5th Congressional District The race for the 5th Congressional District has heated up over the last few weeks and become quite contentious as the DFL primary
nears. Challenger Antone Melton-Meau has mounted a campaign against incumbent Ilhan Omar that has caught the attention of the
uted to both candidates. The MSR wanted to give voters a chance to hear from the candidates one more time before the August 11th primary.
Antone Melton-Meaux
Ilhan Omar
MSR: Why are you seeking re-election? Omar: To have the opportunity to carry the values of one of the most progressive districts in the country. [Here the incumbent lists her accomplishments as legislator.] It’s been exciting to have the opportunity to introduce legislation to address the social and economic neglect in our community [such as] Medicare for All, knowing that 50% of Black Minnesotans are either underinsured or uninsured. I have introduced Homes for All recognizing that many of our constituents are renters or
national media. Adding to the controversy surrounding the race has been the amount of money from outside the district that has been contrib-
are housing insecure or face displacement. It includes concrete steps to address housing shortages, gentrification, and wraparound services. We have addressed the problem of student debt so young people can be free of the debt and can live fulfilled lives. We have addressed the socioeconomic needs of children with education funding that includes feeding children. We can’t feed the brain if we can’t feed the belly. Wrap-around services are important—social workers, mental health providers. We want schools to have more social workers and more mental health professionals and healthcare professionals in general to provide more wrap-around services. We have been leading the charge to support our teachers, so they have incentive to teach especially in schools with the highest disparities. We had a focus on environmental justice. Minnesota
tional wealth. MSR: What is the difference between human rights and civil rights? AM-M: Human rights is about universal rights and the ability to move freely identifying and honoring people’s heritage and lineage. Civil rights is the process of MSR: Why are you running addressing the systems of change. Voting is a civil right. [Civil rights for office? AM-M: I love the District and involve] assurance that the mechI care about our community. We anisms of government are acceshave significant challenges in sible and fair. the 5th District, like closing the MSR: Why is it important to achievement gap in our public schools, especially for children of address human rights issues? AM-M: We have to address color, and making sure we have all issues that speak to who we affordable housing. I want to minimize the effect are as human beings. I have been of COVID so we don’t make dedicated to that work as a fullthat crisis worse. We need to ad- time mediator. I have done a lot dress the lack of long-term qual- of work with the Minnesota Deity housing for renters and make partment of Human Rights and sure we have access to capital in the Minneapolis Department of marginalized communities to be- Civil Rights. What’s important is the procome homeowners. Homeownership is the pathway to genera- tection of someone’s identity ■See MEAUX on page 5
■See OMAR on page 5
MSR News Briefs Murders in large U.S. cities on the rise Homicides are up 24% this year in the nation’s 50 largest cities, totaling 3,612 so far according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of police department data. In 36 of those cities, the homicide rate increased by double digits. In Chicago, homicides increased by over 50%; so far this year there have been 400 more homicides over last year. Philadelphia and New York City
were in second and third place with 200 more homicides this year. Austin and Fort Worth, Texas reported large increases in murders as well. Experts have attributed the rise in violence to an increase in gang violence, the economic recession, and the lack of activity during the pandemic by social institutions that give youth alternatives to criminal activity like churches and schools.
Hundreds of U.S. businesses cheated workers during pandemic According to an article published by the Center for Public Integrity, hundreds of U.S. businesses have illegally denied paid leave to workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. As of June 12, nearly 700 companies had violated the law's paid-leave provisions and owed back wages to hundreds of employees. Many companies were found in violation of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which requires
small and medium-sized businesses to pay a worker's full salary for two weeks if they become infected with COVID-19 and prohibits businesses from firing employees for taking leave. Companies with less than 50 employees are excluded from the Act. Most of the workers who were, in effect, ripped off are low-wage earners in the construction, hotel and food industries.
Nonprofit and business partners feed thousands as hunger spreads By Analise Pruni Contributing writer Prior to COVID-19, Loaves & Fishes, a local organization committed to providing healthy meals to any Minnesotan in need, was serving around 3,500 meals daily. After the pandemic hit, donations have helped fuel a new to-go model of meal services that is providing around 11,000 to 12,000 meals a day. “The core of our mission is feeding people who are in need hot nutritious meals,” said Fishes & Loaves Executive Director Cathy Maes. “We do that seven days a week at over 56 locations right now.” To keep everyone safe during the pandemic and replace more traditional meal halls, Loaves & Fishes now operates with deliv-
Maes added that they deliver many meals to those experiencing homelessness in Minneapolis, St. Paul and the surrounding areas. “Our numbers have been soaring down near Little Earth, near the Powderhorn area,” Maes said. “African Americans down on Lake Street, that has been a population [in need] that has increased, so it’s really kind of site-specific.” As the number of seniors utilizing the meal services “skyrocket,” she said that neighbors and community members have been coming to pick up and deliver the food to the aging population Loaves & Fishes now focuses on take-out and delivery meal services. Photo by Analise Pruni who are shut in because of the coronavirus. Community partnerships, ery trucks making runs to pick- safe,” Maes said. “That has kind of informed our work that there’s donations, and most recently a up sites. “A lot of people drive up, walk a certain level of confidence and $7,000 grant from Wireless Zone, up, they don’t come in and eat; anonymity in that model, so a local Verizon Wireless franchise, we’re trying to keep everybody we’re seeing a lot of new people.” have helped supplement this
meal service in a time when hunger in Minnesota is being experienced by many more people. Bob Cheney, local Wireless Zone franchisee owner, started teaming up with Loaves & Fishes in 2008 through his church group. Wireless Zone’s “Founda-
keeping the company up and running through the pandemic. With expenses for gas in the delivery trucks, to-go containers, and “rescuing food,” the $7,000 was spent quickly in June. “Right when all of the universities closed and the restaurants
“It’s been fascinating how quickly we’ve been able to move when you’re in the middle of a crisis.” tion for Giving” allows franchisee members to donate and serve communities in need. Cheney said that since 2011 his franchise has been able to donate around $50,000 to Loaves & Fishes. The most recent $7,000 went immediately towards supporting the to-go model and
and the corporations, there was a ton of food in the system that needed to be recovered,” Maes said. “So we had seven trucks out every single day rescuing food, and our gas expenses just went through the roof.” Loaves & Fishes has also partnered with metro-area YMCAs. ■See LOAVES on page 5
Surging violence has many feeling ‘under siege’ By Charles Hallman Contributing writer
PRST STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID TWIN CITIES MN PERMIT NO. 6391
Gun violence in Minneapolis has seen an uptick in recent weeks. Some blame a combination of COVID-19, two months of imposed stay-at-home orders, the George Floyd murder and the uprisings and protests that followed, the summertime heat, and other related factors such as
anxiety and stress, job loss, and the pre-existing economic insecurity that normally affects the underprivileged. Over 200 people have been shot in the city so far this year— 113 people shot since May 25, the day Floyd died. At least 40 homicides have occurred thus far this year, and violent crime is up 11 percent from the previous year, according to Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) statistics. According to Shot Spotter, a tracking tool used by the MPD, there have been over 1,600 gunshots in Minneapolis in the 30 days since Floyd’s death. The majority of this gunfire activity has occurred on the city’s North Side, as determined by a second MPD tracking tool. The non-partisan Center for American Progress calls gun violence a leading killer of young people ages 15 to 29 in the U.S., more so
than car accidents and second only to drug overdoses. More than 117,000 people are shot annually in America according to a recent national report on urban gun violence. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is calling such violence “a significant public health problem.” During the July 29 African American Leadership Forum virtual panel discussion on gun violence, Minneapolis Youth Vio-
“These gangs are very undisciplined. lence Prevention Director Sasha Cotton said that the city’s Black population “is overrepresented in violence,” especially among males under age 30. State Senator Jeff Hayden (DFL-Minneapolis), City Councilmember Jeremiah Ellison, and former councilmember Don Samuels joined Cotton on last week’s panel.
Violence “is a much broader issue” in Black communities, not just in North Minneapolis, Hayden (DFL-Minneapolis) pointed out. “It really is a healthcare issue,” he stressed. “We really need to make sure that we are saying that.” The lawmaker advocated for a culturally specific approach as the best way to deal with the problem. “Access to guns is part of the gun violence crisis,” Cotton said. “The question is, “Why do you need a gun to feel safe?” Addressing the local gun violence issue over the years has been inconsistent, said Ellison, who represents the city’s Fifth Ward. “We have invested in small ways over time in programs and departments,” he noted. “We don’t do prevention and remedies. We only focus on consequences.” The city council allocated $300,000 to expand the Group Violence Invention Program in Cotton’s Violence Prevention office. The program works with people who are most likely to
commit gun violence. “We know
the numbers in our community are high,” reported Cotton, who was appointed to her current post in 2019 after five years as the program’s coordinator. Trauma is a big factor, not only for the victims of violence and their family members, but also for those who perpetuate the violence, Cotton said. “We are looking how we can do this work in a group setting.” She avoided the oft-used “Black-on-Black” terminology, which Cotton called a media creation. Violence typically occurs against someone you know or in retaliation, she explained. “It’s ironic that the media only put it out when it’s ‘Black-on-Black’ crime. But do you ever hear [the media] say Native American-on-
Native American, or Latino-onLatino violence? “We got to move away from that terminology,” Cotton continued. “We know that Black people shoot other Black people. The context of that only happening in our community is not [correct].” Samuels pointed out that the city’s youth gang problem is ever-present, a direct correlation to hopelessness and poverty among other factors, he stated. Studies have shown that young people are recruited by gangs as early as fourth grade. “We are always going to have young people feeling hopeless and thinking that Blackness is attributed to some kind of poverty or violence,” said Samuels, a longtime Northside resident. “You have these little cliques who have collated into two gangs,” he added. “They are very undisciplined. A lot of mayhem.” Violence “is a pattern, not something inherent” among Blacks, said Ellison. Some community folk say they are afraid to call the ■See VIOLENCE on page 5
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August 6-12, 2020
Are U.S. Blacks ready to return to the water? Local doctoral student urges a revival of African aquatic skills
passion for swimming began at an earlier time and a very significant season of her life when she was pregnant with Aquatics in the Black com- her daughter, “Being pregnant with her munity is often plagued with stigma and has been for some brought me back to myself. time. But local Ph.D. student When I was pregnant, I just and athletic trainer Ayanna had this urge to swim,” she Rakhu believes that there is reckoning in the Black community’s return to the water. Ayanna Rakhu is currently completing her degree in kinesiology at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. “I am all things fitness, well- says. “The connection was ness, alignment and health,” just intense, and I rememshe says, “and I have a back- bered the importance of water in my life.” ground in athletic training.” After five years, Rakhu is While Rakhu just recently received her scuba diving cer- actively continuing her mistification from the U of M, her sion in health and aquatics. By Tiffany Johnson Contributing writer
Diving for slave ships While there is not much Black representation within the aquatic field, Rakhu has developed a mission that links back to the Black community. “I had the opportunity to take the [scuba diving]
“As African people, we were teaching our kids to swim before they could walk.” course at the University of Minnesota, and I found out about a group called Diving with Purpose. They are a group of Blacks and Africans that go diving for slave ships.” Rakhu believes that
through her voyage back to the water, to the depths of the sea, will not only allow her to uncover the earliest relics of the African people being brought to America via the transatlantic slave trade, but perhaps also counteract the false stigma that has kept the Black community ashore. Aquatics and maritime in Black history In her studies, Rakhu has uncovered startling factoids about how aquatics have played a major role in Black history. “We [Black people] were the best swimmers, divers, fishermen, boaters; if you go back to the 1400s, Europeans were not swimming. That was something that they stole from us. They were barely sailing boats, and they used us for their maritime work,” she explains. Water was also integral to childhood development. “When you think about Africa, on each side there are coasts. Even inland there are so many rivers and bodies of water. As African people, we were taking our kids to water before they could walk. We were teaching them to swim before they could walk.”
Photo by Serena Repice Lentini via Unsplash.com
back to get this Ph.D., it has to be about something that I am passionate about, aquatics, and the importance of Black people swimming not only for recreation but for healing and also for occupation.” She encourages Black families, especially mothers, to embrace the water and to pass it on to the next genChanging the narrative Expecting to graduate eration, much as she shared with her doctorate in sum- a bond through water with mer 2021, Rakhu has centered her own daughter during her her dissertation topic on the pregnancy. “It’s something Photo by Cerqueira via Unsplash.com Black community’s return to that we need as an option for the water. “If I’m going to go our kids. [Tell them, you can
be a fisherman, you can sail ships, you can scuba dive, you can be a lifeguard, you can teach swimming lessons. “It’s about creating a new narrative where Black women are teaching their own children how to swim, and we are not reaching out to these predominately White organizations. It’s about releasing that generational curse.” Tiffany Johnson welcomes reader responses to tjohnson@ spokesman-recorder.com.
August 6-12, 2020
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We mustn’t let our ‘community immunity’ lapse Free shots available through Vaccines for Children
It is at these checkups that kids receive their recommended vaccines or “shots” to help protect them and our community from other infectious diseases. Shots work best when enough people in a community have gotten theirs, preventing a disease from spreading from one person to the next.
By Nathan T. Chomilo, MD, FAAP Guest contributor What is more eagerly anticipated than the next Avengers movie and Beyoncé album, combined? The drop of the latest… vaccine. COVID-19 has infected over 13.5 million worldwide, causing over 585,000 deaths while shutting down businesses, schools, professional sports leagues and large events in its wake. To be able to safely return to any sense of what was normal before COVID-19, it is clear we will need a vaccine, and we will need a lot of people in our community getting the vaccine to stop the spread of this devastating disease. However, as people have been told to stay home and avoid going to clinics, especially early in the outbreak this has resulted in fewer people seeing their doctor for their usual checkups. This has been a big problem for what are called “well child checkups” that kids should get regularly starting at birth.
Community immunity This concept is called “herd” or “community” immunity. If enough people have gotten their shots or become immune by surviving an infection, then those who are too young, old or unable to get a shot are still protected. When this herd immunity drops due to not enough people getting their shots, we see outbreaks of infectious disease pop up. This happened recently in Minnesota during our measles outbreak in 2017 and whooping cough outbreak in 2012. Those are two vaccine-preventable illnesses that are highly contagious. This is what concerns me as a pediatrician and medical director of Minnesota’s Medicaid program at the Department of Human Services. When looking at data about the number of shots ordered and given in April, after the COVID-19 public health crisis was officially declared, researchers in Minnesota and around the country found that there has been a 70% drop in measles shots given compared to the same time last year. Shots were down across the board in their report. Even with the gradual re-opening of parts of our state, we continue to see immunization rates below expectations. A recent survey of pediatri-
cians in Minnesota estimated that they were still seeing a 35% decline in immunizations for young children and a 45% decline in immunizations for teenagers. All of these drops are concerning, but drops in shots for measles is of greatest concern given how easily it is spread. Measles Measles is a virus that most often causes a rash and a fever with cough and congestion or runny nose. However, measles is much more than a rash. Of those children who are infected with measles, one in 20 will get pneumonia and one in 1,000 will get a rare complication called encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain. Both complications can require hospitalization, can result in long-term damage, and can be fatal. In the United States, of every 1,000 children who get measles, one or two will die. Measles is highly contagious and is spread in the air when people who have it cough or even just breathe. Protection from measles is given in the MMR shot, which stands for measles-mumps-rubella. Children get their first MMR shot at their 12-month well child check and a booster shot with their “kindergarten shots,” usually at age four or five years. Well child checks Most children get their shots at their well child checkups. These are the recommended doctor visits that start from birth where we look at a child’s growth, diet, sleep and teeth. We ask about how they are developing in activities like walking,
Staying safe and healthy through a move The world as we knew it has changed, but there are certain things that we will remain a part of our lives…and moving is one of them. The timing may not be ideal, but for many, it still has to be done. Here are some tips that can help you stay healthy through your move.
Work with responsible companies Be sure all movers have been familiarized with the hygiene and social-distancing practices outlined by the WHO and CDC. The movers should take every precaution to remain healthy and safe, including: • Practicing recommended hand-washing techniques and other prevention methods Online booking • Wearing gloves to avoid Find a moving service that allows you to fully book a move physical contact • Staying home if they’re without someone having to come inside your home to do a walk showing any symptoms of illness through and give you an estimate. (whether related to COVID-19 or not) • Cleaning and disinfecting the Use safe boxes Used boxes can carry a virus moving equipment used on each carrier for hours, so it is recom- job mended you don’t use used boxes. Buy new boxes and other packing Use common sense Wear masks, gloves, and regusupplies and have them delivered directly to your door. Another op- larly wash your hands as you are tion is using sanitized plastic bins. packing and moving. Practice social distancing.
• Maintain a distance of four to six feet from movers and drivers as they work. • Refrain from any participation in the move. • Request that movers wash their hands before participating in a move. • Clean furniture that is being moved (before your movers arrive). • Disinfect items that have been padded and wrapped once they’re unwrapped. • Dispose of all packing materials once the move is complete. Cancel and reschedule if you become ill Some companies are waiving their cancellation and rescheduling fees if you need to cancel/ change due to an illness or a COVID-19 issue. —Information courtesy of Bellhop
Courtesy MGN talking and playing with others. As they get older we check their hearing and vision or see if they may be dealing with anxiety or depression. We refer them to specialists so they can get the help they need to stay healthy and reach their full potential. For children who get their health coverage through Medicaid (called MA or Medical Assistance in Minnesota) or MinnesotaCare, these visits are fully covered and part of our Child and Teen Checkup program. Since COVID-19, clinics have been taking extra precautions to make sure that, when children come in for these important checkups, the risk of their and their parents’ exposure to COVID-19 is very low. Some clinics will have appointments for well child checks only in the morning so there are no sick children being seen at the same time. Some have moved all sick children and adults to specific clinics, away from where children are getting their well child checks. Other steps providers are taking include wiping down their rooms thoroughly between
just ask your provider or visit the website below. Our Black and Indigenous communities are already feeling the impact of COVID-19 more than others in our state. We have a higher infection rate and a higher death rate when you take into account our overall life expectancy. So the last thing we need is to suffer an outbreak like measles, whooping cough or the flu during COVID-19, especially when it can be prevented by catching up on our shots. Social distancing and hand hygiene will help with reducing the spread of all three, but the best medication science has given us to keep us healthy and around for our families and community has been vaccines. Which makes me think the release party for the COVID-19 vaccine will be epic. Let’s make sure we and our children do what we can to make it to that celebration.
patients, screening patients and families for signs of COVID-19 before they come in, and asking questions to see if anyone at home has had COVID-19 symptoms. In many ways, going to your clinic may be safer than going to the grocery store. Talk to your clinic, as they may be offering new services like in-home visits, drive-up clinics, or mobile vaccination vehicles that come to you. Don’t hesitate to ask quesVisit www.health.state.mn.us/ tions about how your clinic is preventing COVID-19 and what people/immunize/basics/howpay.html changes families need to make to learn more. when they attend appointments. Dr. Nathan T. Chomilo is medical director for the State of Minnesota’s Cost shouldn’t be a barrier Children who don’t currently Medicaid/Medical Assistance & Minhave health insurance still need nesotaCare programs and practices as a their shots. They can get them for general pediatrician in Brooklyn Center free or low cost through the Vac- with Park Nicollet. He is a board member of the Minnesota Chapter of the cines for Children program. This program provides vac- American Academy of Pediatrics and cines for 50% of children in the an adjunct assistant professor of pediUnited States and provides free atrics at the University of Minnesota or low-cost vaccines to children Medical School. He lives in Minwho don’t have health insurance neapolis with his wife and son. or whose insurance does not cover the cost of vaccines. Most pediatric clinics in Minnesota participate in this program, so
Ready, Set, Smile resumes free dental care Ready, Set, Smile, a Minneapolis community-based nonprofit, is continuing to provide free dental care to children who would have received the service at their schools prior to COVID-19 pandemic school closure. The care is also extended to family members who do not have dental insurance or are on medical assistance. “Despite the uncertainties in the world right now, we are committed to fulfilling our mission to provide dental care to children from underserved communities so they can learn without pain from dental decay,” said Suzanne Fust, executive director. With the generous support from Sm:)e Orthodontics in Minneapolis, Ready, Set, Smile is operating a modified version of their previously school-based
clinics two days a week at Sm:) e Orthodontics located in the Lynn-Lake area. Contingency plans are being put in place for the fall aca-
tions such as churches, mosques and synagogues, to continue its dental care service there. Ready, Set, Smile’s work is funded largely through dona-
demic year pending the school district’s operational guidelines. One of Ready, Set, Smile’s plans is to return to its normal operating hours in the elementary and middle schools. If distance learning is required, Ready, Set, Smile will reach out to community centers, including places of congrega-
tions from community members who believe in closing disparity gaps by removing barriers so all children in vulnerable communities can receive dental care. Information courtesy of Ready, Set, Smile. To learn more or donate, contact Suzanne Fust at 612-7216118 or sfust@readysetsmile.org.
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August 6-12, 2020
The Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder (MSR) welcomes and values commentary and feedback from the community. The articles found here are edited for clarity and/or space, but the opinions are the author’s own and do not reflect the views of the MSR.
Forces of fascism are at our doorstep By Coco Das
Inequality is unavoidable in U.S. society under capitalism By Richard D. Wolff Capitalism, as Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the Twenty-First Century” shows, relentlessly worsens wealth and income inequalities. That inherent tendency is only occasionally stopped or reversed when masses of people rise up against it. That happened, for example, in Western Europe and the U.S. during the Great Depression in the 1930s. It prompted social democracy in Europe and the New Deal in the United States. So far in capitalism’s history, however, stoppages or reversals around the world proved temporary. The last half-century witnessed a neoliberal reaction that rolled back both European social democracy and the New Deal. Capitalism has always managed to resume its tendential movement toward greater inequality. Among the consequences of a system with such a tendency, many are awful. We are living through one now as the COVID-19 pandemic, inadequately contained by the U.S. system, ravages Americans of middle and lower incomes and wealth markedly more than the rich. The rich buy better health care and diets, second homes away from crowded cities, better connections to get government bailouts, and so on. Many of the poor are homeless.“Shelter at home” is, for them, absurd. Low-income people are often crowded into the kinds of dense housing and dense working conditions that facilitate infection. Poor residents of low-cost nursing homes die disproportionally, as do prison inmates (mostly poor). Pandemic capitalism distributes death in inverse proportion to wealth and income. Social distancing has destroyed especially low-wage service sector jobs. Rarely did top executives lose their positions, and when they did, they found others. The result is a widened
gap between high salaries for some and low or no wages for many. Unemployment invites employers to lower wages for the still employed because they can. Pandemic capitalism has provoked a massive increase in money-creation by central banks. That money fuels rising stock markets and thereby enriches the rich who own most shares. The coincidence of rising stock markets and mass unemployment plus falling wages only adds momentum to worsening inequality. Unequal economic distributions (of income and wealth) finance unequal political outcomes. Whenever a small minority enjoys concentrated wealth within a society committed to universal suffrage, the rich quickly understand their vulnerability. The non-wealthy majority can use universal suffrage to prevail politically. The majority’s political power could then undo the results of the economy including its unequal distribution of income and wealth. Consequently, the rich corrupt politics with their money to prevent exactly that outcome. Capitalists spend part of their wealth to preserve (and enlarge) all of their wealth. The rich and those eager to join them in the U.S. dominate within both Republican and Democratic parties. The rich provide most of the donations that sustain candidates and parties, the funding for armies of lobbyists “advising” legislators, the bribes, and many issue-oriented public campaigns. The laws and regulations that flow from Washington, states, and cities reflect the needs and desires of the rich far more than those of the rest of us. The peculiar structure of U.S. property taxes offers an example. In the U.S., property is divided into two kinds: tangible and intangible. Tangible property includes land, buildings, business inventories, automobiles, etc. Intangible property is mostly
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stocks and bonds. Rich people hold most of their wealth in the form of intangible property. It is thus remarkable that in the U.S., only tangible property is subject to property tax. Intangible property is not subject to any property tax. The kinds of property (tangible) that many people own get taxed, but the kinds of property (intangible) mostly owned by the richest minority does not get taxed. If you own a house rented to tenants, you pay a property tax to the municipality where the house is located. You also pay an income tax on the received rents to the federal government and likely also the state government where you live. You are thus taxed twice: on the value of the property you own and on the income you derive from that property. If you sell a $100,000 house and then buy $100,000 worth of shares, you will owe no property taxes to any level of government in the United States. You will only owe income tax on dividends paid to you on the shares you own. The form of property you own determines whether you pay property tax or not. This property tax system is excellent for those rich enough to buy significant amounts of shares. The rich used their wealth to get tax laws written that way for them. The rest of us pay more in taxes because the rich pay less. Because the rich save money— since their intangible property is not taxed—they have much more to buy the politicians who secure such a tax system for them. And that tax system worsens inequality of wealth and income. Unequal economic distributions finance unequal cultural outcomes. For example, the goal of a unifying, democratizing public school system has always been subverted by economic inequality. In general (with few exceptions), the better schools cost more to attend. The tutors needed to help struggling students are affordable for the rich but less so for everyone else. The children of the wealthy get the private schools, books, quiet rooms, computers, educational trips, extra art and music lessons, and virtually everything else needed for higher educational achievement. Unequal economic distributions finance unequal “natural” outcomes. The U.S. now displays two differently priced foods. Rich people can afford “organic” while the rest of us worry but still buy “conventional” food for budget reasons. Countless studies indicate the dangers of herbicides, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, food processing methods, and additives. Nonetheless, the two-price food system delivers the better, safer food more to the rich than to everyone else. Likewise, the rich buy the safer automobiles, more safely equip their homes, and clean and filter the water they drink and the air they breathe. No wonder the rich live years longer on average than other people. Inequality is often fatal, not just during pandemics.
The Trump/Pence regime has sent a federal occupying army into Portland to “quell” ongoing protests. Overseen by the Department of Homeland Security and cobbled from a number of federal agencies, including Customs & Border Patrol and the Coast Guard, these anonymous thugs in camouflage, virtually indistinguishable from right-wing militias, have seized the authority to kidnap protesters. This is Trump’s Gestapo and secret police, but the regime has hardly been secret about its intent. Trump himself, who once said he longs for the days when protesters are carried out on stretchers, said, “I’m going to do something—that, I can tell you. Because we’re not going to let New York and Chicago and Philadelphia and Detroit and Baltimore and all of these—Oakland is a mess. “We’re not going to let this happen in our country. Look at what’s going on—all run by very liberal Democrats. All run, really, by the radical left. If Biden got in, that would be true for the country. The whole country would go to hell. And we’re not going to let it go to hell.” Ken Cuccinelli, acting deputy secretary of DHS, has joined the chorus. “You can expect that if violence continues in other parts of the country,” Cuccinelli warned, “the president has made no secret of the fact that he expects us where we can cooperate or have jurisdiction to step forward and expand our policing efforts there to bring down the level of violence.” Using alleged “threats to federal facilities and officers” and “spike[s] in crime” as pretexts, federal paramilitaries can be “rapidly deployed” anywhere the White House sees fit. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she will cooperate with the 150 DHS agents that will be sent to Chicago to “aid law enforcement with a spike in crime.” Trump has targeted Chicago, making it his top boogeyman of urban violence since his 2016
campaign. He has been threatening Chicago with federal occupation for years. Even as he denounces Trump’s provocative intervention in his city, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has told his city’s exemplary anti-fascist and antipolice state protesters to go home. “You’ve been heard,” Wheeler told Portland’s street resisters, “but let’s stay safe and let’s remember we’re in the midst of a pandemic. It’s time to end it.” By “it,” Wheeler means the ongoing eight-week campaign of militant protest that Portland activists have been waging against racial injustice and police brutality. Nonsense. It’s not time to stop protesting but rather to grow real popular resistance into a nationwide uprising of millions of people in the streets refusing to accept a fascist police state. These are not just any federal troops that the White House is deploying across urban America. They are Trump’s federal troops infused with his fascist fervor and lunacy. As Jamelle Bouie wrote in the New York Times, “Trump actively cultivated both the leadership and the rank-and-file of the border police and ICE. In turn, they gave him his support—unions for both agencies endorsed Trump for president. Under his leadership, these agencies have shown themselves to be deeply simpatico with the administration’s draconian approach to immigration at the southern border, with aggressive action against migrants, asylum-seekers and unauthorized immigrants.” Considering all this, I have three questions for those who are alarmed by the federal crackdown on Portland. 1. What the Hell is political theater and “performative authoritarianism?” To all those calling this a political stunt, political theater, “performative authoritarianism,” and whatever other cute phrases you can think of to hide the danger of kidnappings by secret police, enough already. These are not actors, this is not a stage play,
and this is not a stunt just to see Trump through the election or to encourage more protests to be used as campaign ads. Actual lines are being drawn, with catastrophic consequences for all of humanity. If we lose the right to protest—through legal or extralegal means—all bets are off. 2. Why are you waiting for this to come to your city instead of flooding the streets now to say no to a fascist police state? The people of Portland have responded appropriately. Resistance has grown, with the Wall of Moms and other local groups taking a righteous stand against Trump’s fascist incursion. While outwardly praising the Portland resisters, too many liberals and progressives are telling urban residents to “Get ready for when this happens to your city.” This is a hammer coming down on our right to dissent. Look at the whole fascist essence of the Trump-Pence regime— its White supremacy, vicious “America First” xenophobia, and anti-science, Christian theocratic nightmare for women, LGBTQ people, and a world suffering from a global pandemic 3. What makes you think you can vote this regime out? How many more hints do we need that Trump may not step down if he loses in November? Ever since he won the last election, the regime has been laying the groundwork to declare Trump’s defeat illegitimate. He just did it again in his latest Fox News interview with Chris Wallace. And if the results are contested, whose hands will be on the levers of power to enforce his removal? Our power is in the streets. Deadly authoritarian regimes all over the world have been driven out by the people in sustained, non-violent protest demanding the removal of the regime, and refusing to go home until their demand is met. Coco Das is a member of the editorial collective of refusefascism.org. Follow her on twitter @coco_das.
Letter to the Editor A fitting tribute to a giant of a man In our modern world that has become perhaps too casual, too informal, it did my heart good to watch the coverage of U.S. Representative Congressman John Lewis’ Celebration of Life tribute beginning in Selma, Alabama on Sunday, July 26, 2020. The horse-drawn caisson carried his body over the Edmund Pettus bridge—a bridge that rightfully should be renamed the Rep. John Lewis bridge. But he didn’t want that, we hear. He stated the name should remain the same that it is; lest we forget. Forget Bloody Sunday 1965 and
the perils of the Jim Crow South? Power to the caisson driver and his team. A Black man whose carriage of vehicle, but greater, carriage of character, knew how to fully attend to the sacred mission he was to deliver. He had a precious load aboard: a son of a sharecropper, beaten across this bridge when he was young—on an inaugural march for justice— rose to open the eyes and halls of our nation’s Congress. Lewis was a Black man that mattered and made sure that others do too. Mr. Caisson driver knew to dress formally. He sat up straight as our grandmothers would
have expected. He paused, rose and placed his top hat over his heart at the bridge midpoint— of Bloody Sunday’s near massacre on the bridge. Mightier than the honor guard, this reverent escort demonstrated the utmost of dignified respect for his team, for Congressman John Lewis, for himself, for our people, for the ancestors. As we watched along with many in the nation we choked up as did veteran journalist moderator Bob Schieffer.
In ancient Greece, Plato and Aristotle worried about and discussed the threat to community, to social cohesion, posed by inequalities of wealth and income. They criticized markets as institutions because, in their view, markets facilitated and aggravated income and wealth inequalities. But modern capitalism sanctifies markets and has thus conveniently forgotten Plato’s and Aristotle’s cautions and warnings about markets and inequality. The thousands of years since Plato and Aristotle have seen countless critiques, reforms, and revolutions directed against wealth and income inequalities. They have rarely succeeded and
have even more rarely persisted. Pessimists have responded, as the Bible does, with the notion that “the poor shall always be with us.” We rather ask the question: Why did so many heroic efforts at equality fail? The answer concerns the economic system, and how it organizes the people who work to produce and distribute the goods and services societies depend on. If its economic organization splits participants into a small rich minority and a large non-rich majority, the former will likely be determined to reproduce that organization over time. The class systems of slavery (master versus slave); feudalism (lord versus
serf) ; and capitalism (employer versus employee) all produce inequality. Inequality in the economy is a root cause contributing to society-wide inequalities. We might then infer that an alternative economic system based on a democratically organized community producing goods and services—not split into a dominant minority and a subordinate majority—might finally end social inequality.
Phyllis J. Sloan
Richard D. Wolff is a professor of economics emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He also hosts a YouTube channel Democracy at Work.
August 6-12, 2020
oMar Continued from page 1 has the third-highest asthma rate among young people. Working and introducing legislation to deal with environmental waste. We have worked on a Green New Deal. We understand that environmental justice is a racial equity issue, and it has been a priority of ours. Not only is it important to have a livable planet, but everyone on it must have access to clean water and a livable environment.
to our own [problems]. They tell us which one of our leaders is acceptable. I know that I have a responsibility as someone who now has the freedom to fight not only for my liberation but for the liberation of all people. Whether its cross-border labor rights…there shouldn’t be a space where genocides are allowed. I recognize how important it is to remind people that there are Black bodies still being enslaved. Our fight should not be limited to the four walls of our own spaces.
MSR: What are human rights, MSR: Why is it important to and what is the difference between civil rights and human address human rights issues? Omar: Human rights are para- rights? Omar: Human rights is havmount… You can’t be concerned with your liberation without be- ing the access to human dignity, ing concerned with others’ lib- for your humanity to be recogeration. They want to see us to be nized. Civil rights is about havbusy with just seeking solutions ing the civil liberties to access the
Meaux Continued from page 1 or origin. We are a country of broad diversity and immigrants. If we are not supporting human rights, we are not supporting the foundation of what this country is about. MSR: What’s your response to studies that have shown the 5th District as being the worst place for Black people to live? AM-M: If we are the worst or the fifth worst, it’s all pretty bad. The murder of George Floyd has amplified these problems. When you talk about education or affordable housing or access to affordable health care, even food security, I think it speaks to systems that have been put into place without awareness of their consequences. For example, public schools. We have not been serious about closing the education and achievement gap. Why are we not putting resources into place and investing in early learning? Research has shown that early learning is the best investment in our children’s future by far. For every one dollar we put into it, we get seven dollars in return. Government should step in and work with school districts. It’s no wonder the Black community and others have no trust in government, because government hasn’t shown up for them. MSR: What kind of problems has COVID-19 created for the district? And what can be done to fix them? AM-M: The problems are deep and wide. All the numbers I have seen have shown
opportunities that exist for other citizens. Civil rights is about creating policies that create the access point for that equality… Civil rights involve equal access to resources. I see the Black maternal death rate as a civil rights issue. It exists because they don’t have equal access to treatment, and Black women are dying because they choose to give birth. MSR: What’s your response to studies that have shown the 5th District as being the worst place to live? Omar: We got the Congressional Black Caucus to come and address the racial disparities that exist. It was an eye-opener for many of my Congressional colleagues. We held a town hall on the Black women mortality rate at the University of Minnesota. We visited a juvenile detention cen-
nity, which is a legal structure created by judges, which makes it almost impossible because of the standard of proof to have a successful misconduct case against a police officer. We need to eliminate that so that police officers can be held accountable. And then lastly we have to end sexual violence by police officers, which is the second most common complaint against the police. There is no such thing as consent when in the custody of police officers. We need something that allows the collection of data on a federal level. On the local level, the police function should be more narrowly tailored and focused. Presently, homelessness is criminalized and so are mental health crises. Private prisons are the number-one provider of mental health services. We need to invest more in our public schools and community schools that have wrap-around services that give extended support before school and after school for parents that are working. Have health services provided for students to make sure they have adequate health MSR: In the wake of care and supportive housing George Floyd, how do you if necessary, but also direct resuggest dealing with the issue lationships and partnerships with counseling and career of police violence? AM-M: It’s a multilayered services for parents. That is the way we transproblem. At the federal level, we can work to demilitarize form public safety with an the police. They have access acknowledgement that we to armored vehicles and gre- must have some kind of dedinade launchers. We are not cated police function. living in a police state and This MSR interview with should not be treated like enAntone Melton-Meaux has been emy combatants. We need a uniform stan- edited for length. dard across the country to address police brutality. We should end qualified immu-
that the African American community has been hardest hit. COVID has hurt us physically, but it’s hurt us in other ways as people are losing jobs and businesses are shut down, which is especially impactful to small businesses. They have to pay their rent or lease and there is no rent forgiveness. We should make sure we are trusting science so we can get to the root of the disease, making sure people can get PPE, hand sanitizer, soap. We just need to protect ourselves. We need more resources to keep us afloat. I’m in favor of extending unemployment benefits. I am in favor of hazard pay for our essential workers. I am in favor of rent and mortgage forgiveness for families that are in need. On the business side, we need to spend more on small business. More money for the Paycheck Protection Program. I talked to small business owners on Lake Street, and they feel left out. We have to invest in these businesses. The next round of money needs to go to businesses that were left out in the first round.
ter in Hennepin County. We had meetings with small businesses in North Minneapolis. We had an education forum to talk about educational disparities, and lastly we had a conversation about civil rights and the gaps that exist in the criminal justice system. We discussed access to voting and voting rights. We addressed the school-to-prison pipeline. My role is to listen to people on the ground and translate those cries into social change. MSR: What kind of problems has COVID-19 created for the District, and what can be done to fix them? Omar: It’s paramount that we deal with healthcare access for everyone. We are dealing with a health crisis, a financial crisis, and a pandemic of racism. For us, it’s the best example of how broken
Violence Continued from page 1 police when something happens. “Each part of the city feels they are not getting the law enforcement they need,” said Hayden. “People felt abandoned” by police both on the South Side and North
our system has been, whether it’s health care, or addressing substance abuse, or health and housing. This is our opportunity to acknowledge why serious investment in housing, economic development, and health care is important. We don’t have access to health care. That has put us in position to have pre-existing conditions that make us more susceptible to even dying from COVID.
lot of things that will transform policing. I am a supporter of dismantling the police department in Minneapolis because it has a crisis in credibility. It has not been able to solve over 50 percent of the worst crime. It utilizes resources that could go into mental health support. Addressing police violence has been a priority issue for me as a Black woman. I have a son now who is nearly six feet tall. I have been a victim of police brutality. MSR: In the wake of the death It has been important not to just of George Floyd, how do you march as we did with Terrance suggest dealing with the issue of Franklin and Jamar Clark, but police violence? to use my platform to repair this Omar: The system is broken. broken system. We passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in the House The full MSR interview with within thirty days of the murder Ilhan Omar has been edited for of George Floyd. It gets rid of length. qualified immunity. It bans noknock warrants. It addresses a Side, especially during the I’m scared. It’s traumatic.” uprisings immediately after Floyd’s death. Charles Hallman welcomes “People are feeling like they reader responses to challman@ have to take matters into their spokesman-recorder.com. own hands,” said Hayden. “They feel they are under siege.” “We’ve been here for a couple of decades,” Samuels said. “This is our neighborhood, but
loaVes Continued from page 1 The food is prepared and delivered to the YMCAs and then distributed there from 12-1 pm each day, totaling around 5,500 meals per day. Minnesota Central Kitchen and catering companies have also stepped up to help prepare meals and fill the demand. Meals might be anything from spaghetti casserole to fried chicken, but they always include fresh fruit or vegetables. “It’s been fascinating how quickly we’ve been able to move when you’re in the middle of a crisis,” Maes reflected. “Decisions can be made a lot faster without a whole lot of strategic planning. It makes you question, ‘Just because we’ve always done it that way, do we need to keep doing it this way?’” Cheney added that he hopes to continue the partnership. “Our central mission, where my own personal company is enhancing lives and connecting people in a remarkable way, I think that’s what they do at Loaves and Fishes, and we’re very pleased to be a part of that.” Analise Pruni welcomes reader responses to apruni@spokesman-recorder.com.
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Obituary
Juan L. (Witherspoon) Turner Sunset, July 28, 2020 Juan L. (Witherspoon) Turner, age 88 was born in Enid, OK and moved to Minneapolis in 1936. She died July 28, 2020. Juan was the wife of Donald Turner and parent of Raymond C., Donald F. Jr., Ronald F. (Michelle), Juan L. (Effiom-Ita), Yvonne F., Yvette K., and Steve H. (Veronica). She is survived by 18 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. Her husband, parents, grandparents, three sisters and one brother preceded her in death. Juan was employed by General Hospital as a charge nurse. She was instrumental in setting up Pilot City Health Clinic (now NorthPoint Clinic) and ended her career teaching nursing at the former Minneapolis Community College and St. Olaf Nursing Home. She was a member in good standing at Greater Friendship MB Church. She and her husband were made Chiefs in Lagos Nigeria in 1994. Juan’s four sons, three daughters, one brother, three sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends will miss her loving ways. Wake: Estes Funeral Chapel, 2201 Plymouth Ave. N., Mpls., 4-7 pm Thurs, Aug. 6, 2020. Private Celebration of Life: Aug. 7, 2020, 11 am Live Streaming at greatfriend.org. Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder August 6, 2020
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Business
August 6-12, 2020
Nail art entrepreneur perseveres through adversity Black Business SPOTLIGHT shop been able to find success? “In this season, it’s resilience. We’ve had hurdles and changes,” said Ellis. Any client that enters Nail Local businesswoman Kiara Ellis launched Nail Bar Bar MN will likely be enam-
By Ashley Lauren Contributing writer
Nail technician works on a client Photos by Ashley Lauren except where noted MN a year ago. Unfortunately, since then her business has been forced to close numerous times due to a myriad of challenges. First, it was construction, then COVID-19, and then the tragic death of George Floyd. How has the
ored by the swanky, upscale salon, staffed by a team of creative nail technicians. There’s a great selection of beautiful nail art to choose from—something for everybody. “Our mission is to create spaces that welcome the
community,” explained Ellis. Nail Bar MN is geared toward serving the community and creating job growth, as well as economic opportunities. “One of the reasons why I wanted to open the Nail Bar,” said Ellis, “is to provide job stability for my team and the workforce I wanted to support.” She added, “Part of this mission is diversifying the workforce. There is talent out here in Black and Brown women and others that don’t get an opportunity to work in a salon environment.” Although setbacks occurred, the Nail Bar MN team overcame adversity. Ellis said, “Everything going on with George Floyd makes us pause.” In an effort to raise awareness about social injustice, a mural was painted on the side of the salon’s building that pays homage to the Black Lives Matter Movement. The project was sponsored by the Uptown Neighborhood Association. The team of nail technicians at Nail Bar MN all specialize in natural nails, enhancements, and pedicures. “The hottest trends are the ombre nails and Gel X application for natural nails,” said Ellis. There’s also an intense protocol in place at the establishment for handling COVID. “It starts with a waiver, then temperature check, washing hands, everyone is required to wear a mask, limited amount of people, longer sanitation time, and we use hospitalgrade disinfectants,” said Ellis. They set aside extra time to sanitize space between
Submitted photo
Nail Bar MN owner Kiara Ellis each client. Around the clock cleaning is heavily enforced. Ellis also said there are “capacity guidelines” they must adhere to. “Availability is a lot more limited. It is just as stressful to be overbooked,” she said. Social distancing is enforced. They have double stations, so only one nail technician can be working at a time. The Nail Bar MN’s space is very unique. “We partner with The Beauty Lounge Minneapolis. Melissa Taylor is my partner and has been owning the Beauty Lounge for several years. We reconnected on a whole different vibe. Same mission” said Ellis. Through their partnership, customers can receive nail and hair services all under one roof. Both businesses are Black-owned. As for products and services, “The Nail Bar MN offers full-service nail care, specializing in natural nails and the Gel X system that is utilized to preserve natural nails,” said Ellis. The team also consistently strives to stay up to date on trends. From “milk bath” nail art to “Black Lives Matter”themed nails, there’s plenty of unique styles to choose from, personalized designs as well. Prices range from $35 to specialty to $65 and up. Customers can expect “a high level of service and to be heard,” said Ellis. Nail Bar MN also values social responsibility. Specifically, Ellis and her team have volunteered at schools and kids' events. They plan on continuing their philan-
thropic efforts in the future. In addition to owning and operating Nail Bar MN, Ellis works full-time at the University of Minnesota managing
nated. “We have to take time for self-care, especially as women. Always burning the candle at both ends. Take care of the vessel that moves you.
Mural outside of Nail Bar MN building outreach for the school’s cancer center. Her educational background includes a B.A. and an M.A. in social work. She’s also had involvement with the Black Chamber of Commerce and MEDA. Ellis shared advice for upcoming entrepreneurs: “Be flexible. Everything changes; don’t marry yourself to having that tunnel vision—we take ordered steps. Do your homework.” After putting in the work, Nail Bar MN serves as the perfect place to get rejuve-
Come in, get pampered for an hour,” said Ellis. Nail Bar MN is located at 3501 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis. The store is open 10 am-7 pm, but availability varies due to COVID restrictions. For more info, call 612-227-9363 or visit the website at www.thenailbarmn.com. Ashley Lauren welcomes readers’ responses to alauren@spokesman-recorder.com.
Black Business SPOTLIGHT Do you own or know of a Black-owned business we can profile and share with our readers? If so, please call Tracey Williams-Dillard at the MSR, 612-8274021, or email her at twilliams@spokesman-recorder.com, with contact information.
August 6-12, 2020
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‘John Lewis: Good Trouble’ educates and inspires Film Review By Dwight Brown “I feel lucky and blessed that I’m serving in the Congress… But there is a force that is trying to take us back to another time and another dark period,” warned Congressman John Lewis. And he would’ve known. Since age 17, the brave crusader had been at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement. Before he passed away on July 17 from pancreatic cancer, he was widely seen as an elder statesmen. Following his path lets audiences retrace the steps of activism that have led to social change, even in the midst of great oppression. For that alone, former trial lawyer turned documentarian Dawn Porter’s (“Trapped,” “Gideon’s Army”) homage to one of our greatest heroes is a blessing and an inspiring lesson in American history. On the surface, this bio/doc uses pretty standard techniques. Lewis was interviewed and his recollections are as evocative as they are noble. Clips and photos of him as a 17-year-old around the time he met Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957 brim with strength and vitality. Recalling his historic 1964 march across
Credit to Porter for also bring- the pacing pretty fresh and cuts boundaries and crescendoed ing up some of Lewis’s question- what easily could have been a into one of the country’s most able strategies for winning his miniseries from hundreds of hailed elders. first Congressional seat in At- hours of archival footage down Lewis was as much a hero as lanta’s fifth district. Recent bios to 96 minutes. he was a shaman. If activists and In this age of fierce debates concerned citizens listen to his about iconic Black figures like Toni Morrison failed to bring up over national health care, gun life story and sage advice, they any controversies in their lives or rights, police reform, gerryman- may find new ways to navigate careers. In this more honest doc, dering, and the future of basic through these turbulent times the audience learns how Lewis civil rights, it’s easy to lose di- when hope and strategy are beat Julian Bond out of his Con- rection and momentum. But in more vital than ever before. gressional seat by bringing up moments of doubt, it is the work “John Lewis: Good Trouble” is his rival’s personal foibles. That of civic leaders like Lewis that as instructive as it is inspiring. shows that behind the affable puts everything into perspective. smile and nurturing qualities, Lewis: “When you lose the sense Dwight Brown is an NNPA of fear, you are free!” Lewis could play hardball durnews wire film critic. Find more of John Lewis in ‘John Lewis: Good Trouble’ This had to be done. Some- his work at DwightBrownInk.com ing a campaign. Tamar-kali’s musical score one had to chronicle a political and BlackPressUSA.com. the Edmund Pettus Bridge in lice violence. Lewis’s thoughts on racism to- certainly adds a dramatic effect. life that began as an inquisitive, Selma, when he was beaten by police, will send shivers down day, through the prism of his ex- Jessica Congdon’s editing keeps unafraid teenager who saw no viewers’ backs and leave them in periences, are completely illumiawe over his bravery: “I thought nating and poignant. He pointed I was going to die on the bridge.” out the dangers of voter suppresPorter holds the camera sion involving Blacks, Latinos, steady. There is little style (con- and young people and expresses trary to more elaborate docs like his concerns: “My greatest fear Errol Morris’s “The Thin Blue is that one day we wake up and Line”). Minimal creative moves. democracy is gone.” This is comVery straight-forward filmmak- ing from a man whose deep coning where what is shown and victions and protests got him arheard is far more important than rested 40 times, five times while he was in Congress. flair. Porter peppers the footage Viewers learn the details of what happened before and af- with politicians and civic leaders ter that iconic moment on the who eagerly attest to Lewis’s acbridge in Selma, Alabama, and complishments. Diane Nash, one how Lewis never lost hope. They of the former heads of the studiscover the intricate planning dent branch of the Civil Rights that went into his activism, from Movement, SNCC. Hillary Clinwhat to wear, how to present ton. AOC. Members of the Con- John Lewis and marchers in the documentary ‘John Lewis: Good Trouble’ himself to how to withstand po- gressional Black Caucus. Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures
CNN legal analyst and MN native Laura Coates reflects on implications of George Floyd’s death By Nadine Matthews Contributing writer “I grew up across the river. I bought my first home blocks away from where George Floyd was killed,” stated Laura Coates, CNN senior legal analyst and SiriusXM host of “The Laura Coate Show,” to the MSR. Coates discussed some of her feelings around the impact of perhaps one of the most consequential events in modern-day history. “We know, although Minnesota is far above the Mason Dixon line,” said Coates, “Jim Crow had its talons in every state in the country. So it’s not that I didn’t know discrimination existed, but it was so close to home. “I remember passing that route where George Floyd was killed so many times on my way to my first law firm job. I love my hometown so dearly; it was so disorienting to have to confront the same bias I have been fighting in other parts of the nation.” The Highland Park-raised mom of two graduated from St. Paul Academy, eventually going on to Princeton University, then the University of Minnesota Law School. Coates practiced at fullservice law firm Faegre & Benson in Minneapolis, one of the largest headquartered in the U.S. She then moved onto the position of trial attorney in the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division under Presidents Bush and Obama, where she specialized in voting rights. What Coates saw happening
Laura Coates Courtesy of SiriusXM
in her hometown this summer also gave her a great deal of hope. “It was rewarding to see the outpouring of support across demographics of race, age, gender, and geographic lines, that far more resembled the communities I grew up in,” she said. Astonishing many who saw the brutality on display in the video of Floyd’s death, none of the four officers involved were charged with first-degree murder. Coates understands the reaction but feels the public should trust Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. “He has always advanced and advocated [for] issues of social justice,” explained Coates. “There are certain aspects of Minnesota law that are unique, particularly with respect to intentionality requirements one must have with different degrees of murder.” Further, Coates advises the public to keep in mind that the Floyd case is a watershed, symbolizing much more than a murder case involving police officers. “There has to be a reckoning,” Coates emphasized. “In light of
criminal justice reform, issues of qualified immunity, the use of lethal force, and the ways police officers who are defendants are conferred by the court—a benefit of the doubt that is not conferred to everyday civilians.” Coates is hopeful that the historic impact of the Floyd case will be “that accountability will be sought, and that justice also requires a comprehensive approach to the way we charge, prosecute, and prevent cases like this.” Coates also shared her thoughts about the Department of Justice under William Barr; one which poses an existential threat to civil rights. She stressed that the presidential election isn’t the most consequential in terms of Americans’ day-to-day lives. “If people want to really effectuate change, they've got to be devoted to voting at the local and state level, as much as they are at the federal level,” she said. That is, citizens must be finely tuned to elections for mayor (who chooses the chief of police), elections for district attorney, city officials, and governor. ”These are the people,” explained Coates, “who determine what happens in areas such as education, water utility, and the like. They are the ones who have the most impact on the quality of day-to-day lives.” Attorney General William Barr has also come under fire by no less than two thousand former federal prosecutors for the way he has, in their estimation,
misused his power. Coates recently penned an impassioned op-ed for CNN, taking Barr to task for his dangerous mishandling of his position. She stressed that he must continually be held accountable. “One of the
Nadine Matthews welcomes nmatthings that can be an effective way to constrain the power of attorney thews@spokesman-recorder.com or on general, or any official, is through Twitter at @deeniemedia. litigation, and that's being done by civil liberties organizations across the country.”
August 6-12, 2020
Legals
Employment
Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Certificate of Assumed Name Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 333 ASSUMED NAME: PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS: NAMEHOLDER(S):
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Name: Address:
Lena Botanicals 4434 Pillsbury Ave S Minneapolis MN 55419 USA
The Arzon Group 4434 Pillsbury Ave S Minneapolis MN 55419 USA
If you submit an attachment, it will be incorporated into this document. If the attachment conflicts with the information specifically set forth in this document, this document supersedes the data referenced in the attachment. By typing my name, I, the undersigned, certify that I am signing this document as the person whose signature is required, or as agent of the person(s) whose signature would be required who has authorized me to sign this document on his/her behalf, or in both capacities. I further certify that I have completed all required fields, and that the information in this document is true and correct and in compliance with the applicable chapter of Minnesota Statutes. I understand that by signing this document I am subject to the penalties of perjury as set forth in Section 609.48 as if I had signed this document under oath. SIGNED BY: MAILING ADDRESS: EMAIL FOR OFFICIAL NOTICES:
Abigail Stoddard 4434 Pillsbury Ave S Minneapolis MN 55419 afstoddard@gmail.com
INQUIRIES
Xpress Xteriors R.S.W. 720 W. Lake Street #319 Minneapolis, MN 55408 USA
& TEARSHEETS NAMEHOLDER(s): Raul A. Garzon Miguel /Aztec Construction LLC PLEASE CONTACT 720 W. Lake Street #319 ACCOUNTING DEPT Minneapolis, MN 55408 USA I, the undersigned, certify that I am signing this document as the person whose ASSUMED NAME signature is required, or as agent of the person(s) whose signature would be reFLATwho RATE $150.00me to sign this document on his/her behalf, or in both quired has authorized 2 WEEKI further RUNcertify that I have completed all required fields, and that the capacities. information in this document is true and correct and in compliance with the applicable chapter of Minnesota Statutes. I understand that by signing this document I am subject to the penalties of perjury as set forth in Section 609.48 as if I had Please proof, respond with email confirmation to dis play@ signed this document under oath.
spokesman-recorder.com. For more exposure: We are also
inviting our clients to advertise on our site for 2 weeks SIGNED BY: Raulweb A. Garzon Miguel EMAIL FORnet OFFICIAL for a flat fee ofNOTICES: $150.00 per XpressXteriorsRSW@gmail.com position with purchase of print DATED: 07/17/2020 11:59 PM ad. Online only ads run 2 weeks for $300.00 per position. Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder August 6 & 13, 2020
FILED 07/24/2020 11:59 PM
Steve Simon Secretary of State
Notice of Sale
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder August 6 & 13, 2020
INVITATION TO BID
A/1 Contract No. 21-056
Sealed bids will be received by the Public Housing Agency (PHA) of the City of Saint Paul at 200 Arch Street East, St. Paul, Minnesota 55130 for PLUMBING MODERNIZATION AT FRONT HI-RISE, Contract 21-056, until 2:00 PM, Local Time, on September 03, 2020 at which time they will be publicly opened and read aloud. The Plumbing Modernization at Front Hi-Rise primarily involves the removal and replacement of plumbing supply, waste and vent lines in 151 dwelling units and removal and replacement of boilers including all necessary demolition and asbestos abatement. It also includes replacement of kitchen and bath fixtures and finishes and painting throughout the unit. A complete set of bid documents are available by contacting Northstar Imaging at 651-686-0477 or www.northstarplanroom.com, under public plan room, PLUMBING MODERNIZATION AT FRONT HI-RISE, Contract 21-056. Digital downloads are no charge, contact Northstar for hard copy pricing.
Notice is hereby given that Beyond Self Storage locations at 1315 Cope Ave Maplewood MN 55109, will sell at public auction on August 13th 2020, to satisfyFrom the lien ofClassified the owner, personal property belonging to those individuals listed below: 1132-Margaret Curry, 1025-Jolynn Bourgoin, 1008 Angela Department/MN Eder, 1145Johnell Moore, 2004 LaQuisha Jeffers, 2082-Laco West, 2245 Tanya Avant, Spokesman-Recorder 2254- Jacob Bourgoin, 3015-Michelle Epperson, 3024-Sonya Martinez, 3215 Tammy Brown: Beyond Self Storage #812, and it's related parties assign PHONE: and affiliates. 612-827-4021
FOR BILLING
The auction will be listed and advertised on www.storagetreasures.com. INQUIRIES Purchases must be made with cash only and paid at the above-referenced &inTEARSHEETS facilities order to complete the transaction. Beyond Self Storage may refuse PLEASE any bid and may rescind any purchase up until the winning bidder CONTACT takes possession of the personal property.
ACCOUNTING DEPT
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder July 30 and August 6, 2020
RAMSEY COUNTY 1 WEEK RUN FLAT RATE $100.00 PREPAID
PRE-BID CONFERENCE WILL BE HELD on August 12, 2020 at 10:00 AM at 727 Front Avenue, St Paul, MN in the Community Room. A tour of the building will follow.
JIM LEARY PROJECT LEADER (651) 292-6073
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder August 6, 2020
State of Minnesota Ramsey County
District Court Second Judicial District Court File Number: 62DAFA20737 Case Type: Domestic Abuse In The Matter Of Kirstin Jane Morton Vs Dominic Tremaine Kidd-Kirksey Notice of Hearing by Publication (Minn. Stat. § 518B.01, subd. 8) To Respondent named above: An order has been issued directing you to appear to a hearing on August 18, 2020 at 8:30am before Referee Rebecca Rossow for an Order for Protection Hearing and explain why the relief sought in the Petition for the Order for Protection should not begranted. You must contact the Ramsey County Court Administrator’s Office at 651-266-5130 for hearing location details. You may obtain a copy of the Petition and any order issued from the court from the Ramsey County Court Administrator's Office. If you do not appear at the scheduled hearing, the Petitioner's request may be granted asa default matter. Failure to appear will not be a defense to prosecution for violation of the Court's Order. Court Administrator Ramsey Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder August 6, 2020
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State was a truly remarkable job of reconstructing a team’s fragile confidence,” Continued from page 10 recalled fellow NBA analyst power. This is stuff that we and former NBA coach Jeff shouldn’t even be talking Van Gundy of Jackson’s tenabout with the NBA, a pre- ure. “I think Mark did an incredible job in Golden State, dominately Black league.” Not often talked about is bringing them from awful to From Classified the cold, hard fact that Blacks good. If I was a general manDepartment/MN getting hired as head coaches ager right now, I would be Spokesman-Recorder in a league where 70% of its really smart if I hired Mark.” Said Jackson, “I had a players are Black still seems PHONE: 612-827-4021 to be an exception and not blast doing it at Golden State. the rule. Couple this with I truly look forward to one FOR BILLING Blacks not getting as many day having the opportunity INQUIRIES second-chance opportunities to coach again.” & TEARSHEETS Lapchick reaffirmed the as their White counterparts, PLEASE CONTACT another problem not as often importance of the annual ACCOUNTING DEPT TIDES reports. “People realdiscussed as it should be. An example is current ize it is a tool that can help RAMSEY COUNTY NBA analyst Mark Jackson, them achieve what they may who coached Golden State have thought about [diver1WEEK RUN (2011-14), had a 121-109 re- sity] and move toward it. We FLAT RATE PREPAIDcan help them make it hapcord, and took$100.00 the Warriors to consecutive playoff berths pen.” before being fired and reCharles Hallman welcomes placed by Steve Kerr, who won the first of three NBA reader responses to challman@ titles in his first year as coach. spokesman-recorder.com. “What I saw in Golden
Mitchell Palmer McDonald’s column will return next week.
New LyNx
winning USA teams, and played two overseas pro seasons during the W off seasons (a 2017-18 regContinued from page 10 ular season championship with one for two from the free throw a team in Hungary that twice made its league finals). line and grabbed four boards. But her game skills haven’t “Right now I am trying to get to know everyone and bring a been on display as much since lot of energy,” McCall said. A becoming a WNBA player: McCalifornia native, she graduated Call played in 64 games with with a psychology degree from three starts in two seasons, avStanford (2013-17), where she eraging three and two points replayed on two Final Fours, three spectively at Indiana. “I don’t think I’ve gotten a lot Elite Eights and three Pac-12 championships, finishing as one of time to show my mid-range of six conference players to post shot,” McCall told the MSR 1,350 points, 950 rebounds and when asked what she brings to Minnesota. Her biggest adjust200 blocks. She also played on four gold- ment, she said, is to how the Lynx
Apply at https://jobs.medtronic.com/, Req.20000BMO. Medtronic is an equal opportunity employer committed to From Classified cultural diversity in the workplace.
Department/MN All Spokesman-Recorder individuals are encouraged to apply. PHONE: 612-827-4021 FOR BILLING INQUIRIES & TEARSHEETS Security Associate PLEASEOvernight CONTACT The Walker Art Center is seeking ACCOUNTING DEPT a dedicated and reliable
full-time Overnight Security Associate. This essential role is respon-sible the overall safety and security of the Walker Art LEGALfor NOTICES Center and Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. $35-39k/year plus SIZE: 2 COL X 2.45 overtime eligibility. RATE $15.53 PCI (1ST RUN) SUBTOTAL: To Apply: provide a$77.65 letter of interest, resume, and three pro-
fes-sional references directly to the posting at walkerart.org/jobs. RATE $10.35 PCI (PER ADDITIONAL RUN) $ SUBTOTAL: $51.75 Total: $129.40 This is serious business. Please proof, respond with confirmation to disOuremail young student athletes play@spokesman-recorder.com have sacrificed and delivered Continued from page 10 big time since 1960. When
The successful bidder will be required to furnish performance and payment bonds.
The PHA reserves the right to reject any or all bids or to waive any informalities in the bidding.
experience in all of the following: IT Security for Identity & ASSUMED Design, NAMEimplementation and support of Access Management; FLAT RATE $150.00 IAM technologies; Identity Management – CA Identity Man2 Identity WEEK RUN ager, RSA Governance, Quest One Identity Manager (Q1IM); Directory & LDAP – Active Directory, CA Directory, SunONE & Oracle Directory Server and Radiant One Virtual Directory;Please Web Services to includewith Restemail and SOAP; WebLogicto di proof, respond confirmation and Tomcat application servers and web servers to include play@spokesman-recorder.com. For more exposure: IIS, Apache and Sun Java WS; Java development and working We are also inviting our clients to advertise on our with databases; API coordination and associated security site for 2 weeks for aand flattesting net fee $150.00 concepts;web Qualification, integration of of Identity & per position with purchase of+print ad.exp., Online only ads Access technologies. In lieu of a MS 2 years the emrun 2 weeks per position. ployer will accept a BSfor + 5$300.00 years exp.
Fitz
Bids must be accompanied by a 5% bid guarantee, MN responsible contractor compliance affidavit, a non-collusive affidavit, and EEO/AAP submittals.
AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AGENCY
From Classified Sr. IT Technologist Department/MN Spokesman-Recorder Sr. IT TechnologistIdentity & Access (multiple positions) PHONE: for Medtronic Inc. at612-827-4021 its facility in Mounds View, MN. Responsible forBILLING the design, development, implementation, FOR operations, and coordination of IAM technologies deployed INQUIRIES within the&organization. Master’s degree or foreign equivalent TEARSHEETS in Information Systems, Computer Science or Electronics PLEASE CONTACT and Communication and two (2) years of experience in IT ACCOUNTING DEPT Technology and two (2) years of post-bachelor’s progressive
From Classified
State of Minnesota Department/MN Certificate of Assumed Name Spokesman-Recorder Minnesota Statutes Chapter 333 ASSUMED PHONE:NAME: 612-827-4021 PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS: FOR BILLING
approach game preparation. “Shootarounds are more relaxed,” McCall reported. “It is a lot more intense, more attention to detail. I really appreciate that.” She also appreciates Coach Cheryl Reeve’s advice. “She wants me to play hard, rebound the ball, look for my shot,” McCall said. “If I’m open, take the shot. She has confidence in me.” Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses to challman@spokesman-recorder.com.
soccer and others. College football and basketball programs with 75% Black athletes carry the amateur sports market. I have long been at odds with the NCAA and have never gotten an answer to revenue distribution questions. That's why on August 3 we still don't know if we will have a college football or basketball fall season. It's difficult. The virus is killing 1,000 Americans or more every month. Can the schools protect the safety of these student athletes? Can they be tested daily like the pros? They are not in a bubble; they have to go to class. Who is paying for it? That's why several university conferences and independent schools have already canceled 2020 fall sports programming. Students on campus this fall? Coronavirus is spiking virtually everywhere. If the schools have no classes, then you cannot protect student athletes them from this virus. It's a human rights issue. Who is standing up for the student athletes? Are all blinded by dreams of going pro? Only 3% of them annually make it, but they all believe they can. Universities generate millions on student athletes’ dreams. Pac 12 student athletes are challenging for change right now. They said in writing they will opt-out of fall camp and game participation this fall due to coronavirus and other serious concerns unless the conference guarantees in writing to protect and benefit both scholarship athletes and walk-ons.
doors opened to Black athletes like Sandy Stevens at Minnesota and other schools nationally, they finally were permitted the opportunity to be student athletes at predominantly White universities. Remember Jerry Rice and Walter Payton? Both went to Black universities, and they are both Hall of Famers. When Black athletes had no choice, they still produced at Grambling State, Prairie View, Florida A&M and other schools. Just like the discussion on reparations that gets lost, one day, yes, paying student athletes should be in this social justice reform movement. It has to be much more than seeing just Black Lives Matter on a basketball court in an empty arena in COVID-19-raging Florida. Or a message on an NBA player’s jersey It is time now to bring everything up to code. It's time to do what's right for the majority of student athletes in this country and forget about the universities’ bottom lines. I commend the great courage of the Pac 12 players. An eye for an eye. This is business.
Larry Fitzgerald is a longstanding contributing columnist at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. He can be heard weekday mornings on KMOJ Radio 89.9 FM at 8:25 am, on WDGY-AM 740 Monday and Friday at 9:10 am, and at www.Gamedaygold. com. He also commentates on sports 7-8 pm on “Almanac” (TPT channel 2). Follow him on Twitter at FitzBeatSr. Larry welcomes reader responses to info@ larry-fitzgerald.com, or visit www.Larry-Fitzgerald.com.
August 6-12, 2020
BULLETIN Ramsey County offering rent, mortgage assistance to those affected by COVID-19 Increased financial assistance is available for Ramsey County residents who lost income due to COVID-19 and need help paying for housing costs. Residents may be eligible for emergency assistance that can help pay for past due rent/mortgage, a damage deposit, or prevent utilities including water, electricity and heat, from being disconnected. Adults with children and those who are pregnant can receive up to $5,500 in rent or mortgage assistance. Single adults can receive up to $3,000 in rent or mortgage assistance. Families and single adults can receive up to $3,000 in utility assistance. Expanded eligibility requirements and increased maximum dollar limits for those seeking help have been made possible through federal funds received by the county through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. These funds, including $15 million for emergency assistance, continue to be invested in the community through the Ramsey County Investment and Support Efforts (RISE) program. To apply for assistance, visit ramseycounty.us/Emergency Assistance for an application or call the Emergency Assistance Hotline at 651-266-4884. Those who are not already receiving
Courtesy of MGN public assistance and are applying for multiple programs (SNAP, health care, cash, child care assistance) can also apply online at applymn.dhs.mn.gov. For questions about eligibility or application status, call the Emergency Assistance Hotline at 651-266-4884. Financial assistance workers can answer general questions about the program, mail paper applications or help complete phone applications. For more information about updated eligibility requirements and translated materials, visit ramseycounty.us/EmergencyAssistance. To learn more about the Ramsey County Investment and Support Efforts, visit ramseycounty.us/Rise. —Information provided by Ramsey County.
Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church
Worship Mount Olivet Missionary Baptist Church
Bethesda Baptist Church
Rev. Dr. Billy G. Russell, Sr. Pastor
Rev. Arthur Agnew, Pastor
Rev. James C. Thomas, Pastor
451 West Central
St. Paul, MN 55103 651-227-4444
Church School 9:30 am Morning Worship 8:00 & 10:45 am Prayer Service:
Wednesday 7 pm "Welcome to
Mt. Olivet Baptist Church"
At the Old Landmark 1118 So. 8th Street Mpls., MN 55404
612-332-5904 www.bethesdamnonline.com bethesdamn@prodigy.net Sunday Service Times: Early Morning Service 9 am Sunday School 10 am Sunday Worship 11:30 am Wednesday Prayer Meeting, 6 pm
Adult Bible Class 7 pm Children's Bible Class 7 pm
2600 E. 38th Street Minneapolis, MN 55408 www.greatfriend.org Phone: 612.827.7928 Fax: 612.827.3587 info@greatfriend.org Sundays 8:00am Sunday School 9:30am Worship Service The Friendly Church Where Everybody Is Somebody
Pilgrim Baptist Church Rev. Doctor Charles Gill 732 W. Central Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 Sunday Worship Service: 9:45 AM Sunday School: 8:45 AM
Free online documentary shines light on anxiety
NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness) and its partner affiliates will hold a free screening of the documentary “Angst: Raising Awareness Around Anxiety” online to open up a dialogue about youth and anxiety. The event takes place on August 25 at 7 pm, and will feature a viewing of the 56-minute film, followed by an informative panel discussion led by mental health professionals. Producers Scilla Andreen and Karin Gornick have one goal: to start a global conversation and raise awareness around anxiety. Anxiety disorders are the most common mental health challenge in the U.S., impacting 54% of females and 46% of males, with age seven being the median age of onset, according to the World Health Organization. While anxiety disorders are highly treatable, only one-third of those suffering receive treatment. Everyone involved in the development of “Angst” has a personal expe-
rience with anxiety—from the producers to the interviewees. They utilize the power of film to tell the stories of kids and teens struggling with anxiety and they’ve found solutions and hope. The film also includes a special interview with Michael Phelps, a mental health advocate and one of the greatest athletes of all-time. “The conversation surrounding mental health really hits home for me,” said Phelps. “Many people don’t understand how debilitating mental illness truly can be, and even more than that, how common it is, yet people are afraid to have the serious discussions about it. “I welcomed the opportunity to be a part of ‘Angst’ to further the dialogue around mental health and to help people understand the impact anxiety has on our mental state and encourage people, especially kids, to ask for help." There are 1,000 tickets available for this event. Register at www.namimn.org. For more information, please call NAMI Minnesota at 651-645-2948, Ext. 118. The screening is made possible through the support of NAMI Dakota County, NAMI Hennepin County, NAMI Ramsey County, and NAMI Washington County. For more information, please email directorofoutreach@namimn.org.
MSR Forefront: Reframing & Addressing ‘Black On Black’ Violence Tune in Thursday, August 13 for the next installment of MSR Forefront. We will be joined by leaders and change advocates as we explore violence in our communities and actionable items to reduce the rising numbers, such as conflict resolution, access to resources, and systemic changes. This is the third in a series of virtual town hall conversations featur-
ing voices from the community and elected officials to discuss the state of Black Minnesota in the midst of a global pandemic and civil unrest and demands for systemic overhaul following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Join the conversation LIVE Thursday, August 13, at 6 pm CST on Facebook.com/MNSpokesmanRecorder
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August 6-12, 2020
Pac 12 athletes on the brink!
Fitz Beat Larry FitzgeraLd
G
ood to see sports moving again, producing, battling long odds during a pandemic. I covered the 3M Open last week with no fans. I've covered several Twins games with no fans. I've watched the NBA, WNBA, NHL, MLS, and the NFL players have reported. It's not supposed to be like this. The positive tests prove it. We still don't know how you get it. Just take precautions, wear a mask, social distancing, washing your hands, etc. It should be no surprise to anyone that the Miami Marlins baseball team had 19 positive tests. They play in Florida with over 500,000 positive tests, a record for the United States. This is because they have a governor who’s reckless and
careless with people’s lives. The NBA and WNBA have locked their leagues down privately, no outsiders or family, and so far so good. MLB has postponed 24 games after 25 players have tested positive with the coronavirus. The NFL has had 72 players test positive; the Vikings have had eight positive tests among players, including Pro Bowler Anthony Barr and the team’s trainer. The NFL is being extremely careful—no team is physically starting activities until August 17. Like the challenge of living, this is a great sacrifice. Privacy has taken on a whole new definition these days. It's not personal. When you have network TV and multi-million-dollar contracts, pro sports can move forward even with the enormous risk. College sports are dependent on student athletes doing what they have always done, generating millions of dollars annually on sweat with their bodies. It's worked all these years with 300 Division 1 schools raking in billions, paying only the University presidents, coaches and non-revenue sports like track, swimming, wrestling, baseball, ■ See Fitz on page 8
The NBA, leading sports in diversity, still falls short
T
he pandemic has unfortunately put Dr. Richard Lapchick and his team a little behind in their annual work of releasing diversity report cards on pro sports. “We usually start with baseball,” said The Institute of Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES) director to the MSR of his annual Racial and Gender Report Cards (RGRC). “But baseball hadn’t started yet, so we started with the NBA.” The NBA last week restarted its 2019-20 season, put on hold since March due to COVID-19. The league has for several years been a diversity and inclusion leader among U.S. pro sports, and this year’s NBA RGRC, released last month, showed this as well: A-plus (in racial hiring), B (in gender hiring), and an
ting used to a lot of sweat.” All joking aside, the inequality is a low-down, dirty doggone shame, too glaring and too stark in contrast to ignore. “There was no reason for the women to have a lesser facility than the men,” declared WCCO Radio’s Sheletta Brundidge. “Someone decided that the women didn’t deserve the same thing.” That “someone” is the neverending bias against women’s sports. It is the male or males who, while planning the return of hoops after a springtime shutdown, couldn’t find some equitable way, or even some semblance thereof, to provide similar courts and surroundings
“Someone decided that the women didn’t deserve the same thing.” rus hotspots, are located at least 100 miles apart. The NBA is at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Bay Lake near Orlando, a Taj Mahal-like, brightly-lit, spacious palace court. The WNBA is at a converted soundstage at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, a darkly-lit, AAU summer camplooking place. The NBAers play in a climatecontrolled bubble. The WNBAers are sweating profusely in their games, looking like they have been doused with buckets of water. “It’s not working on my hair very well,” joked Minnesota Lynx’s Erica McCall. “It’s just get-
Blacks were hired just before overall A- grade. Eight of nine head coach- the NBA shut things down es of color who started the in March. Of 155 assistant
“I want to see more Black people in positions of power.” season last fall were Black. coaches, 58 are Black, and One later got fired, and two four of the nine women assis-
Newest Lynx player makes quick turnaround from Atlanta By Charles Hallman Contributing writer
same quality of basketball court,” Erica McCall was waived said Brundidge. “They could by Atlanta shortly after the 2020 have given them the exact same WNBA season began. Getting style, the exact same quality. It’s waived is a staple in pro sports. horrible that they decided not to A team lets you go, and you eido this. ther get picked up by another “It would have taken noth- club or move on with life. Mcing for them to spend the same Call was out of work barely a amount of money on the women day before she was with her as they were doing on the men,” third team since last season. she said. Getting waived in the WNBA The bubble-wubble setup, is no different, but this year of despite claims to the contrary, is playing with the pandemic has a false equivalent. The NBA is at been unusual to say the least. ESPN’s Disneyland. The WNBA McCall was one of a couple of is at the Bates Motel. players who got waived but It seems even in the new nor- were allowed to stay in the W’s mal that gender inequality will ‘wubble’ just in case they might never go away, whether in sports get picked up by another club; or in the rest of life. Brundidge the players had already passed summed it up concisely: “That the health protocols. is wrong.” “When I signed with Atlanta, I Lynx play ‘crazy schedule’ The Minnesota Lynx (3-1) resumes its three-games-a-week schedule Wednesday, August 5 against New York. This is the ninth time in 10 years the team opened a season 3-1 or better. “It’s a crazy schedule,” said Lynx guard Rachel Banham. “The [22-game] schedule is simply crazy.” The entire WNBA season is dedicated to Breonna Taylor’s memory, and her name is on every player’s jersey. It has been 145 days since Taylor was shot and killed in her own apartment. The officers responsible have not yet been arrested.
for both leagues. The NBA reportedly spent over $150 million on their threecourt bubble. Off the court, the players are sequestered in luxury rooms with individualized menus, and perks galore—players-only lounges, barbers, manicurists and pedicurists. We don’t know how much was spent on “Camp W.” The WNBA players, all 12 teams are housed either at multi-room villas with kitchens or at the IMG ‘campus’ hotel, a sports boarding school, with nary the amenities Charles Hallman welcomes their male counterparts enjoy. “Here is the chance to put reader responses to challman@ the women and the men on the spokesman-recorder.com.
NBA players in their “bubble” and.....
Courtesy of Wikipedia
■ See View on page 8
‘Bubble-Wubble’ contrast a dirty shame Whether starting later than usual or playing a season under unprecedented circumstances even for the COVID-19 era, the WNBA keeps getting slighted, even their social justice focus often overshadowed or minimalized. This isn’t your typical applesto-oranges comparison the W and its players are often subjected to when it comes to pro hoops in this country. What can’t be ignored is the glaring disparity, the world of difference between the NBA restart “bubble” and the WNBA’s “wubble,” as the players have begun calling it. The two sites in Florida, one of the nation’s growing coronavi-
Mark Jackson as Warriors coach in 2012
tant coaches are Black. The racial breakdown numbers in front office positions are as follows: • 21 Black vice-presidents, 10 are Black females in the NBA League Office • Nine teams have a woman or person of color as majority owners, three are Black females • Five Black team general managers • Four Blacks are team CEO or president As impressive these numbers are, others have been quick to note that the NBA could do much more regarding diversity and inclusion. “The NBA represents corporate America for me,” said former NBA player and current ESPN analyst Jalen Rose. He calls for more diversity “in the contractors that the league deals with. More diversity in positions of power within the teams. More exposure to jobs within the teams that so many people that look like me and watch the game say they want to do what we do for a living.” Added fellow analyst and former NBA player Paul Pierce, “I want to see more Black people in positions of
WNBA players in their “wubble” Courtesy of Twitter
Erica McCall
Courtesy MN Lynx
About three hours before Minnesota’s scheduled July 30 game, McCall’s agent texted her to inform her that the Lynx wanted her right away. “I jumped in the shower, changed clothes and got on the bus. It was a very quick turnaround,” she noted. The forward didn’t play that night, but she made her first appearance in last Saturday’s Lynx win over Connecticut, the team where her older sister, DeWanknow it would be a quick stay,” perience was crazy,” McCall ad- na Bonner, a two-time WNBA said the 6’-2” forward to report- mitted, “a lot of waiting around. champion and multiple All-Star, plays. The younger sister went ers last weekend, including the I was pretty anxious.” MSR. The 17th overall pick in the 2017 Draft, McCall was a reserve in two seasons with Indiana before the Fever let her go earlier this year. She later signed with the Dream. She became the newest Minnesota Lynx on July 30. “The ex-
“Right now I am trying to get to know everyone and bring a lot of energy.”
■ See New Lynx on page 8