February 11, 2021 - MN Spokesman-Recorder

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THE VOICE OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY SINCE 1934 February 11-17, 2021 Vol. 87 No. 28

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MSR OBSERVES

REPA R ATIONS: Pa r t Two

The origin of a revolutionary idea: 40 acres and a mule

The limiting framework of reparations We deserve more The call for reparations brings about a visceral and negative reaction in this writer, not that reparations undeserved, but because the call for he energy put into arguing for reparations them which is a painful compromise.

The claim to reparations by Africans whose supports the persistence of the very exploitative processes which have resulted ancestors were enslaved in the U.S. are an apin the need for reparative justice in the first place. peal to a victorious enemy—the beneficiaries

By Jared Ball Contributing writer

T

By Mel Reeves Community editor

T

he original idea for redistributing 40 acres of formerly Confederate land to newly freed African slaves was the brainchild of a group of 20 Black preachers. According to

Henry Louis Gates, the idea was incredible at the time but, in fact, such a policy would be radical in any country today.

However, the early advocacy for Confederate land redistribution sprang from abolitionists U.S. Senator Charles Sumner and U.S. Representative Thaddeus Stevens and other ■ See 40 ACRES on page 9

■ See REPARATIONS on page 9

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT

Black workers lead Alabama effort to unionize Amazon If successful it would be a first

By Mel Reeves Community editor “It cannot be overstated how powerful it will be if Amazon workers in Alabama vote to form a union," Bernie Sanders texted Saturday. "They are taking on powerful anti-union forces in a strong anti-union state, but their victory will benefit every worker in America.”

This week approximately 5,800 workers at the Bessemer, Alabama Amazon warehouse will begin voting by mail to decide whether they want to join the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). No other Amazon warehouse has attempted to form a union since 2014, when a group of technicians at a Delaware facil-

More MN Blacks going hungry Pandemic worsens effects of historic racism

By Kyeland Jackson Contributing writer Every Monday is Christmas for Michele Livingston.

Her present is a 27×15-inch box filled with food she cannot afford. Whether it is quinoa and potatoes, or spices and recipes, healthy food lines Livingston’s box with ingredients and inspiration.

The weekly meal delivery helps this 60-yearold Minnesotan get by through hypertension, chronic pain, and a low income that has prevented her from finding healthy meals. Having little access to food is nothing new to Livingston—and it’s not an unusual experience for an unequal share of Black Minnesotans. “[This program] is definitely something that’s been needed in the Black community, because

Nicole Powell, Appetite for Change Photo by Kyeland Jackson

RWDSU organizers outside Bessemer Amazon Warehouse Photo courtesy WBHM ity voted against unionizing.

According to RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum, Amazon employees reached out for representation last summer. Workers had complained about working conditions--employees reported that they are constantly and closely monitored-- the lack of grievance procedures, discipline policy, and unfair terminations.

Organizers had to petition the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to allow the vote for the union to be conducted by mail so as to safeguard against a large in-person turnout of workers seeking to vote, which would put them in danger of contacting COVID. Amazon had insisted that there be an in-person vote despite the risks, but were overruled by the NLRB. Bessemer is 80% Black, and the workforce at the Amazon facility is largely Black and female.

If the workers succeed, the Bessemer facility will be the first unionized Amazon warehouse in the nation. Other workers at facilities around the country have held temporary strikes and demonstrations, including in the Twin Cities where Minneapolis Convention Center served as a site for COVID-19 vaccinations last weekend.

Photos by Chris Juhn ■ See UNION on page 5

the resources are not there,” Livingston said.

“Growing up in poverty doesn’t teach you how to eat well, it teaches you how to eat to survive.

And eating to survive, you half the time don’t even know that you’re killing yourself.”

New data from the nonprofit Wilder Foundation shows that Black and Hispanic residents are more than twice as likely as Whites to have recently experienced food insecurity. Experts and people working on the ground say that historical racism is driving this discrepancy and creating health consequences today for People of Color. Fixing it may require changes to education, public investment, and systems that have divided who does and does not get food.

Sanctuary Covenant Church fills a void Livingston has learned a lot since moving to Minnesota 40 years ago. Eating healthily was not one of them. She relied on recipes learned from her family, and cooked meals that were loaded with salts and processed foods. Livingston did not avoid healthy food, but barriers in money and work have kept people who look like her from accessing it.

Food drives across Minnesota are working to feed ■ See FOOD on page 5

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February 11-17, 2021

Black forums explore Biden agenda, Capitol insurrection sador to the UN (2009-13) and national security advisor (201317) during the Obama adminisPresident Biden’s 100-day tration.

“President Biden’s commitagenda includes over three dozen executive orders or directives ment to racial equity is broad to federal agencies that he has and deep,” continued Rice. “He signed. At least 20 of them reversed orders from the previous administration or restored or reinstated others from the Obama years.

The new president has also put racial equity at the top of his agenda, said Susan Rice, the White House top domestic policy advisor.

“The equity agenda is not just a question of policy. It’s the bed- signed on day one an executive rock on which we will build gov- order that mandated a whole ernment for all people,” said Rice government effort to embed raduring the Jan. 27 NAACP vir- cial equity across federal policies, tual panel discussion on Biden’s programs and laws.”

Racial equity isn’t just for first 100 days.

Panel moderator and veteran Blacks and other POC but for all journalist April Ryan called Rice Americans in all aspects of society, the country’s “race and equity stressed Rice, who pointed out czar.” She was the U.S. ambas- that Biden wants the federal govBy Charles Hallman Contributing writer

“It will be a very long time before people on both sides believe in the system.”

ernment to serve as “a national model for diversity and inclusion.”

However, the Jan. 27 African American Leadership Forum panel that discussed Biden’s initial plans jointly asked if that will be enough. Brett Buckner, OneMN.org executive director, added, “Until we actually start to understand that we really all of us are in this together…we unfortunately will have [the same] outcomes.”

The Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection was also discussed. “I say everyone who participated in that rebellion…needs to be punished to the full extent of the law,” stated Hennepin County Intergovernmental Relations Director Kareem Murphy.

Minnesota Secretary of State Deputy Communications Director Risikat Adesaofun said that what happened in Washington, D.C. can’t be easily dismissed because there is a new president

Susan Rice with now-President Joe Biden and administration. There still are people who strongly believe that the 2020 presidential election was “stolen,” she pointed out.

“We have [elected] leaders

legislative session now, and the person(s) that sit on [legislative] committees impact policies that affect people’s everyday lives right here in Minnesota.”

Adesaofun added that trust in local and national electoral processes is now needed, but regaining it won’t be easy. “It will be a very long time before people on both sides believe in the system.”

Yet even with Biden now in the White House, and with both houses of Congress now under Democratic control for the next two years, Adesaofun strongly suggested that Black voters “don’t have the luxury” to get complacent but must keep working for change.

“There’s an election every sinCourtesy of NPR gle year,” she pointed out.

talking about how the election Charles Hallman welcomes readin Minnesota was unlawful or er responses to challman@spokesillegal or rigged,” observed Ad- man-recorder.com. esaofun. “The reality is that we are in the midst of the [state]

St. Paul guaranteed income pilot shows early success

By MSR News Service Earlier last week St. Paul shared the progress of its pilot project designed to lift families struggling with poverty. The guaranteed income program named the People's Prosperity Pilot was introduced with much fanfare by the City and Mayor Melvin Carter when it was implemented in November 2020.

"It is really intended to push on federal policy and state policy, in particular, to look at how does this become part of the tool kit within our social safety net," said Muneer Karcher-Ramos, St. Paul director of the Office of Financial Empowerment.

According to Karcher Ramos, every family in the project receives $500 monthly

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter with no work requirement or strings attached. The aid is meant to supplement the existing social safety net money, not replace it, he said.

St. Paul is only the second U.S. city along with Stockton, Calif. to launch a guaranteed income program. Several other cities are said to be considering similar projects.

"In a country that works for all of us, no one who works full time should be stuck in

poverty or worried about making ends meet," Carter has said in explaining his motivation.

St. Paul is the only program in the nation that focuses on young families with newborns, Karcher-Ramos said. In fact, St. Paul used its infant college savings account program, “CollegeBound St. Paul,” to recruit families for the income program.

According to Karcher-Ramos, the overwhelming majority of participating families are BIPOC and all are either at or below the federal poverty guidelines.

Sixty-four of the families live in the two wards that make up most of St. Paul's East Side; 29 live in the Fifth Ward, which includes the North End and Payne-Phalen; and 23 live in the First Ward,

which includes Frog Town and Summit-University.

"The number of people we are reaching is incredible. The initial reports are really heartwarming," said City Council

is not that new," explained Karcher Ramos, pointing out that it has a history dating back to Martin Luther King.

"It is having its reawakening right now."

“The number of people we are reaching is incredible. The initial reports are really heartwarming.”

President Amy Brendmoen, who represents the Fifth Ward.

Income guarantee programs have gained momentum this past year as scholars study the impact of direct payments as part of federal COVID-19 relief packages. "The idea of a guaranteed income

He said data from the first pilot program in Stockton already show that families are using the additional money to buy groceries and pay for utilities and car repairs.

The program will cost $1.53 million, and the City has already distributed about

EXPLOREMINNESOTA.COM

$350,000. The City has secured the program's funding through a variety of sources including the federal CARES Act, State funding and philanthropic dollars.

Kasey Wiedrich, St. Paul's financial capability program manager, said participant families are still learning to fully trust the program. She said that for many, it initially sounded "too good to be true."

Wiedrich said that in a year of uncertainty, some families said the guaranteed income gave them a little room in their budget to celebrate the holidays.

W H I T E TA I L W O O D S R E G I O N A L PA R K FA R M I N G T O N, M N

February 11-17, 2021

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Children and the COVID-19 pandemic: the psychological impacts

By Dr. Andrew Kiragu Guest Contributor The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the lives of people all around the world. From state lockdowns to school shutdowns to the loss of social contacts with loved ones, the pandemic has made a deep and long-lasting impact on how we live and interact with each other.

Black and Brown communities have been particularly hit hard both from the perspective of illness and loss of life to impacts on livelihood. Many have lost their jobs with the subsequent financial strain and inability to pay their rent or mortgage.

This for some has increased their risk of becoming homeless.

Shutdowns and school closures have meant that families have been cooped up in their homes, with the stress that this brings.

Children are particularly vulnerable and may have difficulty

coping with all the emotional strain. Online school, especially where there is limited access to broadband Internet or computers in the home, has meant some children having to do assignments on their phones.

School closures have also meant less access to friends and an increased sense of isolation.

For those young people who struggle with mental illness, the pandemic has been particularly hard. We have seen more admissions for mental health crises and even for attempted suicide.

The increased stress that has been brought by the pandemic and the impact on mental health means that it is important for parents to keep an eye on their children and watch for signs that they may be struggling. It is far too easy to get caught up with all the day-to-day struggles that we can miss the signs that our children need help.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) describes these

know anyone who has become sick with COVID-19. Teenagers may need additional privacy during the doctor's visit to ensure they have the chance to speak as openly as possible.

Note that pediatricians are taking all the necessary precautions to make in-person visits safe during the pandemic, and many are also providing telehealth visits.

Photo courtesy of Pixels in risky behaviors like taking drugs or alcohol. They may also become less interested in eating and may even show evidence of

School closures have also meant less access to friends and an increased sense of isolation. signs of stress, which vary across age groups. For instance, younger children may become fussier, cry more easily, and be more difficult to console. They may have difficulty sleeping or start wetting the bed after already being potty-trained. They may also become more aggressive when playing.

Older children and teenagers may become more withdrawn and less interested in activities that they used to enjoy. Their academic performance may worsen. They may engage

depression and express suicidal ideation.

What can parents do?

To get through this, the AAP has some recommendations.

First and foremost, it is important to talk to your children and listen to their concerns. Sometimes older children may be more open to speaking with a family friend or close relative about their worries and concerns.

It is important to encourage our children to exercise. Sev-

eral studies have revealed the negative effects of the pandemic.

COVID-19 restrictions such as the closure of schools and parks and the cancellation of youth sports and activity classes have reduced the level of activity that children engage in. In the longterm, this has the potential to increase obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. In the short term, this results in missing out on some important benefits of exercise. For instance, when we exercise, our bodies release chemicals called endorphins that bring a sense of well-being.

Volunteering time to help others, even doing little things like calling a friend or neighbor who is alone to give them some encouragement can help. Urge your children to do at least one kind act a day.

It is important to manage screen time. This is difficult, especially since screens are now a way of life and how we work and children go to school or even go to doctor visits. Screens are also the source of less healthy types of information. Parents should become familiar with how electronic devices can help create and maintain healthy social connections with educational programs, work, friends, and family members.

Working with your child’s pediatrician is essential. Pediatricians can screen for depression and talk to children about other concerns including anxiety or trouble coping with stress. The doctor may also ask about these symptoms in other family members since this can impact your child's health, and whether they

Increased risk of suicide The AAP also recommends additional screening for suicide during this period of high stress. Rates of suicide for both adolescents and adults increase during these times. Your pediatrician can help screen for suicide risk. Any talk about suicide must be taken seriously. If you are worried about your child, it is important to make your home safe by removing firearms from the house and locking away medications.

Seek help immediately by calling the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273TALK or by texting the Crisis Text Line by texting “TALK” to 741741. Call 911 in emergency situations where self-harming actions are imminent. In noncrisis situations, talk with your pediatrician about any concerns you have about your child's mental health.

Dr. Kiragu is a passionate advocate for children and is a past president of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a past president of the Minnesota Association of Black Physicians.

He is an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Minnesota.

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February 11-17, 2021

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.

Tackling a growing crisis: hunger in the U.S.

No end in sight for U.S. COVID pandemic

By Margaret Kimberley Profits determine the U.S. response to a health care crisis, so Americans are in trouble regardless of who occupies the White House.

It was in early 2020 that the word COVID-19 entered the lexicon. In the past year more than 440,000 people in the United States have died from this disease. The impact of the shutdowns meant to end the spread of the disease has cost millions of people their jobs, and businesses large and small no longer exist. COVID-19 has proven that the political system is devoted to the interests

upper Manhattan, vaccines went to White suburbanites instead of residents in a mostly Latino community. Overall, Latino and Black residents are under-represented among vaccine recipients in New York City. The city of Philadelphia contracted with a 22-year-old White man with no health care background and allowed him to develop a vaccine distribution strategy.

All talk of social distancing is meaningless in places where families live in overcrowded housing. Poverty is racialized in this country and the sharp increases in Latino and Black deaths in Los Angeles County

“COVID-19 has proven that the political system is devoted to the interests of the billionaire class.” of the billionaire class and is therefore incapable of acting in the interests of the people.

The vaccines that hold some promise are distributed by the same for-profit entities that run what passes for a health care system in this country.

They are distributed by criteria that each state has developed, resulting in a patchwork of 50 different rules.

There are acute shortages of the two-dose vaccines that have been approved thus far.

Senior citizens were declared a priority population but they are forced to wait on long lines for hours, and in many locations, only people with cars have access to vaccine sites.

This supposed priority group is in fact at the bottom of the list.

Racial and class disparities persist. In the Washington Heights neighborhood of

are a sad example of this dynamic. Yet that same state will now allow restaurants to reopen, and in doing so will put front line workers, mostly People of Color, at risk once again.

The continued spread has allowed the virus to do what viruses always do, mutate into variant strains which may require additional vaccine options. Vaccines have been hoarded by the wealthier capitalist countries and most of the world’s people have no assurance that they will be able to access this preventive treatment.

Donald Trump was blamed for the poor response in 2020 ,but it is clear that Americans are in trouble regardless of who occupies the White House because profits determine the response to a health care crisis. Joe Biden declared that there is nothing he can

do about the disease trajectory and blithely stated that an additional 200,000 deaths are inevitable. His pre-inaugural promise of a $2,000 stimulus payment is now null and void.

The sum of $1,400 is now on the table and no one will see that amount until March or April.

The “failed state” continues failing the people. It cannot do otherwise. The government does the bidding of the billionaire donor class, just as it did before COVID-19 struck.

That evil alliance is the cause of all our troubles. None of the stimulus plans are adequate because that is not their intent.

Extra unemployment payments allocated in the first stimulus ended in July because the duopoly wants workers back on the job more than they want anything else.

Providing help to suffering people in need is the opposite of what the austerity regime demands.

Trump will be the fall guy for as long as Biden and the Democrats need. He is a very convenient scapegoat after all. Even as the system fails to provide enough testing or vaccines or new treatments, we are already propagandized into believing that Biden can’t be expected to undo the mess that Trump created.

But one need only look beyond U.S. borders to see that capitalism is the issue. China was the first country where the disease appeared but care for that country’s citizens produced a death toll of less than 5,000. A new outbreak there of 100 cases provoked the same response of new hospitals, housing for the infected, and a robust testing protocol. Cuba, beset by crushing U.S. sanctions for 60 years, is producing its own treatments and vaccines and has also experienced a small number of deaths.

All of the ills and contradictions of life in the United States have been exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis continues because this system has not changed. Variants will emerge, the government will pay big Pharma to produce more vaccines, and the cycle will continue.

The only question is when popular anger will be directed where it belongs, on both sides of the political aisle and in corporate offices. COVID-19 will continue its wreckage until that day comes.

Food insecurity has increased dramatically in the United States during the coronavirus pandemic.

Defined as a lack of reliable access to sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food, this measure helps assess the risk of hunger.

The past 10 months of economic challenges brought on by the pandemic have led to a surge in the need for food.

In Minnesota, there are more families in line at the state’s 350 food pantries now than there were during the 2008 recession. Feeding America, the nation’s largest antihunger organization, reports that one in six Americans now need help in order to get enough food to eat.

With meal programs provided by schools and daycares having become unreliable, the number of hungry children has increased significantly. Food insecurity in households with children has more than tripled since the beginning of the pandemic.

Nearly 24 million households— including 12.5 million households with children—reported food insecurity during the period of January 6-18. This number reflects a slight decline over December numbers, which coincides with the release of direct stimulus payments and additional economic aid from the pandemic relief package passed in December.

While the number of Americans going hungry is still far too high, the recent decline suggests that the direct economic aid passed at the end of the year has had an immediate impact on improving people’s lives.

The policies of the new Biden administration and that administration’s ability to work with Con-

gress have the potential to tangibly and significantly improve the quality of life for the economically vulnerable.

Knowing this, President Joe Biden has focused some of his early executive orders on addressing the current economic crisis. In an executive order on January 22, President Biden encouraged the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to take action in three specific areas that would significantly target the 12 million children suffering from food insecurity.

The order calls on the USDA to expand three key food assistance programs: Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Thrifty Food Plan.

P-EBT, which was passed in March 2020, provides support to families with school-aged children who receive free or reduced lunch benefits. The pandemic-led shift to remote learning resulted in families having to provide weekday meals, increasing their expenses.

The president is asking the USDA to increase P-EBT benefits by 15%; a move that would allow lowincome families to purchase more and better quality food.

SNAP provides assistance to the lowest-income households.

During the pandemic, benefits have been increased by 15%, however, some of the lowest-income households do not qualify for these increased benefits. Biden’s order asks the USDA to expand the eligibility guidelines for the increased benefits. If this occurs, an estimated 12 million additional people would receive more assistance.

Biden’s order also asks that the USDA revise its Thrifty Food Plan.

The plan helps calculate SNAP benefits. The requested revision would update the plan to reflect the current cost of nutritious food.

As the economic hardship of the coronavirus pandemic has deepened, hunger has become a more widespread issue. Programs such as SNAP are targeted to assist those with the lowest incomes; however, the ability to afford food

has become an issue for additional income groups, increasing the need for more aid and more creative solutions to tackle the growing hunger crisis.

Food pantries often play a role with helping those not eligible for SNAP. Across the country demand for assistance has increased by 150% or more in many areas.

Food pantries are calling for additional aid for USDA commodity programs to help ensure that they can meet the demand for food assistance in their communities.

Other policy initiatives targeting food insecurity include the re-introduction of the FEMA Empowering Essential Deliveries (FEED) Act to the current Congress. This bill would allow the federal government to pay up to 100% of the costs for states and localities to partner with restaurants and nonprofits to prepare nutritious meals for vulnerable populations such as seniors and underprivileged children.

In addition to providing food to those in need, the partnerships formed would support small businesses and farmers during the ongoing pandemic, also providing jobs in sectors that have been hard hit.

The policy proposals and executive orders announced in recent days are an important start. We’re going to continue to need the combination of federal, state, and local aid, as well as creative solutions such as the proposed publicprivate partnerships of the FEED Act and other community-level supports if we’re going to ensure people have the food they need.

Dr. Clarence Hightower is a visionary leader with more than 37 years of nonprofit experience in theTwin Cities. He is the current executive director of the Community Action Partnership of Hennepin County, one of the largest anti-poverty organizations in the area and the state’s largest EnergyAssistance program. He welcomes reader responses to chigh-tower@caphennepin.org.

Anti-protest laws are anti-democratic

By Laura Finley

The right to peaceful assembly is enshrined in the Bill of Rights because it is critically important.

Indeed, research has shown that peaceful protests and nonviolent tactics are the most effective tools in making social change, even including overthrowing dictators.

To date, 43 states have considered and 26 have enacted some type of anti-protest law. Such laws are often clearly targeted at certain kinds of protest, such as those that were enacted in Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North and South Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and Wisconsin restricting or prohibiting protests around critical infrastructure, including pipelines.

In 2017, Florida considered a law that would eliminate driver liability for hitting protesters, although it was defeated. Florida is now considering another antiprotest bill. Two anti-protest bills (SB 484/HB 1) have been filed and are a priority for Governor Desantis. The House bill passed its first committee of reference Margaret Kimberley is a senior this week along party lines. columnist for blackagendareport.

There are many aspects of the com. bill that are deeply troublesome and most dangerous to democracy.

The bill creates new and higher penalties for the crimes of assault, battery, burglary, theft, and stealing if they occur during a

riot, which is an undefined term in statute and in the bill. These are already crimes so that provision is unnecessary and has the potential to be applied discriminately.

Further, the bill uses broad words such as “injury” and “force” that can be applied even to groups holding a prayer vigil prior to an execution or for abortion opponents offering sidewalk counseling and praying in front of an abortion facility. Even encouraging someone to participate in an activity that was perceived as a riot would be criminalized as a third-degree felony. The bill would create a new offense of “mob intimidation,” defined as three or more people acting “with a common intent, to compel or induce, or attempt to compel or induce, another person by force, or threat of force, to do any act or to assume or abandon a particular viewpoint.”

Damaging memorials would become a third-degree felony, and the language in this section is very similar to a bill from last session intending to protect Confederate monuments. This is unnecessary as it is already a crime to damage property.

In addition, if someone injures or kills someone participating in a “riot,” for example driving a vehicle into the crowd and hitting someone, the fact that the individual was involved in a riot would be considered an acceptable defense if a civil suit was brought

against the perpetrator, regardless of whether the victim was ever charged or convicted with rioting.

In sum, the crimes listed in the Florida bills are already crimes.

There is no need for this legislation other than to target protesters. As was obvious in the January 6 attack on the capitol, if the “rioters” are White they are far less likely to be harassed and assaulted by police than if they are People of Color, as was the case with the brutal behavior by many police during Black Lives Matter protests. This legislation, if enacted, will simply exacerbate racial inequalities.

As Florida State Representative Andrew Learned, D-Brandon, explained: As it stands, under this bill, the Boston Tea Party would have been illegal. Suffragettes would not have gotten us the 19th Amendment. And Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would not have been able to march in Selma, bringing us the Civil Rights Movement.

Neither Florida nor any other state should welcome such laws that criminalize free speech and introduce bias against nonviolent dissent or free assembly.

Laura Finley, Ph.D. teaches in the Barry University Department of Sociology & Criminology.

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February11-17, 11-17,2021 2021 February

FOOD Continued from page 1 the community, but some do not have the resources for people in need. One of those food drives happens twice a month at Sanctuary Covenant Church in North Minneapolis. Director of Operations Andrea Lee helps oversee those food drives, watching residents get in line at 4 am for distribution that starts at noon.

She never imagined that their church would become a food destination for those in need. But according to church data, they have served more than 6,800 people since last April.

And yet, many others still go hungry.

“We certainly run out of food before the need is fully met,” Lee said. “There were people that were literally living two blocks away from the church that would not be able to be served.”

That happens more often to People of Color in Minnesota. Wilder’s study found that 83% of Black residents and 70% of Hispanic residents have experienced some kind of food insecurity since the COVID-19 pandemic started. About a third of White residents here have suffered the same, even though they make up 83% of the state’s population. Systemic racism has created the conditions for that disparity, but the need for food equity has existed for a long time.

about healthy food choices could have changed things for her.

Appetite for Change Logistics Manager Antwayn Hunter helps to deliver food for the nonprofit, which gives away around 10,000 meals every week. But between delivering to hospitals, schools, rehabilitation centers, and homes across the Twin Cities, Hunter said that little has changed since before the pandemic.

“The only thing COVID did was bring to light all of the stuff that existed beforehand,” he said. “It’s really sad that, for months and months and months, we’re still having to put food in a van and drop it off at people’s houses. That’s how Edrin Williams, Pastor, Sanctuary they’re getting fed.”

Covenant Church Failure to obtain the food you need Photo by Kyeland Jackson can cause disastrous health consequences, from heart disease and stroke Appetite for Change steps up Sometimes when Livingston talks to mental stress and low birth weights about the meal box she receives every in newborns.

Such a deep and historical need Monday, she gets emotional.

She receives the box through an Ap- brings different perspectives on how to petite for Change program that she fix it. But everyone interviewed in this joined in September. Since starting the story agreed: A solid solution is going to program, Livingston said her health has take a village. improved, cooking has become fun, and family members are starting to pick up Future fixes To Sanctuary Covenant Church Pasher healthy eating habits.

“The box has reminded me just how tor Edrin Williams, a local solution remuch Black people live in survival quires work on the ground and in the mode,” Livingston said. “Even when legislature. Williams said city policies life gets better for us, the trauma, the lack addressing poverty and unemployment of resources, the lack of access and the can affect food insecurity while stirring treatment keeps us [in survival mode].” change in the community.

“Let’s help you meet the need with Livingston says that education

UNION Continued from page 1 workers have complained of mistreatment and unfair working conditions at the Fullfilment Center in Shakopee.

Workers mistreated “Amazon doesn’t treat their employees like people. We’re treated like we’re robots,” said Jennifer Bates, who works at the Amazon Bessemer Distribution Facility, in an interview with local Birmingham TV station CBS42.

ployees, Amazon has gone as far as posting messages in bathroom stalls in the workplace.

One of the posting headlines reads, “UNIONS CAN’T WE CAN.” The first lines of the notice read, “As an Amazon associate you already have great rewards and benefits. Remember everything you already have without giving any of your hard earned money to the RWDSU.” But it was other concerns that primarily motivated the desire among some to organize a union.

Bates said they work long hours and are allowed two 30-minute breaks, but workers are disciplined if they take even a few minutes longer.

“Amazon said the union can’t make promises,

the situation that you’re in, but let us also hold those accountable who have authority and the resources to help get you out of this situation,” Williams said.

“Otherwise, we could spend all of our time, energy [and] resources just plugging gaps.”

That worries Appetite for Change

“Even when life gets better for us, the trauma, the lack of resources, the lack of access and the treatment keeps us in survival mode.”

Program Manager Nicole Powell, who said that many of her clients are ashamed to ask for help.

“When all the pandemic funds run out for feeding families, I’m thinking, ‘People are still going to be hungry,’” said Powell. “I feel like it’s something that we are obligated to support and help within a community.”

Minnesota already spends $1.6 billion a year on hunger-related medical costs, and dozens of nonprofits are working to fill those gaps.

If you ask Appetite for Change Projects Manager Geoffrey Wilson, funding should support some of those organizations.

“There’s a glut of people trying to do good right now, and you also don’t want to dilute the space with

challenging leadership assumptions. We firmly believe this direct connection is the most effective way to understand and respond to the needs of our workforce.”

Because the city is predominantly Black, the Amazon union campaign is evoking social and racial justice themes. "We see this as both a labor struggle and as a civil rights struggle, which has often been the story of the labor movement in the South," said Appelbaum in an interview with National Public Radio.

“AMAZON DOESN’T TREAT THEIR EMPLOYEES LIKE PEOPLE. WE’RE TREATED LIKE WE’RE ROBOTS.” This is not the first time Amazon employees have complained of being treated like robots. Last year Amazon executive Jeff Wilke responded to the accusation saying, “Well, that’s not the experience that I had in setting it up or that I’ve seen. It’s certainly true that these jobs are not for everybody, and there may be people that don’t want to do this kind of work,” The organizing effort speaks to the fact that there is more involved in keeping workers content than simply decent pay. Amazon pays twice the Alabama minimum wage of $7.25 and Bessemer was a town that needed the economic shot in the arm that Amazon brought.

Amazon highlights their pay and benefits in its postings around the Bessemer workplace urging its employees to reject the union. According to em-

[but] Amazon hasn’t made any promises either,” said Bates. The workers describe grueling productivity quotas and want more say in how people at Amazon work, get disciplined or get fired.

“A lot of people are getting fired for mundane things, and they never get the chance to tell their side of the story,” said Bates. The RDWSU on its website promises “it will help improve working conditions, grievance procedures, and require a just-cause in employee disciplinary actions.”

In a letter to the press responding to the workers’ efforts, Amazon spokesperson Rachel Lightly wrote, “Direct dialogue is essential to our work environment in which we encourage associates to bring their comments, questions and concerns directly to their management team with the goal of quickly improving the work environment and

too many people doing the same thing,” said Wilson. “Perhaps putting our shared energy into bigger things could be impactful, too.”

For Livingston, education and awareness are the key. She advocates for healthy eating and says that her meal boxes have taught her

Michael Foster, RDWSU organizer

how to eat and live well. Teaching that to the next generation can help to break the cycle, but she says that families must be willing to make a change.

“As Black people, we’ve been so busy surviving and getting food in our bellies and on our stoves that we haven’t really thought of the art of food,” said Livingston. “We have to get outside of that survival mode.

We have to choose to change in order to continue to be.”

This story first appeared on TPT originals and is reprinted through a partnership with the MSR.

in the success they have made possible. Amazon’s employees have the right to join together to bargain collectively for a voice in their workplace, and to vote to establish their rights to negotiate. They also deserve to receive the compensation, benefits and respect that reflect their true value to the company and to their communities,” wrote Sen. Smith and her colleagues.

Bessemer workers also received support from 50 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, who signed on to an open letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos last week. The letter criticized the company’s efforts to prevent a union from being organized at its Bessemer facility and said this was "an opportunity for a reset."

The union organizing effort has also received support from local chapters of major unions including the Teamsters, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The workers also received support from the National Football League Players Association union (NFLPA).

“Everyone deserves to have a voice, and we’re proud that you’re even considering taking the step to unionize,” tweeted NFLPA President JC Tretter on January 25.

“Our union supports y’all,” tweeted Houston Texans safety Michael Thomas.“I applaud y’all for trying to unionize, and I understand how important it is to try to make a decision, and it’s during a pandemic. But understand we’re part of a union, and our job is to protect our workers.”

National support On Monday, Minnesota Senator Tina Smith and several of her senate colleagues signed a letter supMel Reeves welcomes reader responses to porting the union organizing drive.

“They have put in long hours and risked their mreeves@spokesman-recorder.com. own health during the COVID-19 pandemic to meet increased demand, and they deserve to share

6

Business

February 11-17, 2021

Local entrepreneur is living the dream difficult aspects. He added that he enjoys creating. “I work in print, 3D artist. I work on the design side.”

Also challenging the business is the COVID-19 pandemic.“COVID-19 is terrible; [we] shut down three months.

Able to open up half capacity. A lot of people have shown support.”

Although setbacks occurred, there have been unexpected breakthroughs and blessings. “A couple miracles came out of that [COVID shutdown].” Damon Lindelof of “Watchmen'' TV se-

Mind’s Eye Comics

Black Business SPOTLIGHT

By Ashley Lauren Contributing writer “When I walked into Mind’s Eye Comics in 2018, something in my spirit said buy it,” local entrepreneur Eric Childs said of the story he now owns located in Burnsville, MN. Childs acquired Mind’s Eye Comics, a 20- year-old business, from Andrew Troth. “The original owner wanted to retire in 2018,” he said. So, he approached Troth, who granted him an opportunity to become the new owner.

Before Childs aspired to become a comic book store owner, he was interested in drawing. “I wanted to be an illustrator. I knew from an early age that I wanted to be involved in the comic book industry,” Childs said.

He added, “Even when I was around 14, we made a makeshift comic book company.” Now, he’s grateful to make history as a Black-owned comic book store in Minnesota.

He utilizes the Mind’s Eye Comics as a way to fulfill his purpose. “Advocating for literacy, promoting Black creators— unique things I do with the store,” Childs said. “My purpose has been promoting literacy,” he continued.

He is on a continuous quest to help promote Black authors, creators, and writers of the comic book industry. “I like to curate comic books and graphic novels that are [created by] minorities.”

Mind’s Eye Comics provides a platform for authors like David Crownson, who wrote and created “Harriet Tubman: Demon Slayer.” The insightful literature remains in high demand. “I bought the books from the cre-

Eric Childs, Mind’s Eye Comics owner Photos coutesy of Facebook/Mind’s Eye Comics except where noted ator and they sell out,” Childs said.

Childs made note to competitors and how they don’t carry certain bodies of work. “They don’t want to take a financial risk because it’s not a large publisher or it has ‘Harriett Tubman’ in the

title,” he said. As a result, he is focused on diversifying the catalog of comic books at his store.

Customers have a plethora of products to choose from. The product line includes, “Trade paperback, a collection of single issues, and graphic novels (be-

ginning, middle and end) and outside of that we carry back issues,” Childs said. They also offer ‘collectibles, posters, vintage comics, and books.’

The most popular item(s) are offered by two well-known publishers. “Marvel. They are no joke,” Childs said. “DC is still a frontrunner in comic books.”

He added, “What really sets us apart is that we just don’t carry Marvel & DC, but also independent publishers and self-published books.”

Consumers can expect to pay $2.99-$5.99 for single issues to $150. “Most expensive book I have is from 1956, if it was mint condition $30,000. It goes for $1,700.” He also carries the “first appearance of Black Panther” that is exhibited at the store.

Being an entrepreneur is rewarding and challenging at times.

From a personal standpoint, Childs cited “time management.

Just being spread thin. Having to work another job” as the most

fective tools to grasp the attention of youth. “The youth are very intrigued” by the comic book world, Childs said.

Childs’ said it’s important to support Black-owned businesses “because representation and being seen is important.” He aspires to live by example and provide for his family. “When my son was 11, he was in awe, amazement— ‘I can’t believe it, it’s our store,’” Childs recalled. At that moment, he expressed how his life changed forever.

Childs also shared a message for the other young people who

Mind’s Eye Comics is located in Burnsville.

Photo by Ashley Lauren ries reached out and helped generate more support for the store.

“He opened up a whole network of people and sent all these people my way. [He] also invested in the business,” Childs shared.

The outpouring of support has helped keep the doors open.

Mind’s Eye Comics has a multifaceted purpose: “To enrich someone’s life—comic book shops promote development of attention spans and help with cognitive growth,” Childs explained.

He also expressed that comic books, in general, can serve as ef-

want to start their own businesses: “Do it; I had this expansion.

Believe in yourself and always remember Christ and God believes in you,” he said.

As evidenced by Mind’s Eye Comics, dreams do come true.

Mind’s Eye Comics is located at 200 E Travelers Trail, Ste. 105, Burnsville, MN 55337. Hours of operation are from Monday through Friday, 11 am to 7 pm; Saturday, 11 am to 7 pm; and Sunday, 11 am to 6 pm. Find more info at www.mindseyecomics.com or call 952-492-9350.

February 11-17, 2021

7

Nonprofit Black Table Arts unveils first physical space

By Tiffany Johnson Contributing writer On February 25, 2021, Minneapolis will become home to something revolutionary. Local nonprofit organization Black Table Arts, founded by artist and community organizer Keno Evol, will be unveiling its premiere physical space.

Even without a building, Black Table Arts has already had a noticeable impact in the Twin Cities and has been an invaluable resource to Black artists and creatives alike. “We said, okay, let’s talk about how we can deepen the six-year work that we’ve already been doing,” Evol explained.

For the past six years Black Table Arts has been responsible for a myriad of community programs including regular writ- "Art keeps the enthusiasm of social movement alive," said Black Arts ing workshops and the annual Table Founder Keno Evol (center).

“Because Black Life” conference At Black Table Arts, it was re- fect of what we’ve been dealing hosted at the University of Minalized that an actual building—a with for a while now; the sending nesota.

Evol has even had interna- creative and liberating physical Black men to prison; the liquor tional impact with his recently space for Black folks to call their stores on every corner; the food published anthology of Black poetry from around the globe, “A Garden of Black Joy: Global Poetry from the Edges of Liberation and Living.”

“The dream [of a physical space] has been in my mind since like 2016,” Evol said. But it was the inexplicable and catastrophic events surrounding George Floyd in the spring of 2020 that offered a moment where this dream was not only possible, but obligatory as a response to the grievances of Minnesota’s Black community.

“I think we have to move slowly in the ways in which we respond and in the ways in which we think, because it’s a very Black experience. Because it’s grief, it’s so much grief,” Evol said.

Many were on board to support this revolutionary work, in- own and to find resources and deserts and all of these things … years ago.”

Folded in by our traumatic cluding notable support from the to feel safe—is perhaps what has it’s just setting us up for failure,” past, as well as the present realMinneapolis Foundation and a been missing from our local land- Sanders said.

Sanders is also tied to this ity that attempts to compound large donation from actress Issa scape.

Alfred Sanders is the director work in a more personal way, these memories, Black Table Arts Rae of the HBO series “Insecure.”

“Yeah, that was an exciting mo- of operations for Black Table Arts, having tragically lost his father aims to become a mecca of sorts, and he is passionate about gar- due to police violence. He shared a space of reckoning and powerment,” Evol recalled. nering organizational resources with us, “The same situation that ful creation.

“There is this term that comes that will address the disparities happened in May [with George From imaginations to affecting Black families, day-in Floyd] happened to my father in by way of this professor, Manuel manifestation and day-out. “It’s the domino ef- pretty much the same location, 20 Callihan, ‘Convivial Research,’

the idea that knowledge already exists in the community. And that’s such an important approach. So, at Black Table Arts, we don’t see ourselves as preachers trying to bring the good news, but we know that there’s already

alive. Art actually is directly connected to changing circumstances, to changing social injustice,” Evol said.

Implementing COVID-19 safety measures, the Black Table Arts building will be accessible

“We know that there’s already good news when Black people gather.” good news when Black people gather,” Evol said.

With this in mind, Black Table Arts promotes the coming together of Blackness to console the

to the public via a pay-whatyou-can membership. “It’s really about centering solidarity in economics. To know that, if you can give more, you’re taking care

Photos courtesy of Keno Evol community and combat the forces that seek to dismantle Black culture and Black futures. “We have a memory, but we also have an imagination where we say, what can we create and how can we make contact with each other to grow forces of artists gathering, that can guide us through this moment,” Evol shared.

The Black Table Arts building will be a space where groundbreaking imaginations can be made manifest into impact that will begin to heal beyond its own walls.

“Sometimes people roll their eyes when you bring up art and social change because they have not yet made the connection between art and social change. But at Black Table Arts, we say over and over again that art keeps the enthusiasm of social movement

of someone else who might not be able to give as much,” Evol shared.

It is significant, this unveiling at the top of 2021, as much of our community Black and Non-Black alike strive to move away from not only the events of 2020, but a treacherous and shameful history, that if not dealt with, could prevail in our future.

“We are stronger together than we are divided,” Sanders said. “I think that it’s very important, especially in these times, to value [a sense of community] and make it accessible to everyone.”

To learn more about Black Table Arts. visit www.blacktablearts.com.

Tiffany Johnson welcomes readers’ responses to tjohnson@spokesmanrecorder.com.

New releases, club closings, fundraisers, and more James on Jazz

By Robin James As the pandemic goes on, so do jazz club closings, nearclosings, live streaming, and new album releases.

Artists aren’t the only ones learning to adapt in these new turbulent times. We are all rolling with the punches.

The Blue Whale, a jazz club in Los Angeles, recently closed. And the legendary Birdland Jazz Club in New York City just had a virtual concert celebration/fundraiser on Jan 24. The club has a GoFundMe page and has already raised nearly $400,000 to help keep the club afloat.

The celebration was over two hours long and its overall theme was music, history, and community.

If you missed the celebration, here are some highlights.

For one thing, know that a lot of jazz, pop, and theater luminaries made appearances urging people to give what they could.

To start, former president and saxophonist Bill Clinton gave opening remarks. And Catherine Russell began the concert with the Emmet Co-

hen Trio performing their swinging rendition of “Lullaby of Birdland.”

In between, other performances included Steve Wilson, Peter Cincotti, Sheila Jordan, Kurt Elling, and Ravi Coltrane, among others.

People like Clive Davis, Ron Carter, Kevin Eubanks, Ken Burns, and Monty Alexander spoke of the importance of the club, and its Who’s Who on stage.

Coltrane played a version of “Lush Life,” while Sting and Leslie Odom, Jr. also spoke of not letting Birdland disappear from its corner of the jazz world.

Announcing the concert performers as if it were a radio program was WBGO’s Rhonda Hamilton. With her upbeat vibe, she helped keep the music going in more ways than one.

Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater offered some words of encouragement and also performed a bit off the cuff.

Wynton Marsalis played with the Arturo O’Farrill band. By then it was time to close the virtual concert. To wrap up a beautifully crafted show from start to finish was the 20-something singer Veronica Swift. She sang a rendition of “This Bitter Earth” that was

Courtesy of HighNote truly amazing.

While it’s doubtful that Birdland will close anytime soon, its good to know the club has garnered the kind of support that will help keep it going so that when the time is right, we can all unite and get back there to enjoy seeing the artists that we love so much.

We need to support live music.

Thank goodness we have live streaming concerts to enjoy, in addition to new music

releases. Buy the tickets. Buy the albums.

It’s 2021 and I’m looking forward to engaging new releases and a diversity of music releases to come.

So far, what interests me and what I think may interest others is new music by pianist, composer, and artistic director of Jazz at The Kennedy Center, Jason Moran’s new album, “The Sound Will Tell You.” The music is Moran’s com-

bination of influences and art during the pandemic.

The musical collection features 12 songs that he released on Bandcamp four days before its original Jan .

15 release date. The songs are named after his favorite passages from works of author Toni Morrison. He had revisited her work while at home during the pandemic.

The album’s title, “The Sound Will Tell You,” he told writer Christopher A. Daniel of NBCNews.com, comes from “the culinary griot Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor’s tip for knowing when fried chicken is done cooking.”

And according to Daniel’s piece on Moran, the album is “a companion piece to an installation of 26 works by Moran that will be on display at the Luhring Augustine Gallery in Manhattan’s Tribeca through Feb. 27.”

Another new release that feels noteworthy features trumpeter Jeremy Pelt. His album is “Griot: This is Important” and it will be released in February. All compositions are by Pelt.

Pelt is investigating the West African Griot tradition where, as the promo notes say, “stories, reminiscences, and accomplishments from times

past are handed down as oral histories.”

For this recording, he interviews his own peer group, and afterward, he follows with his own composition in spoken word preludes.

The tracklist includes Pelt in the intro with music and commentary. From there, spoken words from both younger and older musicians include vocalist Paula West, pianist Larry Willis, saxophonist JD Allen, pianist Bertha Hope, pianist Harold Mabern (promo reads: spoken-explicit content), vocalist Rene Marie (again promo reads: spokenexplicit content), percussionist Warren Smith, and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire.

Pelt himself said, “I want people to understand that this is for everybody,” that the project was undertaken to perhaps help them “understand that whatever they might be going through, their perspectives might run parallel to those of people who are generations apart from them. Maybe, to a certain extent, these younger people will find themselves in these stories.”

Robin James welcomes readers’ responses to jamesonjazz@ spokesman-recorder.com.

8

February 11-17, 2021

February 11-17, 2021

REPARATIONS jo focuses on the shortcomings Continued from page 1 of the enslaved labor—they are not the spoils of war.

Rather, they are for what the “spoiled”—those seeking reparations—are made to appeal.

And in the U.S. those appeals are even more embarrassing as they become merely requests for future study, requests that for many represent the extent of their political fantasies, and activist effort.

First, reparations become a limiting framework in which justice is conceived of as coming almost exclusively from the existing legal and power structures. Secondly, having wedded themselves intellectually to those limitations, ample room is made for neoliberal (neocolonial) usurpations and conservative impositions.

As much as African (Black) people in the U.S. base their own advocacy on the experiences of others, the discussions this writer conducted with Drs. Dr.Ana Lucia Araujo and Norman Finkelstein, whose focus is the African, Indigenous and Jewish diaspora respectfully, seem more than relevant.

Though her work, Dr. Arau-

of reparations efforts which are wedded exclusively to legal structures. Araujo points out, for example, that Indigenous people have had in place for years laws which protect their rights to lands previously stolen during colonization. However, under the current right-

cally of Jews who survived the Holocaust, when he suggested pointedly: “don’t bother with it.”

According to Finkelstein whose parents survived the Nazi Holocaust, they received next to nothing of reparations paid out by Germany while an elite class of Jews siphoned

Relative to Black America “only the Al Sharptons will get paid.” wing administration of Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro, these laws are meaningless and go unenforced.

Similarly, she points out, existing laws do not protect the increasing numbers of Black Brazilians killed every year.

Existing legislation is insufficient beyond their symbolic or potentially mollifying affect on those seeking justice. And who more than the U.S.—Malcolm X talked about this years ago —have perfected the “science of image-making, to make ignoble use of symbol?

Dr. Finkelstein could not have been more clear when he was asked for his assessment of comparisons made by some between Black calls for reparations and those histori-

off all the money. Finkelstein concluded by warning if reparations are indeed paid out to Black America “only the Al Sharpton’s will get paid.”

In either case, that of Araujo and Finkelstein, the approach comports with the revolutionary political struggles of individuals like Dr. King, Malcolm X, or the Black Panther Party.

Safiya Bukhari, Claudia Jones before her, and Assata Shakur still, all represent wings of the Black liberation struggle which eschewed such reparations frameworks as being insufficient to the project of freedom.

These women, men, and organizations still represent the extra-legal potential threat lying dormant, or managed in its appearance by waves of neolib-

40 ACRES Continued from page 1 Radical Republicans who had been actively advocating the idea, as one historian put it, “to break the back of Southern slaveholders’ power.”

The idea, which has long been credited to General William Sherman, took shape on January 12, 1865 in a mansion in Savannah, Ga. The plan to redistribute 40 acres of formerly Confederate land was hatched at this meeting, which came on the heels of Northern outrage over the Ebenezer Creek Massacre.

The meeting was attended by Secretary of War Edward Stanton, Sherman, and 20 ministers. Stanton had suggested to Sherman that they gather “the leaders of the local Negro community” and ask them, “What do you want for your own people” following the war?

What most of us haven’t heard is that the idea really was generated by the Black leaders themselves. What was agreed upon was the federal government’s massive confiscation of private property—some 400,000 acres—formerly owned by Confederate landowners, and its methodical redistribution to former Black slaves.

to Gates, 11 of the 20 had been born free in slave states, and 10 had lived as free men in the Confederacy during the course of the Civil War. The other ministers had been slaves in the South who became “contraband,” and hence

“The way we can best take care of ourselves,” said Rev. Frazier, “is to have land, and turn it and till it by our own labor…and we can soon maintain ourselves and have something to spare. We want to be placed on land until

“The way we can best take care of ourselves is to have land, and turn it and till it by our own labor.”

free, only because of the Emancipation Proclamation, when Union forces liberated them.

A former slave, 67-year-old Garrison Frazier, was chosen by the group to be their leader. He had been born in Granville, N.C., and was a slave until 1857 “when he purchased freedom for himself and his wife for $1,000 in gold and silver. Frazier took on the responsibility of answering the 12 questions that Sherman and Stanton put to the group.

It was the third of the 12 questions, “What did the Negro want How it came about Twenty ministers attended most,” that brought a surprising the meeting, most of them either request. Rev. Frasier answered, Baptist or Methodist. According “Land!”

we are able to buy it and make it our own.”

When Frazier was asked next where the freed slaves “would rather live — whether scattered among the Whites or in colonies by themselves,” Brother Frazier (Gates reports that this is how the transcript of the meeting referred to him) said, “I would prefer to live by ourselves, for there is a prejudice against us in the South that will take years to get over.”

When polled individually around the table, all but one — James Lynch, 26, the man who had moved south from Baltimore — said that they agreed with Frazier. Four days later,

eral propaganda and punditry.

Radical stylings in calls for reparations are just that, symbolic but largely empty claims which give many conservative actors their chance for revolutionary theatrical acclaim. But in the end it remains performative.

Our repair can only come from the assumption of political power and the ability to define society, its socio-economic structures, and outcomes.

Those often most notable in making popular calls for reparations are themselves making claims for increased participation among Black people in the rapacious accumulative processes of the United States.

9

powerful but even it struggles to contain the anger a COVID crisis has inspired. And this is where we must challenge the limited/limiting logic of reparations narratives and move toward what it would take to make such discussions moot; political power.

Arguments over reparations histories, justifications, qualifications, or sums are inferior to debates over formations, campaigns, tactics, or particular roles to be taken in organizations, and movements Their claims for “a check” or targeting political power. We some other form of reparative deserve more than reparations. justice often sound bold, but We deserve an entire civilizaare as Araujo alludes, encour- tional break from the processes aged by state power as an “il- which produces the need for lusion” which is never to be reparations in the first place. achieved. The distraction from extra-legal framing of moveJared A. Ball is a father and ment-building is complete. husband. After that, he is a ProSo-called advances in Black fessor of Communication and Afliberation struggles, and to ricana Studies at Morgan State Araujo’s point, others around University in Baltimore, MD. the world, can measure their and is founder/curator of imixsuccess by their willingness to whatilike.org a multimedia hub move beyond imposed legal of emancipatory journalism and structures, which themselves revolutionary beat reporting. Ball only exist to ease the process of is also author of The Myth and colonial conquest.

Propaganda of Black Buying PowThe attendant propaganda er (Palgrave, 2020). encouraging uninspired returns to neoliberalism is indeed

With this Order, 400,000 acres Sherman issued Special Field Order No. 15 after President Lincoln of land — “a strip of coastline stretching from Charleston, approved it.

South Carolina, to the St. John’s River in Florida, including GeorField Order No.15 Section one of the Order des- gia’s Sea Islands and the mainignates that “The islands from land thirty miles in from the Charleston, south, the aban- coast,” as Barton Myers reports, doned rice fields along the rivers would be redistributed to the for thirty miles back from the sea, newly freed slaves.

Eric Foner in his book “Reconand the country bordering the St. Johns river, Florida, are reserved struction: America’s Unfinished and set apart for the settlement of Revolution, 1863-1877” noted, the Negroes [sic] now made free “Here in coastal South Caroby the acts of war and the proc- lina and Georgia, the prospect lamation of the President of the beckoned of a transformation of Southern society more radical United States.”

Section two specifies that even than the end of slavery.” the community be governed by Black people themselves “On the Freed people’s response According to Gates the reislands, and in the settlements hereafter to be established, no sponse to the Order was immeWhite person whatever, unless diate. Historian Foner noted that military officers and soldiers “the freedmen hastened to take detailed for duty, will be permit- advantage of the Order.” Baptist ted to reside; and the sole and minister Ulysses L. Houston, one exclusive management of affairs of the group that had met with will be left to the freed people Sherman, led 1,000 Blacks to Skithemselves… By the laws of war, daway Island, Georgia., where and orders of the President of they established a self-governing the United States, the negro [sic] community with Houston as the is free and must be dealt with as “Black governor.”

And by June, “40,000 freedsuch.”

Section three specifies the al- men had been settled on 400,000 location of land: “Each family acres of ‘Sherman Land.’ The 40 shall have a plot of not more than acres decree became “40 acres (40) acres of tillable ground, and and a mule” after Sherman orwhen it borders on some water dered that the army could lend channel, with not more than 800 the new settlers mules. feet water front, in the possession of which land the military The traitors regain their land Andrew Johnson, Lincoln’s authorities will afford them protection, until such time as they successor and a sympathizer can protect themselves, or until with the South, overturned the Congress shall regulate their title.” Order in the fall of 1865, and, as

Barton Myers concludes, “returned the land along the South Carolina, Georgia and Florida coasts to the planters who had originally owned it” — to the very people who had declared war on the United States of America.

“Try to imagine how profoundly different the history of race relations in the United States would have been had this policy been implemented and enforced; had the former slaves actually had access to the ownership of land, of property; if they had had a chance to be self-sufficient economically, to build, accrue and pass on wealth.

“After all, one of the principal promises of America was the possibility of average people being able to own land, and all that such ownership entailed. As we know all too well, this promise was not to be realized for the overwhelming majority of the nation’s former slaves, who numbered about 3.9 million,” lamented Gates.

Mel Reeves welcomes reader responses to mreeves@spokesman-recorder.com.

Research for this article was gleamed from; “Black Reconstruction,” W.E.B. DuBois, “Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 18631877,”Eric Foner and “The truth behind 40 Acres and a Mule,” Henry Louis Gates

MNsure opens three-month special enrollment period Minnesotans can begin enrolling February 16 Beginning Tuesday, February 16, MNsure will open a threemonth special enrollment period to help any Minnesotan not currently enrolled through MNsure secure health insurance coverage.

This announcement follows the nationwide special enrollment period established by President Biden for those states that use healthcare.gov, the federally run health insurance marketplace.

MNsure’s special enrollment period will run until Monday, May 17.

"If you are uninsured, or have coverage outside of MNsure, you can come to MNsure.org between February 16 and May 17 to enroll in a health insurance plan.

COVID-19 is still with us, so having access to comprehensive

health care coverage is critical at this time," said MNsure CEO Nate Clark.

"Not sure where to start? We have a statewide network of assisters who can help walk you through the process—just click on Find Free Help on our homepage.” MNsure ran a similar special enrollment period for uninsured Minnesotans in March 2020 just after the start of the pandemic and enrolled nearly 10,000 Minnesotans into private health insurance coverage.

In total, MNsure helped more than 24,500 Minnesotans secure health insurance coverage through a special enrollment period from the start of the pandemic through the end of 2020.

Additionally, MNsure's annual

open enrollment period, which ended on December 22, 2020, saw an increased number of enrollments, nearly 20% of which were new to the marketplace.

This upcoming special enrollment period is another opportunity for uninsured Minnesotans, or those currently enrolled outside of MNsure, to sign up for comprehensive health care coverage. Eligible Minnesotans can also take advantage of costsaving benefits available only through MNsure.

Those who enroll during this time will have coverage that begins on the first day of the month following their sign-up date. For example, Minnesotans who signup for coverage in February will have a March 1 start date. Those

who sign up in March will have coverage starting on April 1, and so on.

Please note: Minnesotans currently enrolled in health insurance coverage outside of MNsure should confirm their coverage options through MNsure before making changes to their current coverage.

Getting started • Compare plans side by side using MNsure's plan comparison tool. Get estimates on premium costs, deductibles and more. Minnesotans can also use the tool to see if they qualify for financial help. Nearly half of current MNsure enrollees are receiving tax credits to lower the cost of their premiums, averaging

of a federally recognized Amerialmost $5,000 a year.

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Virtual meeting options are availInformation courtesy of MNable. sure, Minnesota's health insurance marketplace where individuals and Year-round enrollment opportunities families can shop, compare and In addition to this three- choose health insurance coverage month special enrollment period, that meets their needs. MNsure is Minnesotans who experience the only place you can apply for a qualifying life event such as a financial help to lower the cost loss of employer health insur- of your monthly insurance preance, loss of employer COBRA mium and out-of-pocket costs. premium subsidy, or decrease Most Minnesotans who enroll in income may be eligible for a through MNsure qualify for fispecial enrollment period. These nancial help. enrollment opportunities are available year-round to those who qualify. Minnesotans who qualify for Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare or are a member

10 February 11-17, 2021

2021 Black History Month virtual events The MSR celebrates Black History Month every day of the year and enjoys a living legacy as one of the state’s oldest Black businesses.

This year, Black History Month will naturally look and feel differently than previous years due to the ongoing pandemic—and thus, more online event offerings—but also the intensified racial animosity in the face of ongoing calls for racial justice and equity across the nation.

Below we’ve highlighted a few of the many local online events taking place. Make sure to check back online at msrnewsonline.com for frequent updates and more events.

The Role of the Arts and Artists in Social Justice Movements The Minnesota African American Heritage Museum & Gallery (MAAHMG) and Hennepin County Library invite community members to observe Black History Month by exploring the intersection of art and activism. This collaboration offers three short films to reflect upon the role of arts and artists in social justice movements as you watch these three short films. Enjoy films: “Black Lives Matter—The Making of the Mural in Minneapolis;” “UN-HEARD,” and “Save The Boards to Memorialize the Movement” as they stream the entire month of February.

For more info, visit bit.ly/maahmgBHM. “28 Days of Black Excellence” @ 9 am VocalEssence will showcase Black achievement in the arts and beyond each day of Black History Month as part of its daily pandemic show, “Take 5 with GPS,” featuring G. Phillip Shoultz, III, associate conductor, and director of learning & engagement programs.

Programming will be available live every day of the month of February on YouTube or Facebook and archived for later viewing.

For more info, visit www. vocalessence.org/28-days-ofblack-excellence.

Friday, February 12 Bee Love and the CoBenefits of Solar: Valentine’s book reading @ 1-2 pm Join Justice Alan Page and his daughter, Kamie Page, for a special reading of their

fourth book, “Bee Love (Can A Conversation with MinBe Hard).” This event marks the perfect occasion to celebrate nesota African American HeriBlack History Month and the tage Museum and Gallery Coimportance of the environment. founders @ 2-3 pm For more info, go to bit.

Minnesota African Amerily/2BeeLove can Heritage Museum & Gallery Cofounders Tina Burnside Saturday, February 13 and Coventry Cowens will discuss how the museum was Minnesota’s Black founded, its mission, exhibiCommunity Project tions and programs. The disPresents: The African cussion will also talk about the American Community and role the museum plays in bethe COVID-19 Pandemic ing the only African American @ 11 am -12:30 pm Featured panelists: Min- history museum in the State of nesota Association of Black Minnesota, followed by a Q&A Physicians, Nathan Chomilo, session.

For more info, visit bit.

M.D., Zeke McKinney, M.D., and Charles E. Crutchfield, III ly/3pF6ght.

M.D., will provide the African Sunday, February 21 American community with specific info and insight to better manage and protect themselves “Livestream: Robert against this highly contagious Robinson Celebrates Martin and deadly virus. A Q&A pe- Luther King Jr. & Black riod will follow the discussion. History Month” @ 7 pm The event is hosted by MinneRobert Robinson raises his sota’s Black Community Project.

To register, go to bit.ly/AA- voice to perform music that COVIDVaccine. A link for the exemplifies the spirit of Martin event will be emailed to each Luther King Jr. and Black History Month. From the gospel registrant. sounds of Rev. James Cleveland and Mahalia Jackson to Wednesday, February 17 the more subtle messages of freedom and hope by artists TESTIFY: The Past is Present like John Lennon, Sam Cooke, @ 7-8 pm Join Minnesota Supreme Pop “Roebuck” Staples, Mavis Court Justice Alan Page for a Staples and Bob Dylan, Robindialogue about items from the son’s concert is sure to inspire “TESTIFY Exhibit,” which de- and uplift every listener. $15. For tickets, go to bit. buted at Minneapolis Central Library’s Cargill Gallery in 2018. ly/39ZZ4Wm. The program will revisit items Tuesday, February 23 from American history curated by the Diane and Alan Page Collection, helping to ground Black Voters Matter! A and provide a context for cur- Virtual Town Hall with LaTosha Brown rent events. @ 4-6 pm This is a free online event. For Join Metropolitan State Unimore info, and to register, go to bit. versity for a Virtual Town Hall ly/TESTIFY_HCL. with LaTosha Brown, co-founder of the Black Voters Matter Thursday, February 18 Fund and the Black Voters Matter (BVM) Capacity Building The Black Liberation Institute.

Movement An in-demand public @ 3- 4 pm This free event features speaker, LaTosha Brown is a distinguished University of St. distinguished trusted expert Thomas professor Dr. Yohuru on political strategy, organizing, Williams and a panel of Black civil rights, economic develophistory-keepers as they chart ment, wealth creation, and rural the evolution of Black protest issues over a 20-year career. The in Minnesota and on a national Black Voters Matter Fund was scale, from slavery through to- credited with energizing and turning out voters in Georgia’s day.

This program will be historic 2020 Presidential Elecstreamed live on the Minne- tion as well as the 2021 run-off.

The event is free, but registrasota Historical Society Facebook Page and also available as a re- tion is required. To register, go to bit. cording later on Facebook and ly/LaToshaBrownBHM. YouTube.

“How Black Women Broke Barriers, Won the Vote & Saturday, February 20

Thursday, February 25 Virtual Leadership Conference, Leadership Any Means Necessary @5 pm With the theme of exploring collectivism, innovation, and activation, this three-day conference by the African American Leadership Forum (AALF) will gather current community leaders, changemakers, and innovators to engage participants in an intergenerational dialogue about ways that provide purposeful and sustainable impact in our community. $25. To register, go tcaalf. com/2021-virtual-leadershipconference

“John Lewis: Good Trouble” Film Screening – MN Peacebuilding Film Series @ 7-8:30 pm As part of its monthly Peacebuilding Film Series, the Minnesota Peacebuilding Leadership Institute is inviting community members to a screening of the acclaimed documentary “John Lewis: Good Trouble.” The film offers an intimate account of legendary U.S. Representative John Lewis’s life, legacy and more than 60 years of extraordi- Race, Riot, and Law Enforcement nary activism. @ 6-8 pm This screening is free and open Join Metropolitan State Unito the public. To register, go to bit.ly/ versity students, faculty, staff, GoodTroubleFeb20. and community in a virtual panel discussion to explore how Wednesday, February 24 race factors in the relationship between riots and law enforce“This Free North” ment—past and present—usDocumentary Panel ing the examples of the New Discussion York Attica Prison Riot of 1971 @ 5 pm Stream the Emmy-winning as well as the failed police redocumentary “This Free North” form in Minneapolis during the at your convenience all month 1980s.

This event is free. To register, go long, hosted by the University of Minnesota’s Multicultural to bit.ly/raceriotlaw.

Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church

Worship

Student Engagement department. This brief film showcases Black history at the University of Minnesota and its connection to contemporary students. Join in for the panel discussion to further explore the institution’s complex and ongoing history in an effort to cultivate a more allinclusive and equitable future.

To view and find more MSEC Black History Month events, go to bit.ly/MSECBHM.

Insisted on Equality for All, with Martha Jones” @ 6:30-8 pm This Minnesota Historical Society history forum, acclaimed historian Dr. Martha S. Jones will offer a new history of African American women’s political lives in America. In this lecture, she’ll recounts how Black women defied both racism and sexism to fight for the ballot, and how they wielded political power to secure the equality and dignity of all persons.

The event will take place on Zoom. Suggested support for MNHS members is $5; $10 suggested for general public.

For more info, go to www.mnhs. org/event/8565.

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

Publisher/CEO

Co-Publisher Emeritus

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

Did we miss your event? To submit your event for consideration, go to msrnewsonline@ spokesman-recorder.com. You may also add your event, freeof-charge at spokesman-recorder.com/events.

Tracey Williams-DillarD

Wallace (Jack) JackmaN

Rev. Dr. Billy G. Russell, Sr. Pastor

Save the Boards to Memorialize the Movement @ 2-3 pm Join a conversation with Save the Boards founder Kenda Zellner-Smith and Memorialize the Movement founder Leesa Kelly who have partnered with MAAHMG to collect, preserve and archive the plywood art murals that were created after the killing of George Floyd.

Leesa and Kenda have collected over 500 boards from Twin Cities businesses.

This is a free online event on Microsoft Teams. To register, go to bit. ly/SavetheBoard.

3744 4th Ave. South • Minneapolis, MN 55409 Phone: 612-827-4021 • Fax: 612-827-0577

Founder-Publisher 1934-1976

Bethesda Baptist Church

Saturday, February 27

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN-RECORDER cecil e. NeWmaN

Mount Olivet Missionary Baptist Church

BLACKOUT History Month! @ 7 pm BLACKOUT, the first allblack improv group in Minnesota, is celebrating Black History Month with a virtual show featuring the group’s trademark mix of comedy, social justice and arts access. Since 2015, their unique format of conversationinspired improv has been the catalyst for hard conversations with levity.

To register, go to bit.ly/BLACKOUTBHM. Virtual doors open at 7 pm, show starts at 7:15 pm. This event is hosted by the Sumner Library staff.

l auNa Q. NeWmaN CEO/Publisher 1976-2000

Norma JeaN Williams Vice President Emeritus

Senior Editor Jerry Freeman

Contributing Writers Dr. Charles E. Crutchfield III

Sports Writers Larry Fitzgerald

Community Editor Mel Reeves

Dr. Deirdre Golden

Charles Hallman

Aleezeh Hasan

Dr. Mitchell P. McDonald

Dr. Clarence Hightower

Contributing Photographers

Digital Editor Paige Elliott

Abeni Hill Dwight Hobbes

Desktop Publisher Jennifer Cherrier Jim Handrigan

Tiffany Johnson Brandon Jones Tony Kiene

Onika Nicole Craven Steve Floyd Chris Juhn Travis Lee

Juliet Mitchell

Customer Service Representative

Khymyle Mims Abdi Muhommed

Account Representatives Cecilia Viel

Monica Zorilla

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INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER

February 11-17,, 2021

Legals

Employment

NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND CLAIMANTS

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN by Hope Evangelical Lutheran Church ELCA (the "Corporation") that: 1. The Corporation, whose principal office was located at 5728 Cedar Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55417, and whose current mailing address is P.O. Box 17166, Minneapolis, MN 55417, is in the process of voluntary dissolution.

2. The Corporation has filed with the Minnesota Secretary of State a Notice of Intent to Dissolve.

3. Such Notice was filed with the Minnesota Secretary of State on the 31st day of December 2020.

4. All claims by creditors or claimants must be in writing and must be presented to: Michael Rodning Bash 400 South Fourth Street, Suite 1025, Minneapolis, MN 55415.

5. All claims by creditors or claimants must be presented by the 20th day of April 2021. ss/Mary Peterson President Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder Jan 21, 28, Feb 4, 11, 2021

State of Minnesota County of:

In Re the Marriage of: Glen David White Petitioner (first, middle, last) and Barbara Jean White Respondent (fir t middle. last)

District Court Judicial District: Court File Number: 27FA203553 Case Type: Dissolution without Children

Summons (Check One) X Without Real Estate With Real Estate

THE STATE OF MINNESOTA TO THE ABOVE-NAMED RESPONDENT: WARNING: Your spouse has filed a lawsuit against you for dissolution of your marriage. A copy of the paperwork regarding the lawsuit is served on you with this summons. This summons is an official document from the court that affects your rights. Read this summons carefully. If you do not understand it, contact an attorney for legal advice. l.The Petrtioner (your spouse) has filed a lawsuit against you asking for a dissolution of your marriage (divorce). A copy of the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage is attached to this Summons.

2.You must serve upon Petitioner and file with the Court a written Answer to the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage and you must pay the required filing fee. Answer forms are available from the Court Administrator's office. You must serve your Answer upon Petitioner within thirty (30) days of the date you were served with this Summons, not counting the day of service. If you do not serve and file your Answer, the Court may give your spouse everything he or she is asking for in the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.

3. �This proceeding involves. affects, or brings into question the real property located at the at the following address City State Zip Code in __________ County, with the following legal description: 4.� (For a second property) This proceeding involves, affects, or brings into question the real property located at the following address: at the following address City State Zip Code in ___________________________ County, with the following legal description: OR � This proceeding does not involve real property. · NOTICE OF TEMPORARY RESTRAINING PROVISIONS Under Minnesota law, service of this summons makes the following requirements apply to both parties to the action, unless they are modified by the court or the proceeding is dismissed: (1)Neither party may dispose of any assets except (a) for the necessities of life or for the necessary generation of income or preservation of assets, (b) by an agreement of the parties in writing, or (c) for retaining counsel to carry on or to contest this proceeding.

(2)Neither party may hara s the other party.

(3)All currently available insurance coverage must be maintained and continued without change in coverag or beneficiary designation.

(4)Parties to a marriage dissolution proceeding are encouraged to attempt alternative dispute resolution pursuant to Minnesota la . Alternative dispute resolution includes mediation, arbitration and other processes as set forth in the district court rules. You may contact the court administrator about resources in your area. If you cannot pay for mediation or alternative dispute resolution, in ome counties, assi tance may be available to you through a nonprofit provider or a court program. If you are a victim of domestic abuse or threat as defined in Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 5188, you are not required to try mediation and you will not be penalized by the court in later proceedings.

IF YOU VIOLATE ANY OF THESE PROVISIONS, YOU WILL BE SUBJECT TO SANCTIONS BY THE COURT. Dated: 07/07/2020 County and State where signed

Signature Name: Glen White Address: 3626 N. 6th Street City/State/Zip:Minneapolis, MN 55412 Telephone: 763-458-7681 E-mail address: lavadamillerss@gmail.com

Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder Jan 28, Feb 4 & 11, 2021

Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State Certificate of Assumed Name Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 333 ASSUMED NAME: Chyll PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS: 3447 21st Ave S Minneapolis MN 55407 United States NAMEHOLDER(S): Name: Address: Spencer Patrick Murphy 3447 21ST AVE S MINNEAPOLIS MN 55407 United States 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:

11

Spencer Murphy 3447 21st Ave S Minneapolis MN 55407

EMAIL FOR OFFICIAL NOTICES: spencer@chyllcbd.com Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder February 4 & 11, 2021

From Classified District Court State of Minnesota County Department/MNJudicial District: Second Ramsey Court File Number: 62HRCV2163 Spokesman-Recorder Case Type: Harassment PHONE: 612-827-4021 Kia Yuwapa Moua Petitioner(s) FOR BILLING Notice of Issuance of INQUIRIES vs.

Harassment Restraining Order & TEARSHEETS by Publication Michael Dunn PLEASE CONTACT Respondent(s) ACCOUNTING DEPT

To Respondent: YOU ARE NOTIFIED that a Harassment Restraining Order has been issued on LEGAL January 25, 2021. NOTICES A hearingSIZE: is scheduled for the 2 COL X following 3 = 6 date, time, and location: Date:

From Classified Seeking Consultants--Community Action Partnership Department/MN of Ramsey & Washington Counties, a non-profit that partners Spokesman-Recorder with people to overcome poverty, is requesting proposals for

consulting services to facilitate its Community Assessment and PHONE: 612-827-4021 Strategic Plan.

Contact ctitcomb@caprw.org for bid information packets.

FOR BILLING INQUIRIES & TEARSHEETS PLEASE CONTACT Sr. Mechanical Design Engineer ACCOUNTING DEPT

Medtronic, Inc. located in Mound View, MN. Responsible for the design of catheter-based devices, sheaths, and disposRAMSEY COUNTY able delivery tools and accessories required for AF ablation 7th Street, St. Paul MN 55102 procedures. Master’s1WEEK degree in Mechanical Engineering and RUN OR two (2) years of mechanical design experience for medical RATE $10.35 PCI (PER ADDITIONAL RUN) $ FLAT RATE $100.00 PREPAID x A hearing has not been scheduled. You may request a hearing on this matter by devices and two (2) years of post-bachelor’s progressive SUBTOTAL: $62.10 X 3 = $186.30 filing a Request for Hearing HAR301 with the Court within twenty (20) days of experience in all of the following: Design development, analthe date this Notice$279.48 is published. You may get a copy of the HRO from the court Total: ysis and statistical tools to include CREO, Pro-E, Solidworks, administrator's office at the following address: JFJC, 25 W. 7th Street, St. Paul From Classified MN 55102.

FEA (ANSYS & ABAQUS) and Minitab; DMAIC methodDepartment/MN respond confirmation to display@ Failure to Please appear at proof, a scheduled hearing orwith to get aemail copy of the Harassment ology, DRM principles and MS Project; Statistical methods Restraining Order will not be a defense to prosecution for violation of the Court's Spokesman-Recorder spokesman-recorder.com to include DOE (Design of Experiment), SPC (Statistical order.

PHONE: 612-827-4021 Process Control), Variable Gage R & R, ANOVA, t-test, Donald Harper FOR BILLING Juvenile and Family Court Administrator regression analysis, Process Capability and Confidence & Tolerance interval analysis; Risk tools to include DFMECA, INQUIRIES Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder February 11, 2021 PFMECA, QMS (Quality Mgt. System) and identify CTQ & TEARSHEETS & KDC; FDA 21 CFR Part 820 and ISO 13485, ISO14971, PLEASE CONTACT From ISO9001 and Classified GDP (Good Documentation Practices); ProbState of Minnesota District Court ACCOUNTING DEPTSecond Judicial District Ramsey County lem solving techniques including A3 thinking, PDCA (Plan, Department/MN Court File Number: 62DAFA2181 Do, Check, Act), 5 Why’s and Ishikawa (Fishbone); DevelSpokesman-Recorder Case Type: Domestic Abuse DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE opment of Phased RF, RF and Cryo energy delivery for Atrial 3 WEEK RUN In The Matter Of Aimee Xiong Vs Frank Lee fibrillation ablation.

Apply at https://jobs.medtronic.com/, PHONE: 612-827-4021 FLAT RATE $200.00 PREPAID Req.2100024P. Medtronic is an equal opportunity employer Notice of Hearing by Publication committed to cultural diversity in the workplace. All individ(Minn. Stat. § 518B.01, subd. 8) FOR BILLING uals are encouraged to apply.

To Respondent named above:

RATE $15.53 PCI (1ST RUN) Time: �a.m. �/ p.m. $93.18and Family Justice Center (JFJC), 25 West Location: SUBTOTAL: Ramsey County Juvenile

An order has been issued directing you to appear to a hearing on March 1, 2021 at 8:15am before Referee James J. Street for an Order for Protection Hearing and explain why the relief sought in the Petition for the Order for Protection should not be granted.

You must contact the Ramsey County Court Administrator’s Office at 651-2665130 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 as a 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 February 11, 2021

PREP

Smith was the only returning starter to St. Paul Central’s state tournament team. He Continued from page 12 led them to a third-place state tournament finish in 1981.

I remember when Tyler two Super Bowl Championships.

I remember when the Minne- Johnson, the former Minneapolis City Conference was one apolis North and University of of the best boys’ basketball Minnesota football star, played quarterback in high school. He conferences in the state.

I remember when the Twin played in last week’s Super City boys’ basketball game, Bowl as a rookie wide receiver which usually matched up for the Tampa Buccaneers.

Minneapolis North and St. Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonPaul Central, was the main yearly event during the 1980s ald welcomes reader responses to I remember when Rickey mcdeezy05@gmail.com.

INQUIRIES & TEARSHEETS PLEASE CONTACT ACCOUNTING DEPT

SOE RAMSEY COUNTY

people and we want to do what makes us happy.

Continued from page 12 “I have way more basketball behind me than I do in front of 1WEEK RUN me, but I wanted to play it in FLAT RATE $100.00 PREPAID Chicago,” said Parker.

“I think a player has the right to choose where they want to be.”

Bits and pieces Don’t look now, but the Minnesota Twins ball club is getting Whiter: With the team last week trading LaMonte Wade, Jr. to San Francisco, this leaves Byron Buxton as the Twins’ only American-born Black player on the roster. And the St. Paul Saints, Minnesota’s new AAA affiliate, announced last month its all-White coaching staff, proving again that talk of baseball onfield and management diversity is still only lip service.

is around $127,000.

Nonetheless, Chicago Coach/ GM James Wade pointed out, “I think [free agent signings] is good for the WNBA. I think a player has the right to choose where they want to be.”

Parker, who grew up in the Chicago area, believes the CBA, Charles Hallman welcomes now in its second year, “has reader responses to challman@ played a huge role” in player spokesman-recorder.com. movements. “Ultimately we are

WHEELER

again.”

Yet, she does fear for her younger brother as he lives as Continued from page 12 a Black man in America these days. “I’m scared [for him],” 200 kids in Miami.

“My goal and mission for she reiterated. “I pray every my foundation is to give op- time he leaves the house.”

Whether we speak with her portunity…to help kids that don’t have much,” explained in person as we did at the 2019 Wheeler. “When you are a WNBA ASG or over the phone, From hometown hero,Classified you try to Wheeler’s confidence overDepartment/MN create avenues for kids to flows. “It will be my first year be able Spokesman-Recorder to do things. They [in Los Angeles],” she said shouldn’tPHONE: have to 612-827-4021 suffer be- on joining the Sparks, where FOR BILLING her primary goal is “to be a cause of their [surroundings].”

INQUIRIES Wheeler didn’t play last leader. There will be some ups & TEARSHEETS season after she caught CO- and some downs, but I plan to PLEASE CONTACT VID-19. Then doctors found lead.”

ACCOUNTING DEPTA few months away from fluid around her heart, and she opted out of the 2020 sea- her birthday, Wheeler boasted, ASSUMED son. Wheeler said sheNAME is fully “The way I feel I think I got 10 FLAT RATE $150.00 recovered and not overly con- years [of playing basketball] 2 WEEK RUN over- in me. I turn 30 in May. Your cerned about playing seas where the pandemic still body starts changing when you hit 30. spreads. respond email confirmation to dis “Women are like super“I don’tPlease live proof, in fear,” she with play@spokesman-recorder.com stressed. “My mom told me women,” she concluded. “We that a long time ago. If you figure things out.” live in fear, you are not reCharles Hallman welcomes ally living. I am very careful in what I want to do so I can reader responses to challman@ be prepared and not catch it spokesman-recorder.com.

Wanted: A news reporter/journalist The MSR seeks a news reporter with extensive knowledge and experience in the African American community to cover news events, protests, and community meetings. The reporter will be expected to cover meetings and policy decisions at various levels of government in the Twin Cities and the greater metro area, including the state legislature.

The reporter will also write news stories about housing, education, transportation, labor, health, the environment, police violence and more as they pertain to the African American community. The reporter must be comfortable reporting on issues surrounding equity, discrimination and social justice.

This is a freelance position with pay commensurate with experience. There is potential for advancement.

For more information, email Mel Reeves at mreeves@spokesman-recorder.com.

12

February 11-17, 2021

Remembering Hall of Fame Coach John Chaney Our conversation takes some risks

Second in a series Our interview with Hall of Fame Coach John Chaney just before Christmas last year is believed to be his last such interview before his death. He passed away on Jan. 29. We continue Two giants: Big John Thompson and Little John Cheney with excerpts from our one-hour Courtesy of Twitter phone chat.

J

ohn Chaney and John Thompson both were giants in men’s college basketball.

The two men often had the loudest voices in the room, unapologetic of their words and who they said them to.

But unbeknownst to many of us is that during their coaching years, Chaney, Thompson, Nolan Richardson and George

Raveling—often seen as “the big four”—annually held court with Black reporters at some undisclosed location during the Final Four. “I’d miss my plane back home,” Chaney chuckled during our conversation, “talking with the Black Press, getting them to understand some of the needs and some of the things that were necessary for our kids.

“We’d stay up all night,” recalled Chaney. “There were so many reporters, and they became great reporters in the business.” We learned that among the attendees were Michael Wilbon, now on ESPN, and William C. Rhoden, a veteran sportswriter who now directs the Rhoden Fellow program sponsored by ESPN’s The Undefeated.

“We had a room filled—some would be sitting on the floor.

The topics were always about athletes, and trying to get them to be successful…not just talking about the successes of the coaches… There were no arguments. I wished somehow we had filmed those sessions. Those were so great days.”

Among others, here are three things Chaney was famously known for, not necessarily in this order: His teams played a tough zone defense; the infamous storming in on John Calipari’s post-game press conference after a defeat; and holding early morning practices. We bravely asked him about all three.

Temple’s matchup zone gave opponents fits. Coach Chaney said he was influenced by fellow Philly guys such as Jack Ramsey, who coached both in college and the NBA. He saw Houston play zone to defeat UCLA at the Astrodome.

“The most important thing in basketball is [that] you can afford to be not as good offensively

but you got to be damn good defensively,” he explained. “Every kid you get can be taught to play defense.

“It requires a great deal of work with angles in playing [his] defense,” noted Chaney.

“We play a 2-3, a triangle and two.

There were five or six zones that we play. I felt it was better for us,” he stressed.

What’s the backstory on Chaney’s confrontation with Calipari, then at UMass, after a game in 1994? If it happened

cipitated [the incident].”

Then, caught on television, Chaney angrily stormed the room and went after Calipari, only separated by players and others. But not before being heard that he was going to kill him.

“I just went off and should have handled it better,” surmised Chaney. “I should have taken him to a dark alley and beat him up.”

I wasn’t sure if he was joking or not, and I was afraid to

“I should have taken him to a dark alley and beat him up.” today, it would go viral on social media.

“They won by one point,” Chaney replied. “He was in the [press conference] room saying some things that were not right.

But I saw him [earlier] walking to the room where the officials were. That’s something coaches don’t do, go into their room. I think that pre-

ask.

Next week: Chaney explains why he held practices at sunrise.

Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses to challman@ spokesman-recorder.com.

Things it’s good to know…and remember WNBA collective bargaining prompts more player movement The current CBA that the WNBA players signed last January has finally created a freeagency frenzy like never before.

A quick comparison glance: • 2020 – 25 signings and 16 players changed teams • 2021 – 24 signings and 12 players changed teams Candace Parker, who probably was the biggest name out there, signed a two-year deal with the Chicago Sky after spending her 13 pro seasons entirely in Los Angeles. “I gave everything I had to the Sparks organization for 13 years. I am not disgruntled or upset or demanding a trade,” the 6’-4” Parker told reporters, including the MSR during a media call last week.

Minnesota inked Kayla McBride, a three-time All-Star from Las Vegas, and Natalie Achonwa from Indiana. Both players left their original clubs for the Twin Cities.

“I’m happy with the picks we have,” Lynx Center Sylvia Fowles told reporters during a Zoom call at the USA Basketball mini-camp in South Carolina last week. She later told the MSR, “I just want it all to come together and do the things we need to do.

That’s what I am looking forward to.”

Minnesota Coach/GM Cheryl Reeve declared, “This has been a free-agency process exactly as you’d expect. Kayla

was highly sought after, and we made it from the very beginning

Kayla McBride Courtesy of Wikipedia

Natalie Achonwa Courtesy of Twitter that Kayla should not be anywhere else than with the Minnesota Lynx.”

“I just want to get to know my teammates and the city,” admitted the 5’-11” McBride, a seven-

year veteran guard.

Reeve added that the 6’-3” Achonwa was the team’s number-one frontcourt target. The six-year veteran forward, when asked, told the MSR that the Lynx’s longstanding work on racial and social justice issues “was a big plus in my decision [to leave the Fever] in making sure that I was coming to an organization that did more than put a ball in a hoop, and stood for more than just being basketball players. Hopefully I can use my individual platform to amplify that.”

In doing her due diligence, “Everyone I spoke to [about Achonwa said] she’s the smartest player [they]’ve been around,” said Reeve on the Canadian-born player, who also played college ball with McBride at Notre Dame.

“When you’re undersized,” stated Achonwa, “You do what you got to do.”

But the stone cold reality is that despite the improved WNBA free agency and subsequent bigger contracts today’s players are signing, it pales in comparison to their NBA counterparts: the NBA minimum salary for a player with zero pro experience is about $900,000, while the minimum WNBA salary for a player with two years’ experience is $57,000, and the highest salary ■ See SOE on page 11

PreP Scene

ren Clark (Champlain Park) is in her sophomore season at Penn State It’s good to know that Faith Johnson-Patterson, (MarshallU), who coached five state champion girls’ basketball teams at Minneapolis North and three

Dr. Mitchell PalMer McDonalD

It’s good to know that…

Lauren Clark Courtesy Penn State Athletics

It’s good to know that Kennedi Orr (Eagan), the numberone-ranked volleyball player in the nation, recently enrolled at the University of Nebraska.

It’s good to know that Jasmyn Gabrielle (Gabby) McCaa Courtesy Boston College Athletics

at DeLaSalle, is back as the head coach at Visitation.

It’s good to know that Ashley Ellis-Milan (St. Paul Central), a former University of Minnesota star player, is doing well in her first season as head girls’ basketJasmyn Martin ball coach at East Ridge.

Courtesy Florida State It’s good to know that Curtis Favors, a standout student Martin (Hopkins) is having an athlete at Tartan, will attend outstanding year as a senior vol- Concordia University-St. Paul to leyball player at Florida State play football.

It’s good to know that DaUniversity.

It’s good to know that Ga- von Townley, a senior basketball brielle McCaa (St. Louis Park) and football player at Minneapois in her sophomore season as a lis North, recently signed to play member of the Boston College at Penn State University.

It’s good to know that Kadvolleyball team.

It’s good to know that Lau- er Diop, an All-Conference per-

former for Minneapolis South, will play football at Concordia University-St. Paul this fall.

It’s good to know that Kevvan Anderson, a defensive lineman who played at St. Paul Academy/ Minnehaha Academy/ Blake (SMB), signed with Grandview College in Des Moines, Iowa.

It’s good to know that Trent Finney, a tight end from St. Paul Academy/ Minnehaha Academy/ Blake (SMB), will play at Grandview College this fall.

It’s good to know that Deven Eastern, a strong side defensive end from Shakopee, has signed to play at the University of Minnesota.

I remember when…

I remember when Stacy Robinson, who played quarterback at St. Paul Central before moving on to wide receiver at North Dakota State, caught the first pass of Super Bowl XXI as a rookie for the New York Giants against the Denver Broncos in 1986, leading to the first of his ■ See Prep on page 11

Fearless Wheeler fights her way to the top

By Charles Hallman Contributing writer Erica Wheeler is back in Turkey to finish up her overseas playing commitment. As with most WNBAers, playing away from the States is more the rule than the exception.

“We just love the game,” declared the 29-year-old guard last week in an MSR phone interview. “You got to go overseas to make the money.” She was back in the country last week to sign her new contract with the Los Angeles Sparks as a free agent

after two seasons with Indiana.

Undrafted after her college career at Rutgers in 2013, Wheeler played overseas, then tried out for a couple of WNBA clubs. In a 2015 tryout with Atlanta, she played 17 games before getting cut. A three-game stint with New York took place in 2016 before the 5’-7” guard finally landed in Indiana in 2016.

Wheeler came into her own there, so much so that she became an All-Star in 2019. The MSR was the only local media in attendance that watched her become the first undrafted player Erica Wheeler to win the All-Star Game MVP

“There will be some ups and some downs, but I plan to lead.”

Courtesy of YouTube

in Las Vegas.

The Miami-born Wheeler grew up in what is called one of America’s toughest neighborhoods—Liberty City. There her never-give-up attitude was fostered, along with her mother’s love and support. “My mom was my best friend,” she said.

Wheeler attended Rutgers and played for Hall-of-Famer C. Vivian Stringer. “She is the reason I am the way I am,” Erica said of the legendary coach. “Re-

lentless and don’t take anything from anybody—that’s how she is.”

Stringer also taught her that “if you want to be successful, there is some groundwork you got to put in. I’ve been doing that since I was a freshman.”

She told us she started The Wheeler Kid Foundation for her mom, who died in her senior year. Last weekend it co-sponsored a camp for over ■ See Wheeler on page 11