Issue # 402
INSIDE
T HE
P.2
P.4
P.9
Reps. Hodan Hassan and Mohamud Noor assigned committees
A F R IC A N
FEBRUARY 2019 www.mshale.com
C OM MU N I T Y
N E W S PAP E R
Mike Elliott sworn in as Brooklyn Center Mayor
UN Chief praises Africa’s attitude towards refugees
Disney to host its first LGBT “Magical Pride” parade
Mike Elliot was sworn in on January 2, 2019 as the mayor of Brooklyn Center after winning during the November election. Elliott, who was born in Liberia, becomes the city’s first black mayor. Photo: Decontee Kofa for Mshale
Rep. Omar appointed to Foreign Affairs Committee P.10
Oliver Mtukudzi is dead at 66
By Tom Gitaa Mshale Speaker Nancy Pelosi in announcing committee assignments for the 116th Congress has appointed Representative Ilhan Omar to the powerful foreign affairs committee which oversees all foreign assistance, national security affecting the country’s foreign policy, treaties, peacekeeping and war powers. Omar, one of two first Muslim women to serve in Congress and the first black person born in Africa in Congress, will also sit in the Education & Labor Committee. The latter oversees education programs from pre-school to higher education—including Head Start, child nutrition programs, higher education programs, and financial
oversight of the U.S. Department of Education. It also oversees labor initiatives—from job training to retirement security, union rights, occupational health and safety, and the minimum wage. On her appointment to the foreign affairs committee, Omar said: “As someone who has seen firsthand the havoc wreaked by war, I am proud to serve on the committee that is responsible for overseeing our country’s—and this President’s—actions abroad,” Rep. Omar said. “This couldn’t come at a more critical time. We need to use the committee’s human
Omar on Pg. 3
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is the first black person born in Africa elected to the US Congress. Photo: Kristie Boyd/U.S. Congress
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February 2019 Issue 402
Speaker Hortman taps Hodan Hassan and Mohamud Noor for committee assignments By Bethel Gessesse Mshale
Minnesota legislators are getting ready for the 2019 legislative session referred to as the 2019-20 biennium. In the Minnesota House, the Democrats took control while the Senate, which was not on the ballot in November, remained in Republican hands by a one seat majority. The convincing Democratic takeover of the Minnesota House also saw a net gain for Somali-Americans as they doubled their number of legislators. Outgoing Representative Ilhan Omar of 60B was the lone Somali-American in the outgoing legislature. That number has now doubled as Mohamud Noor, who won Omar’s seat, will be joined by another Somali-American, Hodan Hassan, who won District 62A. Speaker-elect Melissa Hortman released the committee assignments for the new biennium last friday. She appointed Representative-elect Hassan to five committees. They include Jobs and Economic Development Finance,
Mohamud Noor of 60B (left) and Hodan Hassan of 62A have been assigned to powerful committees.
Housing Finance and Policy, Judiciary Finance and Civil Law, Commerce, Rules and Legislative Administration In a nod to the power and influence of Somali-Americans, the speakerdesignate appointed Mohamud Noor as the vice-chair of the Jobs and Economic Development Finance committee. Noor will also serve in
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three other committees which are Judiciary Finance and Civil Law, Health and Human Services Finance and the powerful Way and Means committee.
and possibly a sign of bigger things to come. Outgoing Ilhan Omar was Assistant Minority Leader in the current legislature when her party was not in control. Hassan however is assuming the position with her party in effective control.
Hassan will also have the added responsibility of being the Assistant Majority Leader in the Minnesota House, a position that effectively puts her in the leadership pipeline
The Ninety-first Minnesota Legislature convened on January 8.
AFRICAN HERITAGE DAY ON THE HILL TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26th, 2019 i n the
CAPITOL ROTUNDA 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155 Mark your calendars on February 26th for African Heritage Day on the Hill! This year The Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage (CMAH) is joining forces with the National Pan Hellenic Council (NPHC) to host a rally and visit with lawmakers. Come out and hear from elected officials of African heritage as we advance our vision in Minnesota together. Translation services and American Sign Language interpretation will be provided upon request. To request this service, please call Shakira Bradshaw no later than Feb. 15 at 651-757-1752. th
Keynote Speaker: Keith Ellison, Minnesota Attorney General
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Editorial
The growing influence and power of Africaborn politicians in Minnesota politics Last month after the swearing-in into office of a historic number of elected officials born in Africa, our founder and publisher Tom Gitaa was invited to speak about the development at Almanac which is Minnesota’s longest running public affairs show on TPT Television which is the local PBS affiliate in the Twin Cities. The success of African-born politicians started with the election of Abdi Warsame in November 2013 to the Minneapolis City Council. Prior to that African immigrants’ closeness to elective office were the appointments of the late Hussein Samatar to the Minneapolis Library Board and newly elected Brooklyn Park city councilman Wynfred Russell to the Hennepin County Library Board. It was not for a lack of trying that it has taken this long for African immigrants to make it to elective office. As our publisher, who has followed the growth of the community for almost three decades, offered on Almanac it has taken multiple tries with Russell coming close by five votes to win over five years. Mohamud Noor, who is now the only black male in the Minnesota House of Representatives, has tried many times until he was successful this past November. The early humbling of African politicians at the polls has made the new crop of candidates to think hard how they approach campaigning as well as the older candidates who are still in the game like Noor and Russell. They now understand the importance of clear messaging and the value of building strong coalitions with other communities. African immigrant voters are not a majority in any district or city ward. They must continue to build bridges and coalitions if they are to continue winning and ensure our presence in the
Join the Mshale Text Club: Text AFRICA to 24587 or follow us onTwitter.com/Mshale Community News, updated daily on Mshale.com © 1996-2017 Mshale Communications, Inc. Mshale – The African Community Newspaper Editorial & Corporate Office: 1 Groveland Terrace, Suite 203 Minneapolis, MN 55403 Mailing Address: P.O.BOX 80071, Minneapolis, MN 55408 Tel: 612-454-5648 Email: mshale@mshale.com www.mshale.com
President & Publisher: Tom Gitaa
Staff Writers: Kari Mugo, Bethel Gessesse
Contributing Writers: Susan Budig
Columnists: Blackwell Igbanugo Law Firm
Design & Layout: Staff
Photographers: Richard Ooga
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The editor welcomes letters, opinion pieces and commentary on issues of interest to the African community in North America. Contributions must be typed and will be edited for clarity and space. Submissions can be mailed or submitted online at www.mshale.com
legislature, city councils and school boards. To ensure they run successful campaigns, they need funds and this is where it is important for the community to not only come out to vote for African immigrant candidates but we must provide them with the money they need to be competitive. Otherwise they might look for funds elsewhere and we should not be surprised if they become more responsive to the calls of those financing their campaigns. It is only natural that a politician will return the call of those who gave him or her money to tun for office. Let us ensure we are one of those they pay close attention to once in office. One question that comes up is why the sudden interest in running for office. It is not sudden. It has been building up for some time. However, as the economic wellbeing of African immigrants has improved and they have prospered, they have contributed greatly to the tax coffers of both the State of Minnesota and the federal government. The Minneapolis Federal Reserve in their latest study says that Minnesota’s African immigrants paid taxes of over $200 million to Minnesota and more than double that in federal taxes. Paying that much naturally leads one to think there should be no taxation without representation, a classic American attitude. Thus, African immigrants have decided they need to be at the center of decision making on how our tax dollars are spent. As our publisher stated in his Almanac appearance, “there is more to come.”
Pelosi assigns Ilhan Omar to Foreign Affairs Committee from Pg. 1 rights jurisdiction to hold the President accountable for deaths in detention centers on his watch. We need to investigate how foreign governments and their lobbyists have violated our laws. And we need to reign in arms sales to human rights abusers like Saudi Arabia. I look forward to working with Chairman Engel and the committee to pursue these priorities.” The first term congresswoman is on record as saying she will focus on the burdensome student loans that Americans have. She said her appointment to the education and labor committees should help towards that goal as its activities play a big role in the everyday lives of Minnesotans. “The Education and Labor Committee is the committee that can transform these ideas into legislation. I look forward to working with Chairman Scott and my fellow committee members to accomplish these goals and hold the current administration accountable for its efforts to stack the deck further in favor of the wealthy few.”
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Africa is ‘an example of solidarity’ towards migrants and refugees UN News Service
United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres, who spent 10 years as the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees, before taking up his position at the head of the organization, said that, in Africa, borders are open for refugees, and that the continent is in the leadership when it comes to addressing migration flows. Guterres was speaking in in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa where he was to attend the annual African Union summit, which brings together Heads of State from across the continent. This year’s event, which begun as this edition of Mshale went to press, was to focus on the issue of refugees and internally displaced persons. The UN chief pointed out that, contrary to popular perception, there are more African migrants in other African countries than in Europe, and migration has been dealt with in a much more humane way. Mr. Guterres appealed for
the UN’s global compacts on Migration and Refugees to be fully implemented. The UN Refugee Agency UNHCR says that Sub-Saharan Africa hosts more than 26 per cent of the world’s refugee population. 18 million people in the region are of concern to UNHCR, with conflicts and ongoing crises in the Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria and South Sudan, as well as Burundi and Yemen, driving large increases in the numbers of refugees and displaced people. On the eve of the summit, the UN Childrens’ Fund, UNICEF, published a press release warning that 13.5 million children have been uprooted in Africa – including those displaced by conflict, poverty and climate change – and called on African leaders to implement policies and programmes to protect, empower and invest in refugee, migrant and displaced children. Mr. Guterres struck a generally positive note in the press conference, pointing to recent peace deals and conflict deescalation across Africa. He cited
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UN Secretary-General speaks to the media in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, following a meeting with the Chairperson of the African Union Commission. Photo: UN
the reconciliation between Ethiopia and Eritrea; the establishment of peace agreements in South Sudan; and elections in Madagascar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mali, that took place in a peaceful context. The combined efforts of the African Union and the UN, he said, are producing results in conflict resolution and the prevention of conflicts, and Africa is seeing a “wind of hope” that can be extended to other parts of the world.
However, he went to say that there cannot be peace without development, and that the international community must show more political will in this area, particularly in climate action, and show ambition for mitigation, adaptation, and finance: “We are losing the race with climate change and this can be a disaster for Africa and for world. Africa will pay an even higher price because of the dramatic impacts in the continent.”
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February 2019 Issue 402
Wynred Russell takes oath as Brooklyn Park’s first black council member By Bethel Gessesse Mshale
FEB 8 Brooklyn Park mayor, Jeff Lunde, right, administers the oath of office on Wynfred Russell to serve on the Brooklyn Park City Council on Monday, January 7, 2019 at the council’s chambers. Russell who was born and raised in Liberia becomes the first black person to ever serve on the council. Photo: Bethel Gessesse/Mshale
“A N E X C E P T I O N A L PRODUCTION OF A P E R F EC T M U S I CA L” —The New York Times
Russell, a former instructor at the University of Minnesota, defeated former council member Bob Mata by garnering a convincing 55% of the vote in November’s midterm elections to make him the second person of color elected to the council after that of his now fellow council member, Susan Pha, two years ago. In 2012, Russell, who at the time served on the city’s planning commission, ran for a seat on the same council and lost by just five votes. This time, it was a joyous occasion as friends and family cheered and recorded the historic event.
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Dozens of Brooklyn Park residents last evening crammed into city council chambers to witness history being made in Minnesota’s sixth largest city, the swearing in of the city’s first black council member, Wynfred Russell, who was born and raised in Liberia.
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Minnesota is home to the largest population of Liberians in the United States with Brooklyn Park home to most of them. Many of them were present last night to witness the brief yet monumental event as one of their own placed his hand on his late father’s bible to take the oath of office. The bible had been sent over from Liberia a few days ago in time for the swearing in. In an interview with Mshale shortly after being elected in November, he said he looks forward to working
with others to improve the economic well being of the city’s residents. “I also intend to focus on the small businesses of which many are run by people of color and do not get the same tax breaks or incentives other big companies get from our city,” he said. “But if we can get some grants
Newly sworn Wynfred Russell takes his seat on the Brooklyn Park City Council. Born in Liberia, he becomes the city’s first black council person. Photo: Bethel Gessesse/Mshale
to support them, the small business is the backbone of the economy and it will benefit our city if they thrive.” Note: More pictures from the swearing-in ceremony are on mshale.com
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Nelima Sitati and Abdirahman Muse are finalists for Metropolitan Council A Kenyan-American and SomaliAmerican are among the 79 finalists selected to serve in the powerful Metropolitan Council, the regional policy-making body, planning agency, and provider of essential services for the Twin Cities metropolitan region. The 17-member Metropolitan Council is a policy-making board, which has guided the strategic growth of the metro area for nearly 50 years. Nelima Sitati and Abdirahman Muse will serve in District 2 and District 8 respectively if successful. The nominating committee will forward forward three candidates for each Council district by February 18, 2019 to Governor Tim Walz who will make the final selection for each of the 16 Council seats. The governor has a statutory deadline of March 4, 2019 in which to make the final appointments. More than 200 applicants applied to serve. Sitati is among a record number of eight black women that made the cut as finalists. The finalists will have an opportunity to provide public testimony at four public meetings at which the nominating committee. Each public hearing will feature candidates from four districts. Public testimony will not be allowed during the public interview process but you may submit letters of recommendation and support for candidates via email to: katie. driscoll@metc.state.mn.us.
Here is the full list of finalists; District 1 Doug Anderson Aarica Coleman Kenneth Ferguson Judy Johnson Karen Skepper District 2 Reva Chamblis
Nelima Sitati and Abdirahman Muse are among 79 finalists for 16 slots on the Metropolitan Council. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz will make the final selection for each of the 16 slots.
Nelima Sitati Joy Stephens Tim Willson Della Young District 3 Christopher Ferguson Denny Laufenburger Jennifer Munt Douglas Reeder Norrie Thomas District 4 Deb Barber Francis (Frank) Boyles Gerald Bruner Gail Cederberg Molly Koivumaki District 5 Katherine Bass Molly Cummings Joe Ellickson Ron Erhardt Leticia Guadarrama District 6 Lynnea Atlas-Ingebretson Janne Flisrand Shauen Pearce Paula Pentel Thomas Streitz District 7
C Terrence Anderson Thomas Forsythe Robert Lilligren Kenya McKnight Juana Sandoval District 8 David Fisher Pakou Hang Cara Letofsky Abdiraman Muse Elizabeth Ryan District 9 Dan Erhart Christopher Geisler Kathryn Schwartz Eckhardt Paul Way Raymond Zeran District 10 Karl Keel Janna King Angelica Klebsch Peter Lindstrom Marie McCarthy District 11 Mollie Miller Rolf Parsons Lori Pulkrabek Kaying Thao Susan Vento
District 12 David Engstrom Francisco Gonzalez Julie Ohs Leonard Price Jason Willett District 13 Keith Franke Richard Kramer Chai Lee Jill Smith Avinash Viswanathan District 14 C. Scott Cooper Angela Burns Finney Kris Fredson Nathaniel Hood Sean Kershaw District 15 Steven Chavez Paul Mandell Jeff Spartz Phillip Sterner Shannon Wohlman District 16 Danna Elling Bryce Lebrun Raj Rajan Wendy Wulff
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Saint Paul now has an Africa-born councilman Mshale Staff
Minnesota’s capital city of Saint Paul now has an African-born person on its city council. That city’s council and mayor appointed SomaliAmerican Kassim Busuri last week to take up a seat that opened up in December after the retirement of Dan Bostrom who had served for 22 years. Busuri will serve the remainder of Bostrom’s term which ends on December 31, 2019. He is the director of the Minnesota Dawah Institute and previously served as coordinator of the Community Ambassadors of the City of St. Paul Downtown. Additionally, he has served on the St. Paul chief of police advisory council. Councilman Busuri is already in office as of the writing of this report but the official inauguration ceremony will take place on February 6 at City Hall on the 3rd floor. He is the first Somali-American to sit on the Saint Paul City Council. Busuri will represent the Sixth Ward which is in Saint Paul’s East Side and includes the following neighborhoods; Frost Lake, Hayden Heights, Hazel Park, Payne/Phalen,
Phalen Village and Prosperity. A total of six finalists interviewed publicly for the position and eventually the council and mayor selected Busuri. Another Africa-born finalist was EritreanAmerican Wintana Melekin, a former Minneapolis NAACP officer and African Awards winner. Busuri has not indicated whether he will run for a full term when election time comes later this year but three people as of the writing of this report had already announced they will run for the seat when Bostrom announced his retirement and before Busuri was appointed. Kassim Busuri Inauguration Ceremony When: Wednesday, February 6, 2019 @ 9:00am Where: Saint Paul City Hall, 3rd Floor Address: 15 W Kellogg Blvd, St Paul, MN 55102
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Kassim Busuri will be inaugurated on Wednesday, February 6, 2019 as the City of Saint Paul’s newest council member. He was born in Somalia and will be come the city’s first Somali-American to sit on the council. Photo: Submitted
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Religion
Disney to host its first “Magical Pride” LGBT parade Disney will be sponsoring its first LGBT pride parade this year at its Paris theme park.
LGBT views, as seen on its television shows and movies such as “Beauty and the Beast,” and “Doc McStuffins” in 2018. In 2017, “Star vs. the Forces of Evil” introduced the company’s first male princess on the same show that previously drew controversy for featuring the first same-sex kisses.
The function will be called, “Magical Pride” and will take place on June 1, 2019, at Disneyland Paris, according to Magical Pride.com
The child-geared enterprise will also feature an openly gay role in their upcoming Disney’s live-action film, “Jungle Cruise.”
“Celebrating diversity at the place where dreams come true, Magical Pride warmly welcomes anyone and everyone to come and party, play and stay at Disneyland Paris,” the park’s website says.
Disney is following in the footsteps of many other family-based companies. Last year, the popular Macy’s Thanksgiving parade, which has also been known for its wholesome celebrations, made headlines for its first controversial public display of same-sex relations.
By Jeannie Law Christian Post
“Gay Days” at Walt Disney World in central Florida have been held the first Saturday in June since 1991, but the company has never officially sanctioned the event. According to Gay Star News, Magical Pride has been unofficially taking in Disneyland Paris since 2014, but this year marks the first time the park is endorsing and organizing the parade. The multinational mass media and entertainment company has been slowly adopting and promoting
Conservative groups, such as the American Family Association, have warned that Disney’s support for an activist LGBT agenda is immoral and promotes sinful behaviors.
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Disney will be sponsorsing its forst LGBT prode parade this year at its Paris theme park its website says.
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February 2019 Issue 402
Art & Entertainment
Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi dies at 66 AfroPop The African music community was shocked to learn of the untimely death of one of the continent’s greatest musicians, Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi of Zimbabwe on January 23. In his 66 years, he produced as many albums, full of songs that deeply endeared him to all Zimbabweans and many others all over the world. He was also a businessman, cultural activist, human rights champion and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Southern Africa. Born in 1952, Tuku grew up in the crowded Highfield township of Harare during the final decades of Rhodesian rule. He was a contemporary of Thomas Mapfumo, and both came of age during the brutal independence struggle of the 1970s, as Zimbabweans fought hard for liberation from the oppressive, racist Rhodesian regime. The two singers briefly worked together in a band called Wagon Wheels, and spent the next four decades as champions of roots music, particularly drawing on the musical traditions of the Shona people. Mtukudzi’s distinctive blend of traditional rhythms—mbira,
jerusarema, muchongoya and many others—with elements of South African mbaqanga, American gospel, soul and more, became universally recognized as “tuku music.” His lyrics were full of sage advice on good living—honesty, compassion for others, avoiding the scourges of alcohol and drug abuse and the maladies that accompany them. But he delivered these messages in a gentle, fatherly way. He exemplified the very qualities he celebrated.
open to varying interpretations. Tuku used to say that once the song was written, it was up to the listener to interpret it. In interviews, he was always wary of offering his own interpretations of lyrics, beyond their literal meaning. In this way, he maintained stature and credibility with his vast audience without ever directly supporting the regime. It was a delicate balance he struck, but he continued it with mastery until the day he died.
Tuku was a soulful singer with a robust voice, ranging from silken to gravelly, but always bursting with passion and moral authority. Songs like “Neria,” a man’s comforting advice to a sister, and “Todi,” a lament about AIDS, will live on forever. His 1995 gospel romp “Hear Me Lord” was covered by Bonnie Raitt, who became a good friend of Tuku’s during the 1990s.
Tuku’s band evolved over the years, always maintaining a fundamental integrity. In his late career, his sons performed with him. One son, Sam, was on his way to a promising solo career when he died in a car accident in 2010.
As political and economic conditions worsened in Zimbabwe, and many musicians, including Mapfumo, left the country, Tuku stayed with his people, deftly avoiding political controversies while offering profound support and comfort to those who suffered under the increasingly oppressive Mugabe regime. His lyrics were poetic, full of Shona folk wisdom, and often
Afropop Worldwide first met Tuku in Harare in 1988 and he was our friend from that day forward, always warm, courteous and generous with his time, music and wisdom. He was inducted into the Afropop Hall of Fame in 2014, during a period when he was tirelessly touring the world. He awakened countless Americans to the beauty of Zimbabwean music and became a favorite in concert halls and festivals. We last saw Tuku in April 2018, when he participated in Thomas Mapfumo’s “return” concert in Harare after 14 years
Oliver Mtukudzi 1952-2019
away. The two singers had their loyal followings, and were sometimes pitted as rivals, but as both explained at that historic concert, they have always been friends and have deep respect for each others’ art. At the concert, Tuku performed with vigor, even joining Mapfumo onstage to dance at one point, to the ecstatic joy of the 20,000-strong crowd. It is difficult to believe that a man so full of life so recently has now left us. Tuku battled diabetes for many years, and finally succumbed to the disease on Jan. 23 of this year. Afropop Worldwide will produce an hour-long tribute program to this giant of African music later in 2019.
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Health Traveling overseas? Don’t forget about immunizations By Minnesota Dept. of Health
Measles, a disease that spreads quickly, kills hundreds of children in the world every day. The disease is infecting people in Europe, Asia and Africa. There is something you can do to protect you and your family – get vaccinated. If you are traveling to another country, make sure that you and your children are up-to-date on your measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (called MMR). Children as young as 6 months old should receive the MMR vaccine. It can be easy to think that measles will not affect you and your family, but one Minnesota mother found out how dangerous it can be while traveling. Before traveling, the doctor recommended that her son get his MMR vaccine earlier than usual because they were traveling to visit family in Kenya. She wanted her son to get the vaccine, but he was finally sleeping. She decided it could wait until they came back. They were just going to visit family which didn’t seem like a big risk.
The day they returned home, her son developed a cough, runny nose, and watery, red eyes. Then he got a fever and became very tired. She took him to the doctor, and they said it was a virus and to watch him closely. The cough got worse and the fever got higher so she took him to the doctor again. This time they put him in the hospital because he had pneumonia. The doctors did more tests and put him in a private room – he had measles. It was hard for her child to breathe so they put him on a breathing machine. There were tubes in his mouth, nose and arms. She felt helpless. The doctors warned that her son might die. For three weeks she watched a machine breath for her son. The little boy survived, but his mother will never forget his suffering. The disease also spread to other people on the airplane and among family members that were not vaccinated. She tells anyone traveling overseas to places like Asia, Africa or Europe, “Be sure to get all the vaccines you or your family needs.” To keep your travels healthy, talk to
If planning to travel overseas, it is important to plan ahead to get the necessary vacinnations you need.
your clinic or doctor about your trip. Your doctor can tell you about the shots you and your family need and ways to stay healthy while traveling. Set up the appointment at the same time that you buy your plane tickets,
it gives you enough time to get all the needed vaccines. For more information, visit www.cdc. gov/travel.
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February 2019 Issue 402
HERE ARE BLACK-OWNED BRANDS THAT LAUNCHED AT TARGET THIS YEAR