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Hennepin County 2024 election vote is official
By Tom Gitaa Mshale
The Hennepin County Canvassing Board has certified the results of the November 5, 2024 election, the county announced Friday, Nov. 15 as this edition of Mshale went to press.
Voter turnout in this presidential election in the state’s most populous county topped 81%, compared to the 2020 presidential election when it was 85%. Total ballots cast were 724,543 compared to 760,044 in 2020.
More people voted on Election Day, 377,550 than in 2020 when 228,435 did so. In 2020, 531,609 people cast absentee ballots compared to 346,993 that did so this year.
The certification concludes the election process that saw the return of former President Donald Trump to the White House, the reelection of U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar and Tom Emmer, whose districts are partly in the county, and the election of new faces to represent
the county at the federal and state levels.
President-elect Trump only managed to win 27% of the vote in Hennepin County with Vice President Harris winning more than 69%.
In the U.S. Senate race, Amy Klobuchar easily carried the county 72% to Republican Royce White’s 23%.
Former state Sen. Kelly Morrison will replace Rep. Dean Philips as the new Third Congressional District representative after defeating Republican Tad Jude 59% to 40%. Rep. Philips did not seek reelection.
In the Minnesota Legislature, the county is sending five newcomers to St. Paul. In State Senate District 45, Ann Johnson Stewart (DFL) prevailed over Kathleen Fowke (R) 52% to 47% in a special election. It was the only seat in the 67-seat state Senate that was on the ballot. She is filling the seat previously held by U.S. Rep.-elect Kelly Morrison. Stewart held the seat from 2021 to 2023 when redistricting
paired her with Morrison and she decided not to seek reelection.
The county’s four new state representatives will be: Huldah Momanyi Hiltsley (DFL) – District 38A; Julie Greene (DFL) – District 50A; Katie Jones (DFL) – District 61A; Anquam Mahamoud (DFL) – District 62B.
All four Minnesota House seats were open, with incumbents not seeking reelection.
Four county commissioners were on the ballot in four districts and all won reelection, three of them handily.
Commissioner Jeff Lunde of District 1 won 76 percent of the vote to political newcomer Gulled Ahmed Badel’s 22 percent while Debbie Goettel of District 5 won by almost 68 percent to Jeffrey A. Beck’s 31 percent and Heather Edelson in District 6 won by 67 percent to challenger Marisa Simonetti’s 31 percent.
The closest race for the county board was in District 7 where Brad Kohler won reelection by 55 percent to Brad Kohler’s 43 percent.
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A Trump win, against the will of Black people
MNsure open enrollment for 2025 coverage underway P.2
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Gims brings FrenchCongolese pop to Madison Square Garden
Faith
resolve to protect migrants after Trump win
Hennepin County will have four new state representatives in its delegation to the Minnesota House of Representatives following the Nov. 5 election and a brand new U.S. Representative in Kelly Morrison, right. Top right and center are Katie Jones (DFL) – District 61A and Huldah Momanyi Hiltsley (DFL) –District 38A, Bottom left and center are Anquam Mahamoud (DFL) – District 62B and Julie Greene (DFL) – District 50A. All new to their roles.
Photos Courtesy of Candidates. Morrison and Hiltsley Photos by Mshale Photojournalist Jasmine Webber.
MNSure open enrollment is underway. Enroll by December 18 for coverage to start Jan. 1
By Mshale Staff
Open enrollment for Minnesota’s health insurance marketplace, MNsure, started on November 1 and is continuing. The open enrollment period runs through Jan. 15, 2025.
If you enroll before Dec. 18, 2024, your coverage will begin on Jan. 1, 2025 and if you enroll after Dec. 15, your coverage will start on Feb. 1, 2025.
Plans are available at MNsure,
and those with existing plans can also change them there.
“Quality health coverage continues to be more affordable for Minnesota families, but too many of our neighbors are still without insurance and even skipping necessary health care,” said MNsure CEO Libby Caulum in a statement. “If you need health insurance and don’t know where to turn, start at MNsure.org.”
All Minnesotans can continue to find a plan with premiums that cost no more than 8.5% of their annual household income, thanks to federal laws that capped the cost of premiums for the benchmark plan through 2025.
Certified brokers can help you compare several private health care plans free of charge as well as assist in getting applicable discounts for users.
MNsure-certified brokers are health plan experts who can answer questions, give advice, and help choose the right plan, according to MNsure while Navigators work at local, trusted community organizations and specialize in helping Minnesotans with
lower incomes enroll in free or low-cost insurance through Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare.
MNsure is the only place where Minnesotans can find savings to reduce their health care costs, including discounts (tax credits) and other forms of financial help. Eligible households are expected to save an average of $561 per month on their health insurance premiums next year with discounts available through MNsure.
MNsure has an assister directory
at mnsure.org/free-help where you can find help in-person, over the phone, or by virtual meeting to obtain the right plan.
All health plans sold through MNsure guarantee coverage for benefits like doctor’s visits, prescribed medications, mental health care, maternal and newborn care, emergency services, and more.
A social media post by MNsure. Open enrollment for Minnesota’s health insurance marketplace started on November 1 and will continue through Jan. 15, 2025. However, for coverage to start on Jan. 1, 2025, one must enroll by Dec. 18, 2024. Photo: Courtesy MNsure
MNsure CEO Libby Caulum. Photo: Courtesy U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum office
Guest Commentary by A. Scott Bolden
“Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they have done.”
In a stunning turn of events, America has once again found its neck under Donald Trump’s foot—a figure with a history that should make any truly patriotic American pause. Instead, voters have chosen to dance with the devil they know (and, apparently, miss). They’ve chosen to forego their own interests in the name of “change.”
It’s a choice that, maybe this time, we will come to regret.
Trump’s re-election has made it clear that we underestimated the power that economic anxiety has in shaping voter decisions. While many of us assumed that the protection of democracy and the core American values of choice and freedom would take precedence, the stark reality is that the fear of inflation, food, gas, and housing costs won out. People voted with their feelings instead of their minds, and Trump masterfully exploited this, offering hollow promises to “fix” it all without any real plan.
Just as he did before, he leaned into his manufactured, fabricated persona—a successful businessman, a fixer, a man of the people—and even more Americans bought the con again.
But let’s be real: this isn’t a man who knows what he’s doing. He’s not a planner or a visionary; Donald Trump is a liar. He’s a con artist, plain and simple. We saw his inaction on healthcare reform during the pandemic, his disastrous pre-pandemic tariff policies that economists almost universally criticized, and his complete disregard for the truth the entirety of his presidential tenure.
Does character even matter anymore in seeking America’s highest office? America: you voted for him; you now own him. Now what?
Now, he’s back with Project 2025, deputizing loyalists like Stephen Miller to reinforce a conservative agenda that’s dangerously extreme. With fewer guardrails this time around, Trump is poised to impose an agenda that could reshape our Democracy for generations to come—and not for the better.
Another Trump presidency means that Black and Brown communities could once again find themselves marginalized even further, but he somehow made significant inroads in urban centers and among Latino and Black voters—a shocking and sobering fact. It seems the Democratic Party took these communities for granted, assuming their loyalty
without taking meaningful steps to address the everyday issues impacting their lives. Dem strategists wrongfully believed that Trump, with his history of bigotry and divisive rhetoric, would translate into a common sense vote for Harris.
But for voters grappling with soaring living costs and stagnant wages, Trump’s promises, however empty, offered a glimmer of hope that the Democrats, regrettably, failed to provide.
Trump sold himself as the answer to America’s problems, yet he offers only the same lies: he is the only one that can end the wars, fix inflation, bring down food and gas prices, and make life affordable, again.
How, exactly? I don’t know. These are the same promises he made years ago, and we’re still waiting for those results.
This time, he’ll have even more power to push through his agenda without fear of accountability: the House flipped red, the Senate flipped red, and the Supreme Court is already red–coming down with a decision that offers him protection from many criminal prosecutions. The guardrails that once kept him somewhat in check are now gone. We’re about to see Trump unhinged and unleashed: backed by a court that’s aligned with his vision and a Congress ready to do his bidding, ready to turn back the clock on progress under the guise of “saving” America. Plus, expect another round of conservative federal judicial appointments blessed by the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation.
Why do people vote against their own interests? Why do they ignore the acute, undeniable flaws in a man like Donald Trump?
It comes down to ignorance and despair, plain and simple.
When people feel disempowered, when they see no real improvement in their lives despite positive economic indicators, they gravitate towards strong, unfiltered rhetoric. Trump presents himself as a man outside the system, a disruptor who will fight for the average American. And so, many Americans—jaded and desperate for change—chose to embrace the “devil” they know, believing that maybe, just maybe, this time he’ll be different.
But he won’t be different. Donald Trump was never the man that they thought he was, and he never will be. This is the same man who suffers from deep narcissism, chronic business failure, who’s been found liable for fraud and sexual abuse, and who stoked the flames of division and discord to further his own agenda. This is the man who led America to one of its darkest moments on January 6th, 2021.
This is a convicted felon 34 times over. And somehow America still voted for him. In a strange way, this says more about America than it could ever say about Trump. We know who Trump is—is this really who America is and wants to be today and has always been?
To believe that he’s somehow learned his lesson or will suddenly care about the quality of life for all Americans is to ignore the mountain of evidence to the contrary. America is not getting a new and improved Trump; it’s getting a more experienced version of the same divisive, self-serving con man.
The repercussions of this election will be felt deeply in the coming years. America will see a reversal of healthcare reform, human rights, civil rights, climate regulation and other constitutional safeguards as Trump and his cronies take over. The marginalized communities that once looked to the government as a bulwark may now find it to be an assailant, with policies that prioritize corporate interests and the wealthy at the expense of the working class.
This election has exposed a painful truth about America: we are willing to overlook character and competence, even racism and sexism when we feel desperate for change. But be clear—this is not the kind of change we need.
Those who voted for Trump may/will come to regret their decision, that he never cared about the average American and that he was always in it for himself. But the realization will have been too late. The damage will have been irreparably completed. Policies, once enacted, can take decades to reverse, and the scars left on our democracy will take generations to heal, if at all.
Choosing Trump means that America has placed its faith in a man who trafficks in chaos, corruption, and crime. He is not the solution to our problems; he is a reflection of the underbelly of this country—a society so fractured and jaded that it’s willing to entrust its future to a man it would never let babysit their own children.
As I write this, I hope I’m wrong. I sincerely, deeply hope that Trump proves me and every critic wrong, that he somehow rises to the occasion and becomes the leader we need. But history tells a different story, and I can’t help but brace myself for what’s to come.
May God Bless America, especially for the next four (4) years.
A. Scott Bolden is the former Chair of the DC Democratic Party and a NewsNation political contributor. He wrote this for the
World’s largest urban development forum concludes with Cairo Call to Action
By UN News
The twelfth edition of the World Urban Forum wrapped up on Friday, Nov. 8, with the adoption of the Cairo Call to Action, after intense discussions focused on the global housing crisis and financing urbanization, all under the theme “It All Starts at Home.” Ahead of the closing ceremony, UN-Habitat Executive Director, Anaclaudia Rossbach, emphasised the Forum’s timely emphasis on local action.
“Over half of the world’s population now resides in urban areas,” she said, as she highlighted the pivotal role of local governments in shaping cities and human settlements.
WUF12 was “a turning point in the journey of the World Urban Forum,” she declared.
Over the past five days, WUF12, convened biennially by UN-Habitat, explored urbanization through six main dialogues, roundtables, assemblies, and partner-led events.
“We have broken many records and scaled new heights at this World Forum,” Ms. Rossbach stated, citing impressive metrics,
organizers.
In all over 63,000 people, in person or online, attended dialogues, sessions and discussions.
Discussions at WUF12, she said, highlighted key challenges central to promoting sustainable cities. These included the urgency of addressing the global housing crisis, recognizing that adequate housing is a human right and its links to climate and humanitarian crises.
from best practices to accelerate action effectively and at scale, is equally important, she said, as is leveraging the potential of coalitions and partnerships in the face of complex and unprecedented challenges.
On the final day, delegations adopted the Cairo Call to Action, pledging to act with urgency to address the global housing crisis as well as leveraging local action to achieving global goals and targets.
local outcomes, and unlocking finance for cities and communities.
Delegations also committed to ensuring equity and justice for sustainable cities, leveraging local and grassroots data for decision-making, harnessing culture and heritage as an asset for sustainability, and building coalitions and alliances to scale local impact.
including the attendance of over 24,000 participants from 182 countries.
In addition, four heads of state, 60 ministers, 45 deputy ministers and 96 mayors, attended more than 700 events from 1,500
Alongside, finance for urban sustainability must be prioritizing, through tapping into unused financial resources in cities, as needed.
Capturing, sharing, and learning
The Cairo Call to Action also emphasized, among other points, the need for sustaining a systemic representation of local actors at all levels, sharing urban spaces and opportunities inclusively, urban planning to deliver better
Speaking at the closing, Egypt’s Minister of Housing, Sherif ElSherbiny, reinforced the theme’s importance, stating, “everything starts locally, from where we live.”
Cairo Cont’d on Pg. 4
UN-Habitat Executive Director, Anaclaudia Rossbach closing the Cairo conference.
Photo: UN TV Liveatream Screengrab
The twelfth World Urban Forum (WUF12) was held in Cairo November 4-8, 2024. Photo: Khaled Mohamed/UN
A Trump win, against the will of Black voters
A second Trump administration would likely be friendly to the notorious Heritage Foundation manifesto known as Project 2025
By Brandon Tensley and Christina Carrega Capital B
For the overwhelming majority of Black voters, a political nightmare is becoming a reality: Donald Trump secured enough Electoral College votes to win the 2024 presidential election, according to the Associated Press.
With a win in Wisconsin, Trump cleared the 270 electoral votes needed to clinch the presidency.
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, many Black voters were at least hopeful, buoyed by polls showing that Vice President Kamala Harris enjoyed a consistent lead nationally and a narrow advantage in most battleground states.
Harris supporters such as former U.S. Capitol police officer Harry Dunn said that the country couldn’t afford another Trump presidency. Dunn was on duty when Trump acolytes laid siege to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in an attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election that Joe Biden won. “People have been on the phones all day, making sure
Supporters watch as results come in at an election night campaign watch party for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, on the campus of Howard University in Washington.
Photo: Susan Walsh/AP
Trump Cont’d on Pg. 8
He pledged that Egypt’s government will continue to work toward providing a “decent life” and sustainable development for all citizens.
“We are able. We can build a better future for us and for the next generation,” he added.
Several non-governmental organization (NGOs) and civil society organizations emphasized safety and inclusivity, such as the Van Leer Foundation, which supports young children, caregivers and communities worldwide.
Chief Programme Officer Rushda Majeed highlighted the foundation’s mission to foster inclusive communities, noting that WUF12 was valuable for showcasing actions from prior Forums.
She highlighted the many conversations and presentations, building upon earlier outcomes.
“We find this of great value in terms of not only meeting people and advocating for particular causes but really learning about what has been done.”
On the closing day, discussions focused on creating safer spaces for future generations.
One roundtable featured Professor Anna Barker from the Univer-
sity of Leeds, in the United Kingdom, who shared her research on women’s and girls’ safety in public parks.
“We spoke to a diverse range of women and girls,” she said, “and used their feedback to create new guidance.”
This guidance has been imple-
mented through the Green Flag Award programme across 17 countries.
In the coming weeks and months, UN-Habitat will highlight the outcomes of WUF12 at key events, including COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Ms. Rossbach said the outcomes
would inform discussions within UN-Habitat and the first openended Intergovernmental Working Group on Adequate Housing for All.
“We are excited about the journey to Baku,” she added, referencing the 2026 WUF13, as the Forum continues to address the challenges of urbanization.
your doctor or travel clinic as soon as you know you
Sherif El-Sherbiny, Egypt’s Minister of Housing addresses the World Urban Forum in Cairo that ended with a Call to Action.
Photo: Khaled Mohamed/UN
A Trump win, against the will of Black people
Cont’d from Pg. 5
they’re getting out there to vote,” Dunn told Capital B on Election Day.
“And making sure that we get her elected, so that we can turn the page on this and get back to some sense of normalcy going forward.”
But when the race was called for Trump early Wednesday morning, it was clear that normalcy might not return anytime soon.
A second Trump administration would likely be friendly to the notorious Heritage Foundation manifesto known as Project 2025, a combination that could be disastrous for Black communities.
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, Trump had been spewing racism and misinformation to his followers, causing D.C. metro-area residents such as Dunn to second-guess leaving the safety of their homes when the polls closed after dusk. Dunn worries about the cruelty that Trump has unleashed. It’s a reality that has pulled into focus the stakes of the contest.
On Wednesday afternoon (Nov.6), Harris addressed a crowd at her alma mater, Howard University, to officially concede the race. To chants of “Kamala” and Beyonce’s Freedom playing in the background, the Vice President told her supporters that “the outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for. But hear me when I say: The light of America’s promise will always burn bright.”
“Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars,” she added.
Harris confirmed that the Biden administration would afford the Trump transition team something that his administration did not extend to them in 2020: a peaceful transition. “Anyone who seeks the public’s trust must honor it,” she said. “We must accept the results of this election.”
“While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign,” she added, noting her campaign’s fight for “freedom, opportunity, fairness, and dignity of all people.”
The following day, President Joe Biden delivered a six-minute speech, his first appearance on camera since Trump’s victory. The president said he spoke with Trump and ensured a “peaceful and orderly transition,” because that’s what the people deserve.
Biden also set out to assure the American people that the U.S. election system “is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent. And it can be trusted, win or lose.”
“Setbacks are unavoidable,” he said about his political party’s defeat, “but giving up is unforgivable.”
Project 2025 seeks to dismantle the civil rights agenda of the past half a century, Omar Wasow, an assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Berkeley, told Capital B.
A Trump White House shaped by it, he continued, could create a political future where it’s not out of the question that Black communities and other vulnerable groups rely on something like a Green Book to help them navigate a hostile country.
“And to be clear, we’re already seeing versions of this,” Wasow said. “If you have a transgender kid, you’re thinking about where you can live. If you’re pregnant, you might be thinking about where you have to travel to get an abortion without getting prosecuted.”
Propelled not by Black voters but by his overwhelmingly-white base, Trump had become even more unhinged, increasingly leaning into vile threats. Over just the past several weeks, he’s said that Harris is “dumb as a rock” and that former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who endorsed Harris, is “a deranged person” who ought to have guns “trained on her face.”
“I just think that [this race] is important, not only for the kids’ future, but for women’s also. I think that it’s important for the women’s rights that we’re fighting for,” Shiney Pittman, a New Orleans native, told Capital B on Election Day, referring to the anger that many women feel as Republican leaders turn back the clock on reproductive rights. “I always vote, no matter what’s going on around me — no matter if I live in a Republican state.”
It all came down to the “Blue Wall” states
Awaiting the results on early Wednesday, Black Americans across the country were white-knuckling: There was a laser focus on the “Blue Wall” states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin — and specifically on the urban centers of Detroit, Philadelphia, and Milwaukee.
But Harris didn’t seem to enjoy the margins in these critical cities that President Joe Biden had in 2020.
That anxiety only compounded what had been a nerve-racking Election Day. Bomb scares briefly interrupted voting at two polling places in Union City, a majority-Black area located right outside of Atlanta.
While the FBI and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said that these were just hoaxes, possibly perpetrated by Russian operatives, Black voters were still worried about the simmering threat of political violence.
“I think that it’s impossible to have witnessed the climate leading up to this election and not have concerns about the direction of this country,” Janai Nelson, the president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, told Capital B, noting that the Jan. 6 insurrection continues to loom large in many people’s minds.
Sekou Franklin, a political scientist at Middle Tennessee State University, echoed some of these thoughts.
He said that he feared that Trump, by repeatedly lying that Democrats had rigged the vote, was whipping into a frenzy white nationalist groups such as the Proud Boys.
“There’s been some signaling that he’s done to these groups, which
he also did in 2020,” Franklin told Capital B. “Now, whether or not that’s going to break through and force political violence depends upon a lot of the factors,” he added. “Historically, political violence has been a mainstay of American politics,” he said.
On Election Day, Trump spread lies on social media that there was voter fraud in majority-Black Philadelphia. Additionally, throughout this election cycle, conservative leaders sought to use disinformation as a means to suppress Black voter turnout.
This fraud narrative fueled the “stop the steal” and “stop the count” rhetoric in 2020 and ultimately led to the assault on the Capitol.
Even so, Harris, Democrats, and civil rights organizers worked tirelessly during the campaign to keep voters informed about the state of the election.
There were so many groups countering disinformation, especially Black women groups such as Win With Black Women and Higher Heights, Sharon Austin, a political scientist at the University of Florida, told Capital B. Those groups mounted social media campaigns to help disseminate correct information.
Austin added that these efforts will be just as valuable in the days and weeks ahead, as Trump likely spins a tale.
“We know that that’s what he is — who he is,” Austin said.
Capital B Staff writers Adam Mahoney and Aallyah Wright contributed to this report. This story was originally published on Capital B. and is reprinted by permission.
President Joe Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington. Photo: Evan Vucci)/AP
Religion Faith groups resolve to protect migrants, refugees after Trump win
By Alejad Hertzler-McCain Religion News Service
(RNS) — Former President Donald Trump’s election to a second term prompted faith groups that work with migrants and refugees to reaffirm their commitment to continue their work on Wednesday (Nov. 6), after Trump campaigned on blocking migration and carrying out record deportations.
“Given President-elect Trump’s record on immigration and promises to suspend refugee resettlement, restrict asylum protections, and carry out mass deportations, we know there are serious challenges ahead for the communities we serve,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Global Refuge, formerly known as Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, in a statement.
On the campaign trail, Trump also promised to end automatic citizenship for immigrants’ children born in the U.S.; end protected legal status for certain groups, including Haitians and Venezuelans; and reinstate a travel ban for people from certain Muslim-majority areas.
If Trump carries out his plans, FWD.us, an immigration and criminal justice reform advocacy organization, projects that by the start of 2025, about 1 in 12 U.S. residents, and nearly 1 in 3 Latino residents, could be impacted by the mass deportations either because of their legal status or that of someone in the household.
“If the mass deportation articulated throughout the campaign season is implemented, it would tear families, communities, and the American economy apart,” Mark Hetfield, president of HIAS, a Jewish nonprofit working with refugees, said in a statement. “The solution to the disorder at the border is to prioritize comprehensive immigration reform that updates our antiquated immigration laws while protecting people who need refuge.”
“We will continue to speak truth to power in solidarity with refugees and displaced people seeking safety around the world,” Hetfield said. “We will not be intimidated into silence or inaction,” his organization wrote.
Omar Angel Perez, immigrant justice director for Faith in Action, a social justice organization, said in a statement, “We recognize the fear and uncertainty many are feeling and pray that we can channel that energy into solidarity and resilience.”
“This moment calls us to take immediate action to protect the communities targeted throughout this campaign and during the prior Trump administration,” Perez said. “We remain committed to providing resources, support, and training to empower people to know their rights and stand firm against attempts to undermine their power.”
Matthew Soerens, vice president of advocacy
and policy at World Relief, the humanitarian arm of the National Association of Evangelicals, pointed to polling by Lifeway Research earlier this year that showed that 71% of evangelicals agree that the U.S. “has a moral responsibility to accept refugees.”
“A majority of Christian voters supported President-elect Trump, according to the exit polls, but it’d be an error to presume that means that most Christians align with everything that he’s said in the campaign related to refugees and immigration,” he said.
Soerens explained that when Christians “realize that most refugees resettled to the U.S. in recent years have been fellow Christians, that they’re admitted lawfully after a thorough vetting process overseas and that many were persecuted particularly because of their faith in Jesus, my experience has been that they want to sustain refugee resettlement.”
“We’ll be doing all we can to encourage President-elect Trump, who has positioned himself as a defender of Christians against persecution, to ensure that the U.S. remains a refuge for those fleeing persecution on account of their faith or for other reasons recognized by U.S. law,” he said.
In a statement, Jesuit Refugee Service said Trump’s 2024 campaign rhetoric and his previous term had harmed “forcibly displaced people.”
Policies in his first term “separated families, set up new hurdles in the asylum process, dramatically reduced the number of refugees the U.S. resettled, introduced a ban on admitting travelers from predominantly Muslim countries, and deprioritized international efforts to address the exploding global refugee population,” the Catholic organization said.
To welcome and serve migrants is “an obligation” for Catholics, the JRS statement said. “How we respond to the tens of millions of people forced to flee their homes is a serious moral, legal, diplomatic, and economic question that impacts all of us,” the organization wrote.
Despite the disproportionate impact that Trump’s proposed immigration policies would have on Latino communities, Trump made significant gains among Latinos compared with pre-
vious elections, winning Latino American men’s vote by 10 points.
The Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, attributed Trump’s success to several factors, including a rejection of progressive ideologies, economic concerns and concerns about government overreach.
But the evangelical megachurch pastor also said, “While immigration is a nuanced issue within the Latino community, there is a growing sentiment against open-border policies and the provision of resources to illegal immigrants at the perceived expense of American citizens.”
Karen González, a Guatemalan immigrant and author of several books on Christian responses to immigration, called Trump’s victory in the popular vote “especially crushing” in light of his antimigrant rhetoric. She attributed Trump’s success with Latinos to white supremacy and misogyny within the community.
“We really aspire to be secondary white people, and we think that aligning ourselves with white supremacy is going to save us, and it’s not,” she said.
González was among the faith leaders who said they had not emotionally reckoned with the possibility of a Trump win before the results were announced.
Dylan Corbett, executive director of Hope Border Institute, a Catholic organization that supports migrants in El Paso, Texas, and in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, across the U.S.-Mexican border, told RNS, “I was hopeful that we had turned the page because I think (the first Trump term) represents a really challenging time in our country.”
Corbett called for “deep reckoning” in churches and grassroots communities. “There’s the perception that the (immigration) system is broken, and I think the longer we wait to really fix the situation, you open up the door to political extremism. You open up the door to incendiary rhetoric, to cheap solutions,” he said.
While President Joe Biden’s administration had begun with “some really aspirational rhetoric,” it “left a mixed legacy on immigration,” opening the
door to Trump’s “dangerous politics.”
“Faith leaders in particular are going to have to assume a very public voice in defense of the human rights of now a very vulnerable part of our community,” he said.
Corbett expressed concern that Trump might mirror Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s tactics in Operation Lone Star in his push for massive deportations, citing deaths due to high-speed chases on highways and record migrant deaths.
“It’s going to fall to border communities like El Paso to deal with the fallout of what we can expect will be some very broken policies and some very dangerous rhetoric,” Corbett said. “And so I think we have to prepare for that. And that means turning back to our faith, going back to the Gospels, going back to the witness of Jesus, the witness of the saints, martyrs,” he said.
In Global Refuge’s statement, the organization encouraged Americans to support immigrants and refugees, “emphasizing the importance of family unity, humanitarian leadership, and the long-standing benefits of immigrant and refugee contributions to U.S. communities and economies.”
Vignarajah added, “In uncertain times, it is vital to remember that our role as Americans is to help those in need, and in doing so, we advance our own interests as well.”
Perez told RNS before the election that Faith in Action had prepared for a potential Trump win and that the organization would draw on its experience “responding to the attacks on the immigrant community” and mounting protection defense campaigns to prevent deportations.
González recalled working in a legal clinic after Trump’s 2016 election and helping migrants process citizenship and sponsorship applications before he took office. “This is really the time for that sort of practical action of how we can serve our neighbors,” she said.
“Together, we will transform our grief into a force for change that will build a more just, equitable society that respects the dignity of all people,” Perez said.
Omar Angel Perez
Photo: Courtesy Faith for Liberation
A group of French-speaking migrants from Congo and Angola wait at the Greyhound bus station in San Antonio, Texas, U.S. June 11, 2019
Photo: Callaghan O’Hare/AP
Art & Entertainment
Gims brings French-Congolese pop to Madison Square Garden Theater
By Banning Eyre Afropop
Gims, formerly Maitre Gims, is a fantastically successful French-Congolese singer, rapper, producer and songwriter. Born in Congo the son of Djanana Djuna, one of Papa Wemba’s singers in the band Viva la Musica, he came to the world as Gandhi Alimasi Djuna. He later adopted the name stage name Gims because “it sounded American.” He told me this at a press event on November 1, the night before his sold-out show at the Theater at Madison Square Garden on November 2. Gims’s hit songs rarely sound like the Congolese music of old, but he insists it is the essence of his art.
“I have been in this music since I was little,” he told me, “the Congolese rumba. My father was singing with Papa Wemba, who left us. So I think this allowed me to have my own style. Maybe because I was also a fan of his music, I was able to mix it with pop, with rap. So it’s something that has helped me to sculpt my identity today.” Wemba, of course, was both adored and criticized for his ventures beyond the standard boundaries of Congolese pop, but he too always professed a nearreligious fidelity to rumba.
In Gims’s generation, expectations are different, and his outsize success in France is formidable. “In Congo today,” he says, “I hold a very important place with the people because I am an ambassador of the country and an ambassador of music. It’s true that I have a relationship with Congo that is different, that is almost political. That has always been the case with Congolese singers, they have always been very linked to politics despite themselves.” Cultural politics in Congo is a hot topic. Even though Congolese musicians have rarely sung outright politics, it has always a constant, hidden, subscript.
Gims was willing to be more direct when asked his thoughts on the rise of Nigerian Afrobeats. He said, “I think that at the risk of perhaps offending some people from Nigeria, Congolese music, Congolese rumba, is the basis of African music. It’s the culture, it’s the cradle. That’s where everything starts, and so I think that we do not feel as many thrills as with Congolese rumba. Anyone can tell you who Koffi Olomide is, you ask
Wizkid, you ask Rema, anyone, they are all fans of Koffi Olomide. They respect such people because they are legends. They are people who have shed light on African music. For example, Tabu Ley Rochereau had already played the Olympia when the films were still in black and white. There was no Nigerian music, even Ivorian music, which I love and particularly appreciate. But Congolese rumba is incomparable.”
That was a nice touch, tying his own arrival at Madison Square Garden to Tabu Ley’s landmark performance at the Olympia in Paris in 1968. But Gims seemed genuinely humbled by the prospect of performing for 5000+, mostly white, largely French, fans at MSG.
“I am very grateful to be able to sing in this magnificent hall that is sold out. Sold out! There are so many talented artists who have not had the chance to sing in this hall. So I hope to live up to them.”
That he did. At the Garden Theater, he had the crowd enraptured, alternating between rapping and singing, rolling out the hits backed by a taut, versatile five-piece band. Gims’s tenor voice is warm and horn-like, and powerfully authoritative. It filled the hall, easily riding above the band’s clave-pop grooves. The show previewed a few songs from his upcoming EP, including his latest video, “Sois Pas Timide,” filmed in Montreal.
Gims performs at Madison Square Garden Theater on November 2, 2024. Photo: Banning Eyre/Afropop
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De-complicating Medicare Advantage vs. Medicare Supplement plans.
When you reach Medicare age, it can be a little overwhelming. It’s like a whole new puzzle of health plan coverage that needs to be solved. There are many who call me and ask, “Can you just put it together for me?”
At UCare, we can certainly do that. But we also really want members to understand what they are getting and why. The plan you select all depends on your life and what kind of coverage you need and don’t need.
Apart from Original Medicare, there are two plan types that people who are aging into Medicare gravitate toward: Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare Supplement plans. Let’s dive in.
Medicare Advantage plans
Think of a Medicare Advantage plan like a bundle of benefits. It combines your Original Medicare, Part A (hospital insurance) with Part B (medical insurance). UCare Medicare Advantage plans
give you extra coverage and benefits like dental, prescription eyewear and hearing aids. Most plans also include prescription drug coverage (Part D), which can become increasingly important as you age.
UCare has been offering Medicare Advantage plans since 1998 — longer than any other health plan provider in Minnesota. And today, they’re some of the most popular plans. We have a range of Medicare Advantage plans to choose from that include coverage while you travel and allowances for over-the-counter purchases.
One more thing: UCare Medicare Advantage plans work fantastically for local Minnesotans, due to their large network that includes 97% of Minnesota medical clinics and hospitals.* So if you have a clinic you’ve always used, your chances are good that it’s in-network. And with no referral needed to see a specialist, getting the care you need is easy.
Medicare Supplement plans
A Medicare Supplement plan is something you pair with your Original Medicare. In other words, it supplements your plan. Get it? These policies help pay for the out-of-pocket costs that are not covered by Original Medicare (Part A and Part B).
The main benefits of a UCare Medicare Supplement plan is protection and predictability. You will have low or no copays or coinsurance when you get care, so your costs are predictable. Your monthly premiums are your main costs — no more unexpected medical bills. Speaking of, UCare’s Medicare Supplement plans offer some of the lowest Medicare Supplement premiums in Minnesota.
Another great benefit of a Medicare Supplement plan is the nationwide coverage. You can see any doctor who accepts Medicare patients, anywhere you go in all 50 states. This is especially useful whether you’re traveling, moving or living in a place where there are fewer providers nearby.
You also get extras like no-cost fitness memberships and discounts on hearing aids.
Why roll with UCare?
I’ve just gone over a couple categories of plans, but please know that we have a variety of plans for everyone, all across Minnesota! Each of them is designed to meet your health and lifestyle needs. The best way to know which one is right for you is to sit down with a broker, or someone like myself,
to help find the plan that’s right for you.
Finally, I’ve been riding with UCare for nearly 10 years now, and I can honestly tell you — it’s the people who make our company go. That’s why we often say we’re “people powered” — never stopping until we know that you understand your plan and you’re comfortable with it. And if there’s ever a problem, we don’t send you up a phone tree. We work the problem individually until it’s solved. It might be why nearly 95% of UCare Medicare Advantage members choose to stay with UCare year after year.**
If you have any questions about anything I’ve covered, you should reach out to your local broker. They can help you decide which plan makes the most sense. Visit ucare.org/ma to find a broker near you.
You can also give UCare a call at 1-866-460-5093 or stop by the headquarters in NE Minneapolis or our Duluth office.
UCare headquarters 500 Stinson Blvd NE Minneapolis, MN 55414 Monday – Friday, 9 am – 4 pm
UCare Duluth office
325 West Central Entrance Suite 200 Duluth, MN 55811 Monday – Friday, 9 am – 4 pm
*Based on 2023 CMS data
**Based on internal UCare enrollment data from 2022 compared to 2021
By Albert — UCare plan de-complicator
