In 2022, the City of Minneapolis began a process to engage with the community. Through this process, they intend to re-envision and redesign the area in a way that reflects community needs. In recognition that there is a strong desire an intentional, robust, and honest community engagement process, this is a significant opportunity for us all to define the future of 38th & Chicago.

Dinner and learning table discussion post-presentation. Local community encouraged to attend.

Westminster Town Hall Forum director Tane Danger will moderate a conversation and Q&A with:

– Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt

– Minneapolis Community Safety Commissioner Cedric Alexander

– St. Paul Deputy Chief of Community Engagement Pam Barragan

They will discuss how each is turning their campaign promises into tangible action. Danger will ask how they are tackling the broad range of issues on Minnesotans’ minds when it comes to public safety, including housing insecurity, addiction, elevated crime and access to resources. They will also open the conversation up for audience Q&A.

Free and open to all in-person. Light refreshments will be served.

There is parking available on-site for $10. The entrance is on Alice Rainville Place.

Westminster is accessible by numerous transit lines.

The program will also be live-streamed at www.towntalksonnicollet.org

In Partnership with WILD

This TownTalks is co-presented with The Wanton Injustice Legal Detail (WILD). Their mission is to provide a platform through which lawyers and members can actively combat anti-Black racism and all forms of racism through direct support and partnerships with existing community organizations currently rooted in this work. 

Ever wondered who benefits from development on the West Side? Or how you can make your voice heard in planning for a fair future for all in our neighborhood?

Join us at Our Side: an open house for equitable development!

We'll have opportunities to learn about the West Side Equitable Development Scorecard, and a special interview with Kareem Smith, a West Sider with years of experience evaluating developments for affordability, accessibility, environmental impact, and more.

Free! Childcare and refreshments provided. Interpretation available upon request. Black, Indigenous, people of color, people living with disabilities, and youth especially encouraged to attend.

Learn more https://www.wsco.org/ourside

Virtual Community Forum

Speedway - 22nd & Lyndale

The office of Ward 10 Councilmember Aisha Chughtai is hosting a virtual community forum regarding public safety concerns with the Speedway gas station at 22nd St and Lyndale Ave S on Wednesday June 7th, from 6:30-7:30 pm. Virtual link below.

Joining the Councilmember will be representatives from Speedway’s leadership team and Inspector Katie Blackwell of MPD’s 5th Precinct. Learn about what Speedway and MPD are doing to mitigate safety concerns at this site, with a community Q&A to follow.

If you have questions in the meantime, please email the Ward 10 office at ward10@minneapolismn.gov.

____________________________________________________________________

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join on your computer, mobile app or room device

Click here to join the meeting

Meeting ID: 278 388 545 66
Passcode: z9hhUB

Download Teams | Join on the web

Or call in (audio only)

+1 612-276-6670,,448106988#   United States, Minneapolis

Phone Conference ID: 448 106 988#

MNIPL is excited to sponsor Paving the Way to Justice 40, a forum featuring Minnesota environmental justice advocates. Hear from the diverse voices who are forging full, equitable participation of our state’s Indigenous and BIPOC communities in the clean energy revolution. 

New Federal funding and State policies have launched an era of investment in clean energy infrastructure, electrification, and decarbonization. 

Learn how these new opportunities will help communities confronted by decades of underinvestment and overburdened by pollution access critical resources. Network with experts shaping these initiatives and celebrate leaders who have significantly contributed to advancing Minnesota’s environmental justice/clean energy policy.

Monday, June 5, 8:00am - 1:00pm
Metro State University, New Main Hall
403 Maria Ave, Saint Paul
Lunch sponsored by the McKnight Foundation

REGISTER

For more information on this month’s speakers: Westminster Town Forum

Schedule and format
Town Hall Forums are held eight to ten times a year. A forum is one hour in length and consists of a speaker presentation followed by a Q&A with written questions from the audience. Local musicians perform a half hour before each forum, and a public reception, often with a book-signing by the speaker, follows the presentation.

Admission and seating
Forums are free and open to all. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and no ticket or registration is required. Doors open at least one hour before the presentation begins.

There is parking (bicycle and car) at Westminster! The Westminster parking ramp is located on Alice Rainville Place between Nicollet Ave and Marquette. Additional parking is available in other parking ramps and at automated meters on the streets. Westminster is accessible by numerous public transit options. Nice Ride bicycles are also a (great) option.

Watch

The Town Hall Forum will broadcast on this page of the website, and also on our Facebook page. It will also be archived here for future viewing!

Listen

Minnesota Public Radio is broadcasting the Spring 2023 Town Hall Forums as a special week of programs. You can hear one each day at noon during the week of May 22. And you can still listen/watch live here on our website.

Did you know that Minnesota youth are the only youth in the nation that have an official voice in legislation? Join us on May 16th to learn about the four key initiatives of the Minnesota Youth Council (MYC) and the work they have done this legislative session in pursuit of a just and equitable Minnesota.

The MYC envisions a state that prioritizes the agency and voice of young people from all backgrounds. The MYC is a collaborative of youth leaders that works to amplify the voice and power of their peers across the state of Minnesota. These young leaders are the go-to group in Minnesota for elevating and championing youth voice in decision-making. Members of the MYC are change agents in their communities and across the state, leading the way with youth-centered systems change. The Council is comprised of 8th-12th graders representing each congressional district in Minnesota and provides guidance to the legislature, governor, and Department of Education on issues affecting young people.

ABOUT POOJA LAKSHMIN

Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, M.D. is a board-certified physician psychiatrist, a Clinical Assistant Professor at George Washington University, and a New York TimesContributor. She has a particular focus on the intersection of gender and mental health. She is the founder and CEO of Gemma, the first digital education platform dedicated exclusively to women’s mental health, centering inclusion and impact.

In her book, Real Self-Care, Dr. Lakshmin examines the problematic nature of for-profit “self-care” solutions that are largely marketed toward women and focuses on offering tangible psychological tools to manage difficult emotions, set boundaries, make choices aligned with their values, and develop mental health literacy.

She will discuss the shortcomings of pop-“wellness” and offer real, scientifically-backed tools and strategies for wellbeing informed by cultural practices from around the world.

Dr. Lakshmin serves on the Board of Directors for the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance –a national non-profit dedicated to further maternal mental health policy – and the Editorial Advisory Board of Clinical Psychiatry News. She is also a frequent contributor to The New York Times, (How Can I Make the Holidays Less Exhausting), her writing has appeared in Harper’s Bazaar (Naomi Osaka and the Cost of Saying No), and she’s frequently in the media for example WNYC (The Realities of Postpartum Depression and Anxiety Today), among other outlets.

Watch

The Town Hall Forum will broadcast on this page of the website, and also on our Facebook page. It will also be archived here for future viewing!

Listen

Minnesota Public Radio is broadcasting the Spring 2023 Town Hall Forums as a special week of programs. You can hear one each day at noon during the week of May 22. And you can still listen/watch live here on our website.

Mpls For A Better Police Contract has reviewed every single page of the current contract between the City and Police Federation (union). They updated and created 20 Recommendations.

To finalize the Recommendations before they are presented to the City Council and Mayor, WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK!

Schedule of Events:
5:30 - 6 pm / Pizza and Drinks
6 - 7:30 pm / Presentation, Feedback, Q&A

Mpls For A Better Police Contract has reviewed every single page of the current contract between the City and Police Federation (union). They updated and created 20 Recommendations.

To finalize the Recommendations before they are presented to the City Council and Mayor, WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK!

Schedule of Events:
5:30 - 6 pm / Pizza and Drinks
6 - 7:30 pm / Presentation, Feedback, Q&A

We’ll hear from longtime Rondo residents and community activists Nieeta Pressley, Russell Balinger, and Nathaniel Khaliq, along with City Councilperson Jane Prince. This conversation will be facilitated by Trahern Crews.

The St. Paul conversation about reparations has reached a new stage. The City Council has invited applications for appointment to the Saint Paul Recovery Act Permanent Commission
(applications close on March 24). The city’s reparations website is at https://rb.gy/6oewei.

In preparation for the conversation, we encourage you to read:
https://rb.gy/zbycr7n
and
https://rb.gy/czuro5
and watch this video:
https://rb.gy/xxou73

contact info@eastsidefreedomlibrary.org and 651-207-4926 with any questions

free and open to all

This event will be held on zoom. To register and receive a link to attend, please follow this link: https://rb.gy/qcpbff

Offered through AORTA, with AUTUMN BROWN

What if a vibrant, multiracial movement for justice is within our grasp? What practices make it possible for us to not only build this movement, but to be its courageous membership?

In this special event, Autumn Brown will guide participants through a Black Feminist approach to healing the wound of disconnection inherent in white supremacy and racial capitalism. In this participatory keynote, we will map the practices that will build a vibrant, multiracial movement, and remedy the fault lines that we are so often re-inscribing within our movements from the very culture of dominance and control we want to dismantle.

Participants will join Autumn in exploring how to cultivate mutual resilience so that we can more effectively resist the ideology of racial capitalism and racial practice, and Autumn will offer a set of practices for moving in formation and sustaining human connection as we navigate a time of rapid change. This session is an opportunity to pause and make contact with a greater reality, remembering that, as Makani Themba once said, “We are always just a breath away from freedom.”

We will explore…

- What becomes possible when Black Feminism is the salve applied to the core wound of white supremacy that lives in us all?
- What becomes possible when we acknowledge not only our inherited and lived racialized trauma, but also the inherited and lived roots of our resilience?
- How can we use the practices of rigor, discipline, and accountability in our movements to move toward dignity and freedom, and away from shame-based practices?

This participatory webinar is open to all folks working to build a liberatory world. If you have been feeling disconnected, burnt out from organizing and anti-oppression work, and are yearning for a practice space to revitalize and reconnect you back to the sacred work of freedom, this webinar is for you. Whether you are an experienced organizer, a healing practitioner, or new to freedom work, this is an invitation to be in presence and practice with us.

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Access information:

- Zoom: We will be meeting via Zoom. If you have access to a computer or laptop, we encourage you to join the event by computer to make navigating the materials more easeful.
- Captions: We will be offering CART Captioning during the training.
- Chat: This event includes use of the chat function in Zoom. Participants will be asked to enter responses in the chat throughout the event.
- Post-event Materials: You will receive a recording of the event, along with a transcript.
- Tech and access support: A tech and access support person will be present throughout the event to attend to any emergent participant needs regarding Zoom, the slide deck, and access.
- During the event, we will be screen-sharing for portions of the time.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/.../a-breath-away-from-freedom...

Pottery Workshop with Sayge Carroll
Register for one of the two dates.

Each participant will bring an image of an ancestor they would like to work with. We will gather and share who/why we are bringing our particular beloved into the space.

Artist Sayge Caroll of Mudluk Pottery will guide you through the process of creating a small vessel. All the vessels will be fired and the images will be transferred directly onto vessels by Mudluk Pottery.

No previous pottery experience needed!

Return to Mudluk Pottery on February 19, 2023 1-2:30 pm for a gathering reception with refreshments to see all the vessels from both workshops on display. Register for the reception here.

This workshop is part of Pangea World Theater's Lake Street Arts! 2023 Season of You Are Here: Placekeeping Through the Arts.

Join us on Wednesday evening, 1/11/23, for the final open opportunity to engage with City staff during this first phase of engagement on the future of the Former Kmart & New Nicollet Ave Redevelopment Project. Project team members and City staff have been out in the community the past several months talking with neighbors, small business owners, students, and many other stakeholders; if you have not yet shared your ideas and experience, we need to hear from you!

Join us in person at MCAD or over Zoom to learn more about the project and overall timeline and to discuss the ways in which you believe this major opportunity can help us achieve a safe and healthy community that truly benefits those living and working here. Free parking is available in MCAD’s east lot off 26th St. Walking encouraged!

For a deeper history of the site and surrounding community context, check out the City of Minneapolis’ Story Map. Stay tuned to the City’s project page for updates and to sign up for project-specific emails.

Also on the agenda this Wednesday is a check-in with Ward 10 Councilmember Aisha Chughtai. She’ll be doing a brief overview of her work in 2022, items in the City’s 2023-2024 budget likely to have a specific impact on Whittier, and what she expects to focus on in 2023.

Hope to see you there!

Centuries of intentional practices by individuals, businesses, and government institutions have resulted in significant gaps in Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) ownership of homes, land, and businesses. Additionally, as urban, BIPOC neighborhoods became surrounded by transportation systems and legacy industrial sites, they were choked off from more desirable land.

Join Minneapolis College of Art & Design’s Insights & Impact conversation about the opportunities and challenges to building wealth in urban communities that are home to BIPOC people. Keynote speaker Paul Bauknight will discuss his work and research in the area of developing wealth in BIPOC communities. His philosophy is that “architecture is about more than just making the buildings, particularly in communities that don’t have power and wealth. It’s also about understanding how those buildings get made from a policy standpoint, and how development works economically.”

Our panel will engage the audience, invite curiosity, and foster valuable conversation. Learn about systems changes, knowledge transfer, equity building, and professional diversification taking place to support our urban, BIPOC neighborhoods as they build out to reflect the breadth and depth of talent and creativity within.

Registration

Registration for this hybrid event is $30 and is open to everyone. Please indicate if you plan to attend in person or online on the registration form.

REGISTER

Questions? Contact Rachel Geissinger at 612-334-3388 ext. 8122. 

Speakers

• Paul Bauknight, Center for Transformative Urban Design (Keynote)

• Alexa Bush, The Kresge Foundation

• Karla Henderson, City of Bloomington, Minnesota

• Sarah McKinley, Democracy Collaborative

• Heather Worthington, Worthington Advisors LLC (Moderator)

Parking

• The parking lot is located 2572 2nd Ave S, the intersection of 26th Street East and Second Avenue South. The cost is $0.25/hour.

• Unrestricted parking spots are available on the streets surrounding campus.

• Handicap-accessible parking spaces are located off of 25th Street and Stevens Avenue South and at the intersection of 26th Street East and Second Avenue South.

MCAD COVID-19 policy

For high density events, community members are encouraged but not required to wear masks. For the most up-to-date information regarding MCAD policies and protocols regarding COVID-19, please visit mcad.edu/covid19.

Days of Reparations to African People is an annual speaking tour of the Uhuru Solidarity Movement that brings the issue of reparations and African/black liberation to the white community. It takes the discussion of reparations out of the courtrooms and classrooms and makes it a reality through a people’s movement led by the black working class.

Sabathani Community Center- Gymnasium

310 E 38th St, Minneapolis, MN 55409

This event is free and open to all. Masks are required. Donations raised through this speaking tour benefit the Uhuru Wa Kulea Health Center.

Featured Speakers:

Omali Yeshitela - Founder of the Uhuru movement, Chairman of the African People’s Socialist Party, creator of African Internationalism, author of several books including Vanguard: The Advanced Detachment of the African Revolution

Penny Hess - Chairwoman of the African People’s Solidarity Committee, author of Overturning the Culture of Violence

Jesse Nevel - Chair of the African People's Solidarity Committee

Attend the Minneapolis Public School Board Candidate Forum on "Teacher Diversity and Student Wellbeing."

Minneapolis Public Schools face some of the most complex problems in its history. Solutions need to center those closest to the issues: students, parents, and educators. Join this event co-hosted by Voices for Racial Justice to hear from school board candidates on their visions for protecting teacher diversity and student wellbeing.

Register to attend this virtual event on 9/19.

Mind, Body and Soul – Convening the Black Community: Black Children and Families

This convening is a series of work sessions hosted by Deputy Commissioner Stephanie Burrage (Minnesota Department of Education) and Commissioner Robert Doty (Minnesota Department of Revenue) with key leaders of the African American community to hear from Governor Tim Walz, Lieutenant Governor Flanagan, and members of the Administration about specific work focused on African Americans in Minnesota.

Participants will provide feedback and be a part of building recommendations for specific policy and budget proposals for inclusion in the FY2024-25 Biennial Budget that will be rolled out in January 2023. The culmination of these sessions will be a work plan and funding and policy proposals focused on improving outcomes for African Americans in our state. This upcoming convening, focusing on the Children's cabinet will occur August 31, 2022 at 3:00-4:30 p.m. 

RSVP

Drop by to learn about the improvements project at Powderhorn Park, help us plan, and share your feedback.

We need to hear your thoughts, ideas and preferences for which improvements should be priorities.

Where
Outside near Powderhorn Recreation Center, 3400 15th Ave. S Minneapolis, MN 55407
Check the project page for updates in case of inclement weather.

Can't make it? You can also take an online survey about Powderhorn Park improvements:

Click here to take the survey

Increase your understanding of the benefits, continuum of models, and financing structures for housing cooperatives. Participants will discuss the values and benefits of housing cooperative models, dig into case studies to explore possibilities for expanding housing cooperative development, learn about financing structures and policy considerations, and hear from a panel of practitioners working in the sector.

Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/.../housing-cooperatives...

(Relationships Evolving Possibilities) REP's community connection sessions are informal monthly gatherings for curiosities, feedback or anything you been wondering about our work.

The mission of REP stems from Black love and liberation, with a vision that all communities thrive when our needs are met. We are grounded in the belief that as a community we have the ability and capacity to love and protect each other without giving our agency to systems that were built to destroy, consume, or commodify us. Relationships Evolving Possibilities is the foundational pedagogy for our approach to community safety. 

REP is an engagement strategy that facilitates the formation of localized pods for mutual aid and reinforces transformative crisis support within community networks. Our programs promote wellness and create safer and thriving communities. 

Pre-register for free at the source link.

Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage invites viewers to:

Join the Council virtually on Feb. 25th at 12:00 pm to hear from legislators and state officials, as they discuss their plans for session and the importance of having members of the African heritage community in the state's government.

Event by Racial Justice Network, WE WIN Institute, Inc. and 2 others

A virtual gathering of the Minneapolis School Board to examine disparities in educational outcomes and assess the effectiveness of district leadership through a racial justice lens.

Nekima Levy Armstrong
Civil Rights Attorney
Founder, Racial Justice Network

Kim Ellison
Minneapolis School Board Chair
At-Large

Kimberly Caprini
Minneapolis School Board Treasurer
At-Large

Sharon El-Amin
Minneapolis School Board Member
District 2

Join us Live on our Facebook page!