Insight News ::: 01.25.16

Ordway Center for the Performing Arts presents “A Chorus Line”

aesthetically speaking

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Insight News January 25 - January 31, 2016

Vol. 43 No. 4 • The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Former Massachusetts Governor offered pointed words during annual MLK celebration:

Uncomfortable? So be it

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer Those expecting a tame, palatable speech from the keynote of this year’s annual Twin Cities breakfast celebrating the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. were in for a bit of a shock.

It wasn’t fire and brimstone and there was little variance in tone, but Gov. Deval Patrick, former two-term governor of Massachusetts, was clear in his message that if some are uncomfortable with movements of social change – so be it. The speech was the keynote of the 26th annual MLK Holiday Breakfast, Jan. 18 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

“I want to suggest to you that true patriots ought to be a little uneasy,” said Patrick. “Just as Dr. King challenged Jim Crow, surely the times we live in now challenge us all over again.”

The former governor who was raised on government assistance but matriculated to Harvard University Law School addressed the deaths of the now familiar names of Michael

Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN)

Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA)

MLK TURN TO 9

Harry Colbert, Jr.

Gov. Deval Patrick, former two-term governor of Massachusetts

The African American State of the Union Black Press of America

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO, NNPA While millions of people across the United States and throughout

the world will continue to affirm, discuss, or respond in various ways to the last State of Union by America’s first President of the United States who is an African American, there are still priority issues that challenge African Americans going forward Of course, as one would expect and predict, President Barack H. Obama’s 2016 State of the Union address was a message to all people in the U.S., as well as to all people in the global community.

President Obama’s leadership will be judged by history and his legacy will be the subject of focus for generations to come.

One thing, however, is for certain concerning the executive success of the Obama Administration in the face of unprecedented political opposition from the very first day that the Obama family moved into the White House.

We have to continue to struggle for freedom, justice, equality and empowerment.

UNION TURN TO 3

50 years after MLK, median white family worth is 70 times greater than that of a Black family

By Antonio Moore As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and legacy this year, we must do so with an understanding that the current state of African American wealth is not one that he envisioned when he spoke to the great possibility of America before his death. It has instead become a very different economic reality for black America that we must all be aware of moving forward.

The data that was used to support the Federal Reserve’s bleak numbers that the middle white American household is worth 13 times that of the middle black household may have used accounting that actually understates the gap in wealth between white and black families in America.

Professor Edward Wolff in his report for the National Bureau of

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Ellison (D-MN) and Scott (D-VA) hold forum on working families

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer It is almost impossible for a family of three to survive off of $7.25 – the current federal minimum wage.

That is the message Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) have been sharing throughout the nation, hoping to gain enough support so constituents will demand action from the Republican-led House on resolutions currently pending. In addition, Ellison and Scott are pushing for mandated family leave time and for paystub transparency – in particular for workers hired as independent contractors.

“Right now we can’t get them (House Republicans) to pick up the bill. They won’t consider it,” said Ellison. “(Rep.) Paul Ryan (R-WI) says he wants to do something about poverty … here’s what you can do – raise the pay of the poor.”

Ellison and Scott have multiple bills addressing minimum wage and workers’ rights floating in Congress with proposals ranging from an increase to between $12 and $15 per hour. Scott, who is the ranking member on the House Committee on Education and Workforce, said the increase would occur gradually over time. A resolution he cosponsored is calling for the minimum wage of $12 by 2020.

“We need the size increase that if you’re working 40 hours a week you can work

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Health

Business

Lifestyle

Community

Many reasons to talk about glaucoma

Fundraising team building

Real change begins with you!

Netsanet Negussie: Telling stories in the nation’s fastest gentrified city

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Justice or ...Mizzou: A Reflection of the Million Man March “Justice or Else”

By Vanessa Young and Kevin Robinson In the weeks leading up to the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March: “Justice or Else,” in which we participated, we wanted to answer two questions during this solidarity event.

The first question was, what is our definition of Justice? We understood that we needed this answer in a society where we are oppressed, disenfranchised and stigmatized. The second question was what are we willing to sacrifice in our quest for justice?

There was a pre-rally event held on Oct. 9, which was a powerful gathering of our people in one of the local churches in Washington, D.C. On this evening, everyone was there to make a statement to the world that white supremacy is

coming to end “or else.”

That evening, all of our brothers and sisters were on one accord. There was no hand shaking going on, just hugs and introductions. There was warmth, strength, love, and a mutual belonging in this space.

There were more “I love you” exchanges than at a Black family reunion. All the speakers that night left us with profound messages about justice, love, and economic stability. When Trayvon Martin’s mother got on stage the room fell to an eerie silence. Sybrina Fulton’s sorrow and pain hovered over the room, as if we were at her son’s funeral. When she spoke, everyone listened. All you could hear were sniffles, and quiet sobs penetrating the whole sanctuary.

As she was finishing her closing remarks, we felt the energy shift from sorrow and pain, to determination and hope.

On the morning of Oct. 10

we walked anxiously toward the main event. We were amazed and inspired by the turnout of our people in attendance.

On our journey through this sea of beautiful people, it felt as if we were being guided to freedom by Harriet Tubman.

As we continued on our path, the spirit of Frederick Douglass stood boldly ahead of us, as we witnessed the meaning of “if there is no struggle, there is no progress.” As we got closer, we rushed past the memorabilia of the powerful images of Malcolm X pointing his finger showing “you cannot separate peace from freedom.” As we continued, we heard sisters yelling the slogan “Black Power,” which was reintroduced to Black America by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee›s (SNCC) field worker and chairman, Kwame Ture. Black Power meant black freedom with their clenched fists and

the Pan African green, red, and black flags swirling in the air.

The spirit of Ella Baker was present, as someone stated, “She gave light so our people will find their way.”

As the day got warmer, and the sun started shining brighter, we heard someone say, “You can pray until you pass out, but if you don’t get up and do something, God is not going to put it in your lap.” Those words came from SNCC worker Fannie Lou Hamer.

The recent incidents at University of Missouri are a prime example of the “Justice or Else” consequences. The Concerned Students of 1950 were very wise in resurfacing the suit won by the NAACP for the right for Ernest Gaines to enter law school there. Gaines never attended because he disappeared.

This stand was to demand that they have their rightful place in receiving a safe, quality,

culturally-responsive education.

The great Frederick Douglass once said that “they do wrong from choice and right from necessity.” The students created a perfect scenario, in which they pressured the administration at the University of Missouri to take action against issues of white supremacy activities on their campus. The Concerned Students of 1950 held the University of Missouri accountable to the claims of the Declaration of Independence, which states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

The brother Jonathan Butler and the Missouri football players defined the “or else” for America when they stood in solidarity despite death threats and backlash from the media.

More critical than this, is the fact that the vast majority of whites of the entire community seems disinterested.

The students understood that the only way the administration would listen or comply with their demands was if the school was economically affected. Our brother Butler should not only be applauded for his courageous act to risk his life out of love for our people, but his name and act of courage should forever be embedded in our hearts.

Vanessa Young is a native of the Eastside of St. Paul with a degree in youth and family studies. She focuses on direct service as a community activist. Kevin Robinson is a native of south Minneapolis and a sociology major. He focuses on various organizing tactics as a community activist.

McConnell shines at Toyota

By Freddie Allen NNPA News Wire Senior Correspondent Rob McConnell, the manager for body engineering at the Toyota Technical Center said that he often draws inspiration from the fashion industry.

“A little secret, hopefully no one is recording, but me and my wife sit and watch ‘Project Runway,’” McConnell told a small group of Black journalists at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. “Yeah, I’ll admit it.”

McConnell said that, in a lot of ways, fashion designers are engineers.

“It’s all connected. You gotta pull from a lot of different places to get your inspiration, your ideas,” said McConnell. “You gotta come up with something new.

That means you have to look outside the box.”

McConnell said that he gets excited about the fashion industry and how we can marry the fashion industry to the development and design of the vehicle and how we can execute it through engineering.

McConnell discovered that he was passionate about design at an early age, as he played with Matchbox cars, Hot Wheels and Legos. He also competed in the Boy Scouts’ pinewood derby.

“That’s engineering and that’s design,” said McConnell.

“That’s the biggest challenge that we have when we’re kids, realizing that this excitement may actually lead to bigger and better things.”

For McConnell, those bigger and better things included a 15-year (and counting) professional career at the Japanese automaker and a number of United States patents related to his work.

Freddie Allen/AMG

Rob McConnell manages exterior lighting development for vehicles like the Toyota Camry and Toyota Avalon.

According to a company biography, McConnell served as the “project design lead for multiple North America

Production vehicles including the dramatically restyled 2013 Toyota Avalon.”

McConnell was also the

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team leader for the body and exterior for the 2014 Toyota Camry, Toyota Sienna, Toyota Venza, and Toyota

Tundra. Now he manages exterior lighting development for vehicles like the Toyota Camry and Toyota Avalon.

McConnell noted that eyewear has risen as a fashion statement in recent years.

“A lot of people have turned what’s functional into a fashion element and that’s something that you can execute in a car. How do we do that? We do that in the headlights,” said McConnell. “The headlights are a statement, they are a signature, they are the eyes of the vehicle, and with the 2016 Toyota Avalon, we refined the daytime running lights.”

McConnell said that when you see the 2016 Toyota Avalon coming down the road or in your review mirror, you know exactly what it is and his goal was to create a memorable experience for Toyota customers.

MCCONNELL TURN TO 6

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Insight News • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Page 3

HEALTH Many reasons to talk about glaucoma January is Glaucoma Awareness Month.

The National Eye Institute encourages everyone to get a glaucoma test as many are at risk to vision loss and blindness. Glaucoma is a group of diseases that damages the eye’s optic nerve. According to the National Eye Institute more than half of all people with glaucoma don’t know they have it and, quite often, by the

time people are diagnosed with glaucoma, they have already begun to notice changes in their side, or peripheral, vision.

This is especially true for African-Americans.

Those over age 40 and those with a family history of glaucoma are at higher risk for the disease.

More than 520,000 AfricanAmericans have glaucoma, and this number is expected to increase by more than 300,000

over the next 15 years.

The disease is a leading cause of blindness among African-Americans.

Officials with the National Eye Institute urge people to see their eye care professional and get a comprehensive dilated eye exam every one to two years if they are at higher risk.

To learn more about glaucoma and testing, visit www.nei.nih.gov/glaucoma.

New grants support for people with Alzheimer’s, caregivers A new Minnesota Board on Aging grant program will help community organizations raise awareness about Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia and serve caregivers of people who have the diseases.

The 2015 Legislature

appropriated $1.5 million, which will be used now through June 30, 2017, to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s disease, increase the rate of cognitive testing in the population at risk for dementias, promote the benefits of early diagnosis and connect caregivers

to education and resources. “Alzheimer’s alone impacts some 89,000 Minnesotans over age 65 and the number is growing,� said Jean Wood, executive director of the Minnesota Board on Aging. “These grants promote a more supportive environment for

people with dementia, including resources for their caregivers.�

All of the 20 projects funded have awareness-raising efforts, including using theater to educate Latino communities about dementia and a social media platform to do outreach

to the Korean community. Other grantees will promote the benefits of early diagnosis of dementia and offer early identification memory screenings within senior public housing facilities; engage with businesses to identify working caregivers; and promote safe

exercise programs for people with Alzheimer’s.

Grantees are diverse in being equal parts urban and rural, with some specifically responsive to

Union

For more than 45 million African Americans, the State of the Union is a complexed set of realities, challenges, and opportunities. The reason why the “Black Lives Matter� movement has taken a front position in the consciousness and support from the vast majority of African Americans is because fatal police brutality has become once again too prevalent in too many of our communities. Prosecutorial misconduct that has worked to protect and shield the perpetrators of police violence demands louder outcries of national protest.

Today we remain disproportionately incarcerated in America’s jails and prisons: women, men and young juveniles are overflowing behind bars.

There is an urgent demand for criminal justice reform without further delay or debate. Mass incarceration is a reality for Black America that needs to be challenged and ended.

The spending and annual consumerism of African Americans continues to exceed $1.2 trillion. Our “State of the

Union� indicates glaringly that we are big spenders, but we are not big savers or investors. The economic development of our families and communities is really in our own hands. As we begin 2016, there is no greater urgency than for all of us to do more to attend to how to advance the economic sustainability of our communities.

The high quality education of our children has to be at the top of our priority list for next year and beyond. Yes, also “Black Minds Matter.� I highly recommend that you take the time to read and get an update about an ongoing study in the state of California that I believe will have a significant impact on national education policies and programs that are focused on the education of African American children and others who still have to grapple with inequality and inequities in the nation’s educational system. “Black Minds Matter: Supporting the Educational Success of Black Children in California, examines how the nearly 1 million Black youth

in California are faring from preschool through college and reveals the distressing disparities that newly released state and national data show persist at all levels of their educational journey.

The report also highlights the groundbreaking efforts underway to reverse these trends in California and close achievement and opportunity gaps for African American students.� We need a national study done based on the model developed in California.

The State of Union for African Americans simply means we have to continue to struggle for freedom, justice, equality and empowerment. We have to build alliances and coalitions to achieve progress and to maximize our continued presence and contributions to make the nation and the world a better place. But it all starts not with the government or with some outside benevolent factor.

It starts with African Americans. It starts with each one of us taking more responsibility for the improvements of our families. Yes, we have made

progress! Yes, there is still much to be done. But there is many more opportunities than there are problems to move forward. The glass is not half empty, it is half full. A Luta Continua!

National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and can be reached for national advertisement sales and partnership proposals at: dr.bchavis@nnpa.org; and for lectures and other professional consultations at: http:// drbenjaminfchavisjr.wix.com/ drbfc.

household. Another justification for their exclusion is that this treatment is consistent with the national accounts, where purchase of vehicles is counted as expenditures, not savings. As a result, my estimates of household wealth will differ from those provided by the Federal Reserve Board, which includes the value of vehicles in their standard definition of household wealth.

According to Wolff’s report the median Black family is actually only worth $1,700 when you deduct these durables.

In contrast, the median white family is worth $116,800 using the same accounting methods. In accounting for the losses of the Great Recession he wrote: “�black households�� median net worth actually fell

from $6,700 to $1,700, and the ratio relative to white households plunged from 0.06 to 0.01.

To give this greater historical context, according to the National Review in South Africa during the atrocities of apartheid the median black family was worth nearly 7% of what a white South African family was worth. Whereas today using the data above, the median African American family is worth a mere 1.5% of what the median white American family is worth.

By way of comparison, black South Africans under apartheid had a median net worth about 6.8 percent that of white South Africans.

Repeating: Black Americans are worse off relative to their white countrymen than black South Africans under apartheid were to theirs.

As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. we must do so with an understanding that his life’s work was not completed with the accomplishment of the Civil Rights Act. Rather it was the opening for us all to move the discussion forward on how to reach racial equality.

From 1 But, in truth, the success of the President Obama is indisputable in leading the steady recovery of the economy of the U.S. with the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act , the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that has enabled millions of people to acquire health care insurance, the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act that has protected millions of people from predatory financial schemes, and the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act that has helped thousands of African Americans in particular avoid preventable home foreclosures across the nation.

Yet, there is a need, I believe to first say thank you to President Obama respectfully for his outstanding national and global leadership.

Today, secondly, we are obligated to issue an independent African American State of the Union.

Family From 1 Economic Research stated that in performing this calculation the Federal Reserve was including consumer durables that should be excluded when calculating assets.

Thus, only assets that can be readily converted to cash (that is, “fungible� ones) are included. As a result, consumer durables such as automobiles, televisions, furniture, household appliances, and the like, are excluded here, since these items are not easily marketed, with the possible exception of vehicles, or their resale value typically far understates the value of their consumption services to the

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. is the President and CEO of the

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Page 4 • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Insight News

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Insight News • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Page 5

BUSINESS

Fundraising team building FUNdraising Good Times

By Mel and Pearl Shaw We can do so much more together than we can alone.

A fundraising team – that includes board members, staff and volunteers – can transform your nonprofit. It will take time, energy and talent to build and manage such a team, but we believe it is worth the investment. Here’s what we have learned.

Fundraising is most effective when managed by a fundraising leadership team.

Creating this team will bring

together those responsible for major components of your fundraising. Not everyone, but the leaders of each aspect of your fundraising. They should meet regularly to report on their progress and challenges. Members should work collaboratively to help your organization reach its fundraising goal. They should be empowered to make decisions, and the decisions made by this team should be respected and implemented by other fundraising volunteers and employees.

A fundraising leadership team helps create accountability and transparency. Members are accountable to each other. Each member knows the commitments, roles, and responsibilities of all other members. There are no secrets.

If there is a lull in gifts received,

When you have engaged qualified volunteers to assist with fundraising, you will be amazed at the solutions they can come up with.

the full team knows about it.

When new gifts are received, members know about it. When fundraising management reports are shared at meetings, team members can monitor the progress of fundraising

activities, ask pertinent questions, and work with each other to create new strategies and work-arounds.

With a strong fundraising leadership team, the actions of staff, board members, and volunteers are open to review

minutes that accurately capture action items and next steps. If you have selected a qualified fundraising chair and clearly defined his responsibilities, you will be amazed how he can assist you in meeting your goals.

He can do this because he has made them his goals. He is no longer helping your nonprofit; he is orchestrating and attracting people and resources for something he believes in.

Next week: Qualities of an empowered team.

by team members. Financial progress and expenses are reported regularly at these meetings.

Members have the opportunity to share information and coordinate their activities for the benefit of your organization, college or university.

When you have engaged qualified volunteers to assist with fundraising, you will be amazed at the solutions they can come up with. The key to an effective fundraising leadership team is for it to be volunteerled with support from staff.

That means the fundraising chair leads the team meetings, not the executive director or the chief development officer.

Staff members support the work of the fundraising chair by producing and distributing fundraising reports, and taking and quickly distributing

Copyright 2016– Mel and Pearl Shaw For more fundraising and nonprofit management suggestions visit www. saadandshaw.com.

When you are ready to work with fundraising counsel call us at (901) 522-8727.

EMERGE appoints Dawn Davis to Executive Director Dawn Davis has been appointed the executive director of Emerge Community Development in north Minneapolis.

She will join president and CEO Mike Wynne to lead the organization, which provides job training, financial coaching, supportive housing and other services to more than 2,500 people each year. Davis served Emerge and its heritage organization, Pillsbury United Communities, for 15 years.

Davis was hired by Hennepin County to lead the Contract Management Services area in 2012.

In March 2015, Emerge re-opened the historic North branch library as the Emerge Career and Technology Center.

Following a merger in August 2015, Emerge combined with the former Momentum Enterprises adding three new social enterprise businesses to its portfolio and opening up further work readiness opportunities for those facing barriers to employment.

“The expansion of Emerge will allow us to fulfill our mission in exciting, new ways,” said Wynne. “Dawn Davis brings decades of experience, a depth of knowledge and understanding of nonprofit, government, and private sector landscapes, and she has a demonstrated track record of organizational leadership success at Hennepin County and Emerge. Dawn is the perfect person to ensure we

Dawn Davis

In January 2012, Davis was hired by Hennepin County as area manager to lead the Human Services and Public Health Departments’ contract management services division, and after three years was promoted to senior department administrator.

“I’ve always been committed to assisting people from all walks of life take a more proactive role in pursuing the personal or professional goals that can help to improve their lives,” said Davis. “I value the courageousness, and agility surrounding the work performed in nonprofits, at Emerge, Pillsbury United Communities and many other partner agencies.”

continue to meet our objectives as our organization grows in scope and impact.”

Davis will also provide leadership in several community partnerships that are working to address continued racial disparities in the region.

The Center for Popular Democracy and the Economic Policy Institute released a 2014 study showing the statewide unemployment rate for Black people is nearly four times that of white Minnesotans.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Black household income fell 14 percent from 2013 to 2014, and according to a recent ranking of states, Minnesota had the highest racial poverty rate gap.

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Page 6 • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Insight News

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EDUCATION Eve Nichols named emerita director at Metropolitan State University

Eve Nichols

Eve Nichols of West Saint Paul, who became Metropolitan State University’s disabilities services director in 2006, retired from the university in January.

She was named emerita director for her work in the disability services office. Under her leadership, the number of students with disabilities served more than doubled, surpassing 300 annually. Many graduated and ended up professionally

employed.

“The most rewarding part of my work was giving students (with disabilities) the assistance they needed for employment and then finding out later that they ended up in professional jobs,” said Nichols.

Nichols oversaw partnerships with community and university organizations that provided educational resources, updated assistive technology and training,

pursued grants and educated faculty and staff about disabled students’ needs.

A one-time president of the Minnesota Association on Higher Education and Disability, Nichols was a national trainer and presenter on disabilityrelated issues. She was also a member of the American Association on Higher Education and Disability and the National Association of Student Personnel

Administrators.

Nichols previously served Metropolitan State as a counselor of Trio Support Services, helping underprivileged students transition to college. Before arriving at the university in 2002, she was interim disability services director at Inver Hills Community College and coordinator of disabled student academic accommodations at Southwest State University.

Free student debt counseling now available for Minnesota borrowers A new program is now available to help Minnesota student loan borrowers struggling to manage their debt get back on track.

The Student Loan Counseling Grant aims to help students avoid defaulting on their loans and improve their credit scores while still repaying student loans.

“Minnesota’s new loan counseling effort will connect students with expert advice to help them learn how to make more informed financial decisions and avoid defaulting on their debt,” said Lt. Governor Tina Smith.

“Minnesota college graduates leave school with an average of $31,579 in debt; making it

difficult for them to buy homes or cars, pursue their dream job, or start businesses. We can’t build an economy that works for everyone, everywhere in Minnesota, if we don’t make higher education more affordable.”

The two-year loan counseling program was passed by the state legislature

with bipartisan support and signed into law by Gov. Mark Dayton last year. LSS Financial Counseling, a program of Lutheran Social Service of MN was awarded the grant.

The program aims to help borrowers who have missed a payment or two on their student loans rehabilitate both their loans and their credit. There is

no charge to borrowers who are counseled through this service, which is delivered via oneon-one counseling either in person, over the phone, or via Skype to borrowers throughout the state.

“This free counseling program was designed to not only help avoid defaults, but can also get borrowers connected to

potential loan forgiveness and repayment options,” said Larry Pogemiller, commissioner of the Minnesota Office of Higher Education. “I would encourage anyone having difficulty making their payments to consider this program.”

For more information call (888) 577-2227 or go to www.

ConquerYourDebt.org.

McConnell

tell a story,” said McConnell.

“They speak to the depths of the vehicle and the soul of the vehicle and that’s what I hope to accomplish with the future vehicles that I work on.”

McConnell suggested

that young people who are interested in going into engineering or automotive design should sharpen their critical thinking skills, get involved in team projects, or even work on cars in an

effort to expose themselves to the opportunities that are out there. He said that students in middle school and high school need to think about college and their careers as early as they can.

McConnell continued: “The key point is that you gotta open your mind and it’s really about understanding the opportunities that are out there. You may get into it and decide that you don’t want

to go into engineering, but it might spawn your thought to go in a different direction, which is really the push.”

signed a law that mandates companies awarded federal contracts pay a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour.

“That didn’t just happen, it happened because the people were vocal and demanded it,” said Ellison.

In addition to advocating for a boost in the minimum wage Ellison and Scott are hoping to

bring attention to wage theft; a problem they say is costing workers and the nation in lost tax revenues. Scott proposed all businesses provide workers paystubs with every employee payment.

“Most people can’t imagine getting paid without a paystub but it’s happening a lot and without a paystub how are you

going to complain if you’re not getting paid what you’ve earned,” said Scott. “Everyone should get a stub that says what your rate is, what was taken out and bottom line, here’s your money.”

The legislative pair also called for support behind mostly Democratic efforts to pass family leave bills that

would allow parents time off to care for a newborn or newly adopted child or child with serious illness. They are also advocating for workers to have greater rights when it comes to scheduling.

“People deserve to live in dignity,” said Ellison. “People are having to work more hours; having to string together three,

four jobs just to get by,” said Ellison.

Ellison and Scott recently held a forum on workers and family rights in Richfield.

The two heard from a panel of advocates and took questions from those in attendance and called on everyone to voice their concerns to their federal legislators.

From 2 “Your eyes can tell a story and the eyes of the vehicle can

Forum From 1 your way out of poverty,” said Scott. “We’re proposing a $12 minimum wage by 2020 … most (progressives) think it should be $15.”

President Obama recently

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Insight News • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Page 7

COMMENTARY The State of the Union address: Class act, crass responses Opinion

By Julianne Malveaux President Obama did his thing when he delivered the State of the Union address (SOTU) on Tuesday night. There was confidence in his speech, some off-the-cuff humor and a little swagger when he rattled off his accomplishments and asserted

INSIGHT NEWS

that the SOU is “strong.” While I disagree with parts of the address, especially around economic issues, I was delighted with the President’s forceful tone, and with his insistence of speaking both of issues and of our toxic political climate.

Our President is, above all things, consistent. He loves these United States of America, and he always has. He believes in our unity. He believes that we can come together, transcending party lines, for the good of our nation.

As he always has, he spoke of bipartisan cooperation, holding out an olive branch to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), pledging to work with him on poverty and criminal justice reform. And our president humbly shared “one of the few regrets of my presidency – that the rancor and suspicion between the parties has gotten worse instead of better”.

President Obama appeals to

Gage Skidmore / Creative Commons

President Barack Obama our common sense, to our better selves, to the notion that we are all in this together in the name of our democracy. “Democracy grinds

Donald Trump

to a halt without a willingness to compromise, or when even basic facts are contested, or when we listen only to those who agree with

Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC) us. Our public life withers when only the most extreme voices get all the attention. And most of all, democracy breaks down when the

average person feels their voice doesn’t matter; that the system is rigged in favor of the rich or the powerful or some special interest.”

Thus, with spirit, Obama offered important facts about economic distribution – “After years now of record corporate profits, working families won’t get more opportunity or bigger paychecks just by letting big banks or big oil or hedge funds make their own rules at everybody else’s expense. Middle-class families are not going to feel more secure because we allowed attacks on collective bargaining to go unanswered. Food Stamp recipients did not cause the financial crisis; recklessness on Wall Street did. Immigrants aren’t the principal reason wages haven’t gone up; those decisions are made in the boardrooms that all too

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Insight News is published weekly, every Monday by McFarlane Media Interests.

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Dismantle Minnesota’s Nice Apartheid by any means necessary

By Arthur T. Himmelman ArthurTHimmelman@ aolcom It is very important for those of us living in Minnesota to fully understand, acknowledge, and do whatever is necessary to dismantle the Minnesota Nice Apartheid.

According to data available in 2014 (see 24/7wallst.com), Minnesota is the second worst state in the U.S. for AfricanAmerican people. The only state worse is our neighbor, Scott Walker’s, Wisconsin.

Arthur T. Himmelman In sharp contrast to the conditions for AfricanAmericans, in June 2015 CNBC named Minnesota “America’s Top State for Business.”

Minnesota moved into the top spot in 2015 after placing 6th in 2014 and 15th in 2013.

Minnesota Republicans hate to acknowledge this because their propaganda always describes Minnesota taxes as far too high and, therefore, very bad for business. Minnesota is also consistently ranked as the healthiest state and rated near the top in many other “quality of life” indicators. Last year, Minneapolis was ranked as the best city for bicycles. If you are white, Minnesota is a very fine place to live. And even our winters are getting milder - global warming brought El

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in Minnesota.

Unless white people living in Minnesota allow this truth to set us free from our denial, we can never recognize and truly value the dreams deferred of so many African-American people who live here with us. As the great poet Langston Hughes said so well: “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up, like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore -- And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over -- like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sages like a heavy load. Or does it explode?”

Will Black America make major strides toward unity in 2016?

By Roger Caldwell NNPA News Wire Columnist This year has started with a bang and Black America is in a position to build political organizations and alliances across generational and economical demographics.

“Black Lives Matter” has energized a younger segment of Black America, which older Black political organizations thought were not engaged or strategically involved. With the killing of hundreds of unarmed Blacks in 2015 by law enforcement agencies, the struggle for justice in America has been the major focus in the Black community.

The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan has mobilized the Black community in 2015, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the historic Million Man March by returning to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. last October. This march

is significant, because it proved that there is an infrastructure of committed Black men ready to implement change and unity in their community. In order to bring this initiative to fruition, our community must organize and mobilize around a Black Agenda. There was very limited media coverage on this momentous occasion, and local Black political organizations must sit down together and develop a plan based on the need for more Black political power.

Presently, there is a limited amount of communication in the Black media, in major markets across the country.

As a result of our limited resources, the Black media organizations and wire services are not able to tell our story that connects from a Black perspective. In 2016, there is a need for more positive stories from Black reporters and journalist that highlight being Black in America.

In local Black communities,

there is a need for more Black programming and Black images on major networks.

In 2015, Black sitcoms made major advances in bringing diversity to television, but the system is set up for more Blacks to fail. On television, it appears that mainstream media would prefer to find things that focus on the criminal elements in the Black community. Crime and Black on Black violence is a reality in our community, and the Black community collectively must attack this problem.

Black on Black crime has become a focal point in Black communities throughout America. Elected Black officials must make a commitment to safe communities, and they must be held accountable to their promises and platforms. There is no reason as to why in certain inner city neighborhoods, that drugs and criminals control the streets.

Collaborating with police departments and

CORRECTION In an article on a new GED program at Summit Academy OIC, “In Hennepin: 85,000 need GED” (Jan. 18 - Jan 24 edition) Charlotte Burgess

was incorrectly identified as a former principal and director of Friendship Academy of Fine Arts. According to Burgess, her company helped found

Friendship Academy, but she never served as principal nor director. Insight regrets the error.

Photography David Bradley Contact Us: Insight News, Inc. Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis., MN 55411 Ph.: (612) 588-1313 Fax: (612) 588-2031 Member: Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium (MMMC), Midwest Black Publishers Coalition, Inc. (MBPCI), National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA)

Nino here again this year.

Given their strength, Minnesota’s private sector and businesses have the resources to bring many more people into the economic mainstream, but intentionally have not done so for African-Americans, often with the complicity of our “liberal” public sector. It is important to understand that this must be intentional, even though our Minnesota Nice, self-congratulatory facade maintains that we would never do this on purpose. There is no other reasonable explanation for the racial and economic apartheid that has long existed

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neighborhood watch groups is the beginning of change.

It is time to change these conditions and everyone must be engaged to make a difference.

Black communities must become a hub for education, innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology. Partnerships

and collaborations must be the goal in the Black community, and we need coalitions to change the reality in the Black community.

This year is a presidential election and the Black vote can

CALDWELL TURN TO 8

Page 8 • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Insight News

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LIFESTYLE

Real change begins with you!

Man Talk

By Timothy Houston We are almost a month into 2016, with the promise of change still on our lips. We would all like to change for the better, but changing is hard work. Where does the change we seek come from? Some look for change to take place outside of them. They wish for others to be different. The truth is that real change takes place within us. Even if nothing outside of us ever changes, if we change for the better inwardly, our lives

Malveaux From 7 often put quarterly earnings over long-term returns. It’s sure not the average family watching tonight that avoids paying taxes through offshore accounts.”

President Obama offered a meaty speech, with much to chew on. Much as I applauded, I was disappointed that he overstated our nation’s economic success.

Yes, the unemployment rate is lower, but too many people have dropped out of the labor force.

Yes, there are more jobs than there were eight years ago, but there are fewer jobs than there should be.

Wages are stagnant. It would not have hurt our President to examine some of our economic weakness, especially if he highlighted the legislation he has sent to this Congress that would employ more people. Touting a strong

Caldwell From 7 help determine the outcome of many elections around the country. Black Women voting bloc was the largest segment of voters in 2012, and in 2015 they have already started to organize for the 2016 election.

Black men must also be more engaged and make sure they vote in all the local, state and federal elections.

In order for the Black community to realize their political power, the different Black political organizations must collaborate across generational, ideological, and financial lines. Everyone knows that 85 percent to 90 percent of Blacks in 2016 will vote Democratic, therefore we must challenge the Democratic Party to spend more money with Black media groups and

will be better. To live life to its fullest, you must change what you see, say, and do because real change begins with you.

To begin with, change what you see. I am not referring to the way you see the world, but rather, the way you see yourself in the world. If you see yourself as small, unattractive, limited or defeated, nothing in life will be of much value. Even if everyone in your circle tells you that you are beautiful, and you don’t think so, their words will have little value to you. Real value starts within you. When you see yourself as great, beautiful, unlimited and full of potential, you will cause the whole world to bend in your direction and your life will change for the better.

Secondly, change what you say. Your words are a reflection

economy genuflects to those who are enjoying this strong economy.

Too many are not. I’m not sure I’d call the SOU “strong”.

The President said many of the right things about education, women’s issues, income inequality, and immigration; he could have said things differently, but one doesn’t expect policy details from a SOU Address. I guess it is too much to ask that our President address the African American community, even in a sentence.

As I listened to the speech, I hoped that, in this last address, the President might acknowledge his staunchest supporters.

While President Obama exuded nothing but class, it was amazing to watch the very crass House Speaker Paul Ryan behaving like a bored child. He was mostly inexpressive, but he also fidgeted, rolled his eyes, and at one point put his hand to his nose (I think – maybe he was picking it), as if he could not be

organizations.

All across the country, Blacks must practice group economics and group politics, and present a united Black front in 2016. There are millions of dollars available in the 2016 campaign from candidates and the Democratic Party. Black unity is the key to political power in the New Year, and a Black Agenda will point our community to victory.

Roger Caldwell is the President/CEO of On Point Media Group, a marketing and public relations firm located in Orlando, Florida.

He is a graduate of Howard University in political science.

As a stroke survivor, author, and community journalist, his passion is national and statewide politics. Follow him at rogerpoliticalblogs. wordpress.com or leave comments at jet38@bellsouth. net.

If nothing in you changes, changing everything around you will have little or no effect.

of who you are within. You say what you believe. As you establish positive belief in yourself, you will speak positive words about yourself.

Words also create actions. They are the catalyst for positive

achievement. “... if anyone says to the mountain, go throw yourself into the sea, and does not doubt in their heart, but believes what they say will happen, it will be done for them,” (Mark 11:23). You can

but so bothered. He never clapped nor cracked a smile at a joke. He behaved as if like he didn’t want to be there.

There was more Republican crass. Are we surprised that Donald Trump was sour? Or that Marco Rubio (R-FL), the invisible Senator who deigned show up for SOU had little relevant to say? At the same time, there was some Republican class. South Carolina governor

Nikki Haley offered a welldelivered and gracious partisan response to the SOU. Some of her comments echoed those of President Obama when she noted, “Some people think that you have to be the loudest voice in the room to make a difference. That is just not true.

Often, the best thing we can do is turn down the volume. When the sound is quieter, you can actually hear what someone else

speak to the mountains in your life, and they will give way to what you say and believe in your heart. Changing how you see yourself will change what you say and your life will take on a new direction.

Finally, change what you do.

Your actions must line up with your words, and your words must reflect your heart. The three must be in agreement. When you say one thing and do something else, your heart is conflicted. When this happens, you will only make bad choices. These choices will lead to consequences that will take away from your quality of life. You will be become unbelievable, unreliable, and undependable. On the contrary, when your actions line up with your words your heart will be at peace, and your life will be full of prosperity.

Real change begins within you. If nothing in you changes, changing everything around you will have little or no effect.

You are the primary source and impact of how your life will be. By honoring your words, you have the power to change your life. Once you change inwardly, you will achieve real success. You can start on your new improved journey today.

Make the declaration, “I will change for the better by being the change I wish to see!”

is saying. And that can make a world of difference.”

Both Governor Haley and President Obama are asking for civility in political discourse, and the loudest voices are rejecting that. Republicans attacked Haley because she said that Republicans needed to own their part in the “erosion of public trust”. President Obama optimistically declared the SOU “strong”. Crass responses to

Nikki Haley’s comments suggest that the SOU is disruptively divided and weakened by the toxic nature of political discourse.

Timothy Houston is an author, minister, and motivational speaker who is committed to guiding positive life changes in families and communities. For copies of his book, questions, comments or more information, go to www.tlhouston.com.

Julianne Malveaux is an author, economist and Founder of Economic Education. Her latest book “Are We Better Off? Race, Obama and Public Policy” is available for pre-order atwww. juliannemalveaux.com.

insightnews.com

Insight News • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Page 9

COMMUNITY Netsanet Negussie: Telling stories in the nation’s fastest gentrified city

By Andrea Plaid and Netsanet Negussie, Twin Cities Daily Planet Netsanet Negussie is an emerging young artist exploring social justice and racial equity themes through the lens of her camera.

On the streets of Minneapolis, Negussie has found compelling subjects that depict impactful, human narratives not seen in the day-to-day media coverage of the city. She shared her art, her inspirations and her process with the Daily Planet.

Your medium of expression: Street/Documentary Photography. As a photographer, I also appreciate conceptual photography, so I have been exercising my ideas in this field lately. I’m also interested in documentary film production and currently learning basic skills in filming and the business of film production.

Why do you like this particular form to express myself? I believe that visual narratives are impactful. Image storytelling not only has the potential to stir your emotions but to also facilitate dialogue that promotes the human connection.

I am most interested in raising awareness and reinforcing dialogue about social issues through personal narratives.

How long have you been working this medium? Good question! Literally, a few months ago. I am not academically trained in this mode of creative expression. In fact, I graduated from university with a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience and minor in philosophy.

It wasn’t until August of 2015 when I decided to grab my camera and utilize its power to share stories. My moment of action really came from my personal growth of owning my narrative and listening to others’ who are fearless to share their stories.

How do you decide who/ what you’ll fix your lens on? First, whether I’m on the street or as intimate as someone’s home, I listen to their stories first.

In street photography in particular,

MLK From 1 Brown, Eric Garner, Sandra Bland and Minneapolis’ Jamar Clark.

“I’ve been in anguish over the killing of unarmed Black men in Ferguson and in Staten Island and in North Minneapolis and in all of the other places that haven’t made the evening news. I’ve been wondering what these incidents say about race relations in this

Alzheimer’s From 3 the cultural norms and values of African-American, American Indian, Korean, Lao, Latino and Somali cultures. Grantees include educational institutions, public health boards, long-term care providers and community organizations.

Grantees and their awards are: • A.C.E. of Southwest Minnesota, Slayton, $93,000 for a five-county project including dementia education for consumers and health care providers, early identification screening and caregiver services and resources, while being responsive to American Indian and Hispanic individuals.

• Age Well Arrowhead Inc., Duluth, $49,999 for dementia education to local employers and their employees and support and resources for working caregivers.

Man in wheelchair, Lake Street Minneapolis. Photo by emerging artist Netsanet Negussie, 2015.

People of color in Minnesota are often not recognized for their contributions. From my experience in the arts thus far, I’ve noticed that artwork does not reflect the community. So, I believe what I have in common with Fatuma (my fellow exhibit artist) is that we want to have a space for communities that are often unrecognized, underappreciated and marginalized to celebrate who they are. One of the images installed is a photo of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Representative Keith Ellison. I took that photo from a HUD meeting that took place in November at the Mayflower Church. In Minneapolis, we have a huge housing problem.

Communities of color, refugees and low-income families are constantly being pushed away and out of their spaces just to make room for a new demographic to come in — a demographic that is whiter and comes from a higher income bracket. I intentionally wanted that image to be shown because Minneapolis has a big problem of gentrification. We are the fastest gentrified city in the nation, thanks to our current policies that enable segregation.

Anyway, there are thousands of people who visit Center for Changing Lives here in Minneapolis. I want to make their experience impactful by fostering dialogue from viewing my work.

Who inspires you?

Photographers and filmmakers who inspire me include photographer LaToya Ruby Frazier (her work is ‘The Notion of Family’), documentary/ narrative filmmaker Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (director and producer, ‘Difret’), Sharmeen Obaid- Chinoy (Emmy award winning documentary filmmaker and producer), Wing Young Huie, Carrie Mae Weems and local artists of color. I am humbled, and I continue to learn from those who are not afraid to share their narrative, their truth.

But, the people who inspire me most are my loved ones. My family. They teach me to live life with intention. My mother and brother bought my first camera.

They thought photography was a hobby of mine. I see it as more

than just a hobby. My closest friends who motivate me to be my truest and best self. They have been there for me at my low and encourage me to rise and confront my fears. As much as I rely on them for support at my lowest, they are more excited than me when I achieve and succeed my goals! I love them dearly!

And, I am also inspired by everyday people I meet on the streets who enable me to see the world and appreciate the subtle beauties this world has to offer!

Where can people check out your work? Readers can check out my work by visiting my site at, www.netsanetfoto.com. I’m also on instagram at, Netsanet_ Negussie. I also have twitter, but I hardly ever use it.

As far as exhibits go, readers can tag along with loved ones to check out a two-person exhibition currently installed at the Center for Changing Lives. I and Fatuma Mohamud have our work featured for a month there.

I have a group exhibit at the Third Place Gallery. This exhibit is an opportunity for me to share some of my documentary photography project, “Saving Section 8”.

This exhibit also features talented artists/ photographers. The work will be up until Feb. 16.

I am also featuring my work at the United Theological Seminary Art Gallery as part of the series, “Faith [In] Action”, an exhibition (partnered with Intermedia Arts and Obsidian Arts) that reinforces dialogue of the involvement and impact religious leaders have on the community about social issues and causes spearheaded by the Black Lives Matter- Minneapolis movement.

I will also have the chance to share more of my work, “Saving Section 8” at the Gordon Parks Gallery in St. Paul later this year.

An exhibit showing much later in 2016 will also take place. I got an email from a representative of the Africa Center in New York City about interests to showcase some of my work as a group exhibition. I literally found this out last week, with more details to follow in the coming months.

the “sport” is about capturing “the moment.” I believe street photographers like Henry Cartier Bresson really fundamentalized this as the core of street photography. I, most of the time, disagree with this. I relate with the people I meet, listening to their stories. I then ask if I could make a portrait of them. If they say no, I don’t proceed with the imagemaking. If they say “yes,” then I try to capture what is aligned with their truth.

How do you see your work moving social justice onward? I believe that, as a visual artist, my

work can help foster dialogue about social issues. My hope is to bring communities together and to use my work as a platform for them to discuss pressing issues that is going on in our surroundings.

Currently, I am a housing organizer and advocate. As an organizer, I help provide information that shows what individuals can do to save their homes, specifically to form resident associations. As I serve as an advocate, I collaborate with inspiring people who are determined and empowered to

organizer their community and prevent the loss of affordable housing.

Each image is unique yet intrinsically linked as it shows both the struggle and accomplishments of tenants who strive to save the only home they know. I see the impact of my work as a collection of visual narratives to show how important we all must contribute to preserve affordable housing as access to quality, affordable housing is a basic human right.

Historically vulnerable communities are negatively impacted by the loss of federally subsidized housing due to the increasing threats of gentrification we see right here in Minneapolis! My intent with these images is to share the voice of communities that are impacted by new luxury development deals; to demonstrate the relevance of this issue to community members; to foster dialogue within the community about housing issues; and to encourage community action to preserve affordable housing in solidarity with advocates, city planners and developers, and local leaders.

Why is your exhibit needed at this time? My current showcase at the Center for Changing Lives is to show who Minneapolis is about.

country – what it has to say about humanity itself.

“What kind of people harbor so much fear of people who look like me that they shoot before they ask questions? What kind of a person gets so worked up at a driver asking why she’s pulled over that he jails her for three days?” said Patrick.

Patrick said that although he has his issues with some of the tactics of the Black Lives Matters movement, he supports the group’s cause.

“The marchers under the banner of ‘Black Lives Matter’ are faulted for trying to shut down highways or taking over building instead of promoting specific programs,” said Patrick. “I share some of these concerns and critiques, but I’m so grateful that so many people are putting these issues out front.”

Patrick said just as bad as racism is the indifference to acts of racism.

“In Chicago, it compounds the wound that it took a videotape

to confirm for the folks downtown what folks on the Southside and Westside have been saying all along,” said Patrick, referring to the police killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. McDonald was shot 16 times by Chicago officer Jason Van Dyke in October of 2014. The video was not released until this past November.

The former President Bill Clinton appointee alluded to a popular belief that the obstruction President Barack Obama has

seen is due to race.

“Over the last seven years or so I asked what kind of people are we that the enthusiastic and overwhelming election of a Black president causes the Congress to do everything in its power to marginalize him; if not bully him out of office,” questioned Patrick.

Patrick, who grew up in Chicago, said he has a personal connection to King.

“I heard Dr. King speak once when I was about six or seven and candidly, I can’t say I remember

what he said, but I remember what it felt like,” said Patrick, speaking of when he lived in a poor Chicago neighborhood.

“We were a people of limited means, but limitless hope … and I remember feeling the power of that hope.”

Honored as Lifetime Local Legends during the breakfast that supports the United Negro College Fund were judges Alan Page and Michael Davis. The event was presented by the General Mills Foundation.

• Centro Tyrone Guzman, Minneapolis, $88,500 for Spanish-based dementia education, including theater for caregivers, and other support and resources.

• Chippewa County Montevideo Hospital, Montevideo, $17,374 to increase access to a memory clinic for Hispanic individuals; provide dementia education, including Virtual Dementia Tours; and connect caregivers to services and resources.

• Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio, St. Paul, $49,999 for outreach and dementia education and to connect Latino caregivers to services and resources.

• East Side Neighborhood Services, Inc., Minneapolis, $49,953 to offer dementia education to the organization’s employees and volunteers who provide services to seniors at home and to provide education, support and resources

to other caregivers.

• Helping Hands Outreach, Holdingford, $49,713 to offer dementia education, early identification screening, cognitive testing with health care providers and to connect caregivers to services and resources.

• Isanti County Public Health, Cambridge, $138,944 for 10 organizations to offer dementia education, early identification screening, add a dementia electronic medical records process, connect caregivers to services and resources and promote tracking technology for the search and rescue of individuals with cognitive disorders.

• Jewish Family and Children’s Services of Minneapolis, Minnetonka, $135,000 to offer dementia education and early identification memory screening and to connect caregivers to services and resources while being responsive to Jewish, Russian-speaking and Somali individuals.

• Jones-Harrison Residence, Minneapolis, $49,504 to offer dementia education for LGBT individuals and create appropriate key messages for the LGBT community.

• Koochiching Aging Options, International Falls, $40,646 to offer dementia education, partner with health care providers to establish referral protocols and connect caregivers to services and resources.

• Korean Service Center, Lauderdale, $91,543, for outreach to the Korean community using social media, provide dementia education and connect caregivers to services and resources responsive to Korean individuals.

• Lao Advancement Organization of America, Minneapolis, $49,994, to offer dementia education using technology, outreach to businesses and to connect caregivers to services and resources responsive to Lao individuals.

• Mid-Minnesota

Development Commission, Willmar, $49,999 to offer dementia education to residents and businesses, establish a Memory Cafe and to connect caregivers to services and resources while being responsive to Hispanic and Somali individuals.

• M o r r i s o n - To d d Wadena Community Health Board, Little Falls, $49,825 for three county public health agencies to offer dementia education to the public and professionals using numerous media outlets and to assess communities’ readiness to become dementia friendly.

• Northwoods Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers Program, Bemidji, $149,508 for dementia education, early identification screening, cognitive testing with healthcare providers and to connect caregivers to services and resources responsive to American Indian and LGBT individuals.

• University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, $92,313 to support caregivers and improve

dementia care while being responsive to Hispanic individuals.

• University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, $73,500 to train exercise coaches for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease.

• Three Rivers Community Action, Inc., Zumbrota, $49,989 to offer dementia education and early identification screening, create a dementia resource toolkit and connect caregivers to services and resources while being responsive to Hispanic and Somali individuals.

• Volunteers of America of Minnesota, Minneapolis, $130,697 to offer dementia education, offer early identification screening in Minneapolis public housing senior high rises, create a dementia resource toolkit and connect caregivers to services and resources while being responsive to African-American and Somali individuals.

Netsanet Negussie’s upcoming exhibition for the Faith [in] Action show examines the role of faith communities in policing systems.

Photo by emerging artist Netsanet Negussie, 2015.

Classifieds NOW ACCEPTING WAITING LIST HOUSING APPLICATIONS Birmingham Townhomes is accepting housing applications through 2/10/16 for our waiting list for 2, 3, and 4 BR units with Section 8 rental assistance. Income limits apply. For a housing application, please call 952-876-9203. EHO.

Phone: 612.588.1313 Fax: 612.588.2031 Email: info@insightnews.com Courtroom Deputy The U.S. District Court, District of MN is accepting applications for a full-time Courtroom Deputy in St. Paul, MN. Salary range is $50,270 - $81,711. For more information visit the court’s website, www.mnd.uscourts.gov, Employment.

An Equal Opportunity Employer

Court Reporter

Operations Generalist – Duluth

The U.S. District Court, District of MN is accepting applications for a full-time Court Reporter in Minneapolis, MN. Salary range is $80,332 $92,382. For more information visit the court’s website, www.mnd.uscourts.gov, Employment.

The U.S. District Court, District of MN is accepting applications for a full-time Operations Generalist in Duluth, MN. Salary range is $39,171 - $63,664.

For more information visit the court’s website, www.mnd.uscourts.gov, Employment.

An Equal Opportunity Employer

An Equal Opportunity Employer

Foster Care

Volunteers of America, MN Would you like to gain 140 pounds after the Holidays? Not physically gain this weight, but weight in the sense of another person!

Volunteers of America-MN is looking for skilled, dedicated parents to provide care for at-risk youth, ages ranging from infants to teenagers. We provide foster parents with lots of friendly training, 24-hour support, and a monthly stipend.

For more information, please contact Brittani Walker at 952-945-4064 or visit our website http://www.voamnwi.org/foster-care

Volunteer Greeters Hennepin County is seeking volunteer greeters for its North Minneapolis human service center at 1001 Plymouth Avenue North to welcome and guide visitors, answer questions and assist with special projects. Reliable adults who enjoy working with people and who are available for a few hours twice a week are encouraged to apply.

Ideal candidates will be able to volunteer for a minimum of three months. Volunteers are integral to Hennepin County’s mission of enhancing the health, safety and quality of life of its residents and communities in a respectful, efficient and fiscally responsible way. Get involved by visiting http://www.hennepin.us/humanservicevolunteer and submitting a volunteer application.

Facilitator Positions (volunteer) Would you like to gain 140 pounds after the Empower older adults to manage their health!

Volunteer facilitator positions have opened at East Side Neighborhood Services (ESNS). ESNS, in collaboration with Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging and the Wilder Foundation, is hosting evidencedbased classes and workshops: Tai Ji Quan: Moving for Better Balance, A Matter of Balance, and Living Well with Chronic Conditions. We are seeking leaders who are comfortable and engaging in front of a small group. Experience working with diverse communities required. Facilitators must attend training (varies from two to four days depending on the class), commit to leading two entire sessions of a class or workshop (six to 12 weeks per session depending on the class), and adhere to established curriculum. We anticipate most groups will meet during the day. Classes and workshops meet either twice a week for one hour or once a week for two hours. To apply, contact Brenna Horn, Senior Health and Wellness Coordinator at ESNS: 612-787-4055 , bhorn@esns.org.

Page 10 • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Insight News

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Courtesy of Ordway Center for Performing Arts

Ordway Center for the Performing Arts presents “A Chorus Line” The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, 345 Washington St., St. Paul, presents “A Chorus Line,” Feb. 16-28.

Based on recordings of sessions with professional dancers, “A Chorus Line” tells the stories of 17 dancers – all vying for a spot in the chorus line of a Broadway musical.

Set on a bare stage during the audition process, “A Chorus Line” provides a rare glimpse into the lives and personalities of the dancers as they describe the events that have shaped who they are today. The award-winning score includes the popular songs “One,” “I

Hope I Get It,” “At the Ballet” and “What I Did for Love.”

“Having personally experienced what it means to be a Broadway gypsy, going from audition to audition, ‘A Chorus Line’ has always meant something special to me. It’s a classic that has withstood the test of time for a reason, and I’m thrilled to be bringing it to the Ordway stage,” said James Rocco, Ordway’s vice president of programming and producing artistic director. “At the same time, society is very different now than it was when the show first premiered in 1975. It’s important that we pay homage

to the original dancers and creators, while also making the audience feel like it could be happening right now.

It’s a challenge, but one I’m looking forward to tackling.”

Rocco will co-direct and co-choreograph the production with Kerry Casserly, artistic director of the Lundstrom Center for the Performing Arts and cast member of the 1970s Broadway production of “A Chorus Line.”

“Adding Kerry to the team was a no-brainer because this show is in her heart and soul. Her choreography and direction helps us to

explore the show’s original intentions, bringing the same sense of urgency and reality that made it a success in the 1970s,” added Rocco.

The cast comprises a mix of both local and Broadway dancers.

“When James and I first got together to discuss the show, we immediately agreed that we needed to find real people that had the same hunger and drive as the characters in ‘A Chorus Line.’

We wanted people with whom the audience could identify and who could bring to life a shimmer of Michael Bennett’s original choreography while

making it their own at the same time,” said Casserly.

“It was a tall order, but we couldn’t be happier with the immensely talented cast we’ve got on board and can’t wait to see what each of them brings to the stage.”

Conceived and originally directed and choreographed

by Bennett, “A Chorus Line” features music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics

by Edward Kleban and a book by James Kurtwood and Nicholas Dante. The show originally opened at the Schubert Theatre in July 1975. It quickly became a box office hit, receiving nine

Tony Awards (including Best Musical, Best Director and Best Choreography) and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The original Broadway production ran for 6,137 performances, becoming the longest-running production in Broadway history until it was surpassed by “Cats” in 1997. Today, it remains the sixth longestrunning Broadway show ever.

Tickets for the Ordway produced musical start at $37 and can be purchased online at www.ordway.org, by phone at (651) 224-4222 or in person at the Ordway ticket office.

THE “CONCUSSION” INTERVIEW

Gugu Mbatha-Raw gushes about working with Will Smith

By Kam Williams Born in Oxford in the United Kingdom, Gugu Mbatha-Raw trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

Her first professional role was in an Open Air production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” as Celia. Following this, she landed roles at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre, where she performed in “Antony and Cleopatra” and the title role of Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet,” opposite Andrew Garfield, for which she was nominated for the Manchester Evening News Award for Best Actress in 2005.

Gugu’s other stage credits include the criticallyacclaimed “Big White Fog”

Columbia Pictures

Gugu Mbatha-Raw opposite Will Smith in “Concussion”

at the Almeida Theatre and David Hare’s “Gethsemane,” a production at the National Theatre that later toured the UK. She made her West End debut as Ophelia in “Hamlet” opposite Jude Law. Her British television credits include “M15/Spooks,” “Dr. Who,” “Marple – Ordeal

by Innocence,” “Bonekickers,” and “Fallout.” She subsequently starred as Samantha Bloom in the JJ Abrams NBC series “Undercovers,” for which she was nominated for an NAACP award for best actress in a television series.

In 2011, she landed her breakout big screen role in “Larry Crowne,” directed by

MBATHA-RAW 11 TURN TO

insightnews.com

Mbatha-Raw From 10 Tom Hanks and co-starring Julia Roberts. More recently, she played the title character in Fox Searchlight’s highlyacclaimed period drama “Belle,” alongside Tom Wilkinson, Emily Watson, Miranda Richardson, Sam Reid and Matthew Goode.

Gugu next starred alongside Minnie Driver, Nate Parker and Danny Glover in “Beyond the Lights,” a love story set in the music world. In February of 2015, she was seen in Andy and Lana Wachowski’s “Jupiter Ascending,” starring Channing Tatum, Mila Kunis and Eddie Redmayne. And she is set to co-star opposite Matthew McConaughey in “The Free State of Jones,” a Civil War action-drama written and directed by Gary Ross which will be released next May. Here, Gugu talks about her latest role playing Will Smith’s wife in “Concussion,” a drama about the National Football League’s attempt to discredit Dr. Omalu, the pathologist whose research uncovered the link between hits to the head and the early onset of a host of neurological disorders in football players.

Kam Williams: Hi, Gugu.

I’m delighted to have another opportunity to speak with you.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw: Sure!

How have you been, Kam? KW: I really enjoyed “Concussion,” including your performance. How did you enjoy making the film?

GMR: Oh, it was a really great experience. [Writer/ director] Peter Landesman was so passionate about the movie and about Bennet’s [Dr. Bennet Omalu] story.

And having an opportunity to work with Will Smith was huge, obviously. I was also excited about transforming in this role. And it was fun working in Pittsburgh, the home of the Steelers, since I’d never been there before.

And I found the city and its history quite fascinating.

KW: Was shooting in Pittsburgh at all awkward for the production, given how the movie presents the NFL in a bad light.

GMR: No, I never really felt any animosity. I think people were really thrilled that we were making a movie there. While the film raises questions about the ethics of the NFL, it really isn’t antifootball. Overall, it’s very supportive of the players in the way it discusses the CTE, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. So, we had a great experience in Pittsburgh.

KW: I told my readers I’d be interviewing you, so I want to mix in some of their questions with mine.

GMR: Sure.

KW: Editor/Legist Patricia Turnier says: I really liked your performances in “Belle” and “Beyond the Lights,” and I love the soundtrack, especially the song “Blackbird” you sang on the “Beyond the Lights” soundtrack. How did you prepare to play Prema?

GMR: Well, Prema’s very much the emotional, driving force of the film in many ways.

She’s serves as Bennet Omalu’s moral compass. I started with the script, working with Peter.

And I got some medical advice from friends of mine and from my parents, who are both medics. It was great to have my mom on standby. [Chuckles] KW: Did you meet with Prema?

GMR: Yes, but not until the end of the process. She was a little reticent about being involved. So, I wanted to respect her wishes. On the other hand, that meant we could have a little artistic license in creating Prema for the film. I also worked with a dialect coach who helped me with the Kenyan intonations, since Prema’s

Insight News • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Page 11 from Kenya. And then we did some rehearsals with Peter and Will prior to shooting.

KW: Will Smith was famous for memorizing his co-star’s lines early in his career. If you watch episodes of the Fresh Prince, you can often see him mouthing other actors’ lines as they speak.

Did he do that with you?

GMR: [LOL] I’ve heard him talk about that. I can safely say he doesn’t do that anymore. [Laughs some more] Will is such a phenomenal actor. Everyone knows his personality as a movie star, but he really transformed himself into Bennet for this film. It was a very powerful, dramatic role for him.

KW: How was it working with him?

GMR: It was really joyful experience. He’s such a professional. He’s very hard-working, but he also has a great sense of humor.

So, he was a fun person to be around on the set.

KW: Harriet PakulaTeweles asks: How does Dr. Omalu’s battle resonate with you personally?

GMR: Wow! Well, I really respect Bennet, because his journey is a fight for exposing the truth. I really love that kind of David and Goliath story where you see the underdog rise and do what’s right. I can really relate to that morality challenge. Also, as an immigrant to the United States myself, I can relate to the journey of being a foreigner in a new country. I think that can be good when you see things from a fresh perspective, since you’re not being numbed by the culture you grew up in.

You’re seeing things anew. If Bennet hadn’t grown up in Nigeria, would he have been the person to have identified CTE as so damaging to football players. I don’t know.

I feel that, sometimes, a fresh perspectives allows for clarity.

KW: Patricia is wondering whether you are going to appear in a “Star Wars” Episode VIII. GMR: [Laughs heartily] No, that’s just a rumor.

KW: She’d also like to know what you think of Simone De Beauvoir’s famous quote: “One is not born, but rather becomes a woman.”

GMR: I’ve never heard that quote before. It’s very interesting. I think it’s about ownership and authenticity.

I suppose we all grow into ourselves. I guess it depends

I love the idea that we all become more ourselves as we go through life. Sometimes, it’s about shedding skins to get in touch with who you really are underneath. on how you define yourself.

I love the idea that we all become more ourselves as we go through life. Sometimes, it’s about shedding skins to get in touch with who you really are underneath.

KW: Her last question is: What is your opinion regarding women in the movie industry?

I know that is a very broad topic which encompasses a lot.

GMR: [Laughs] How much time have you got?

KW: Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone would?

GMR: I can’t really think of one off the top of my head.

KW: The Ling-Ju Yen question: What is your earliest childhood memory?

GMR: Some nice memories of being at my grandmother’s house with my mom. My grandmother passed away when I was 3.

KW: What was your very first job?

GMR: I worked for Pizza Hut in Oxford. I got a job there in my summer holidays when I was 16.

KW: If you could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?

GMR: World peace.

KW: The Uduak Oduok question: Who is your favorite clothes designer?

GMR: Oh, gosh! That’s tricky.

I have so many, and I’m always discovering new designers.

Luckily, I have a great stylist who sort of helps me out with that stuff. I really, really love Carolina Herrera and Alexander McQueen. I also love British designers like Burberry.

You definitely have to stay true to who you are. Following in someone’s footsteps is a nice idea but, ultimately, there’s only one you, and you have to make your own way.

KW: What is your guiltiest pleasure?

GMR: [LOL] Probably having massages. That’s the one thing that seems to help me get over jet lag.

KW: Finally, what’s in your wallet?

GMR: Let me see... Right now I have some South African rands, some American dollars and some British pounds, which probably tells you I’ve been traveling a lot.

KW: It sure does. Well, thanks again for the time, Gugu, and best of luck with “Concussion.”

GMR: Thanks very much, Kam. Bye.

I’m still discovering Los Angeles, to be honest with you. I know certain pockets quite well... the beach ... the Eastside... It would be great to live right by the sea on the beach... on the sand. I know that would be prime real estate, but that would be fun.

KW: The Viola Davis question: What’s the biggest difference between who you are at home as opposed to the person we see on the red carpet?

GMR: Uh... makeup?

[Giggles] Yeah, makeup and nice clothes. I’m pretty casual in my day-to-day life.

KW: Larry Greenberg asks: Do you have a favorite movie monster?

GMR: I love Ursula from “The Little Mermaid,” although I don’t know if she’s really a monster. But she was sort of evil and fabulous. .

KW: The Anthony Mackie question: Is there anything that you promised yourself you’d do if you became famous, that you still haven’t done yet?

GMR: Am I really famous? I don’t really know. That’s not something I’ve ever thought about. I believe you’ve always got to live life fearlessly. I don’t think you should wait to be recognizable to do the things you love.

KW: What advice do you have for anyone who wants to follow in your footsteps?

GMR: Make your own path.

WAR

Classic Funk and Soul

Jan 25 & 26 7 & 9 pm

“The Best Live Band I ever Saw!” – New Musical Express 612.332.5299 | dakotacooks.com 1010 nicollet mall, downtown minneapolis

KW: I thought Burberry only made men’s raincoats.

GMR: No, they have a huge range. I’ve worn a few of their gowns. They even do makeup.

KW: The “Realtor to the Stars” Jimmy Bayan’s question: What’s your dream locale in Los Angeles to live?

GMR: That’s hard for me to say.

Martha Reeves and the vandellas

A powerful legacy

inspires

every dreamer to

dream big

Motown Soul Legend February 5 & 6 7 & 9 pm "The ultimate Motown diva.”

– Gloucestershire Echo

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. dedicated his life to making the world a better place for us all.

At AARP, we are committed to ensuring that every generation has the power to advance the legacy of Dr. King to realize their dreams and reach their full potential.

See the resources, tips and tools available at aarp.org/blackcommunity.

612.332.5299 | dakotacooks.com 1010 nicollet mall, downtown minneapolis

Page 12 • January 25 - January 31, 2016 • Insight News Chantel Sings

insightnews.com

DeVon Gray

Jan. 25 - Feb. 1

Aesthetically It! is a list of picks from the editors of Aesthetically Speaking.

Aesthetically It! features venues, events, outings and more that are worthy of “It” status. If you have a venue, event or outing that you feel is “It” worthy, email us at aestheticallyit@ insightnews.com

War

Monday, Jan. 25 SOUL/ROCK/FUNK/ PERFORMANCE WAR Dakota Jazz Club 1010 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis 7 p.m. $40 - $50

With classic tracks like “The World Is a Ghetto,” “The Cisco Kid” and “Low Rider,” the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominated WAR are sure to please live at The Dakota.

Tuesday, Jan. 26 HIP-HOP/FUNDRAISER HopePack presents Seeds of Hope 2 Honey 205 E. Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis 7:30 p.m.

21-plus Bring a winter hat, gloves or hand warmers down to Honey and catch performances by, El.i.Be, Just Wulf, Mike Shank and DJ Adatrak, Symphony’s Dad, Strictly Hammers and more.

Wednesday, Jan. 27 JAZZ/ECLECTIC deVon Gray and Casey Deming The Cedar Cultural Center

416 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis $5 Pianist deVon Gray aka plays a special eclectic set at The Cedar.

Thursday, January 28th HIP-HOP/PERFORMANCE/ DANCE NIGHT 2nd Anniversary (and final) Gravity Nights Honey 205 E. Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis 10 p.m.

WizeEnt, Cherry Sky and Long Doe Records present the final night of their monthly showcase of art and fashion fused with R&B and hip-hop with performances by The Kamillion, Kush Kings, Mercc Ways and Vicious.

Friday, January 30

Tribute to Mz Mayla The Red Sea Restaurant & Bar 320 Cedar Ave. S., Minneapolis 5 p.m. – 2 a.m.

R&B/PARTY

Catch live performances, tributes, food and more to celebrate Mz Mayla Macon who passed away tragically in a car accident, leaving behind three children.

Chantel Sings Big Aquarius Birthday Bash Dancing Ganesha 1100 Harmon Pl., Minneapolis 10 p.m.

21-plus $5 Celebrate the birthday and 10 year anniversary of beating ovarian cancer with KMOJ’s Chantel Sings. The celebration features DJ Pheonix and DJ Don Dadda on the wheels and performances by Chantel Sings, Rico Nevotion, SDot Madison and more.

Saturday, January 31 REGGAE/PARTY/ FUNDRAISER Pure Vybz - A Special

Sunday, February 1 COMEDY/POETRY Soul Sundays Honey 205 E. Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Check out this monthly showcase featuring comedians Sterling Brown, Elliot Vreeland, Brandude McIntyre and poet Finesse Banks. The monthly is hosted by Pierre “Cool P” Douglas, Sr. and Bruce Leroy Williams.