Motown: The Musical MORE ON PAGE 10
Insight News December 15 - December 21, 2014
Vol. 41 No. 52 • The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com
Afrodescendientes
Revel Spirit Blending two cultures, two worlds into one destiny By Carmen Robles, Associate Editor, Afrodescendientes More than the blending of two cultures and two worlds, Revel Spirits is the blending of an entrepreneurial dream. The crossing of paths for Micah McFarlane, an AfricanAmerican music producer and promoter and that of Mexican native Hector Ruiz, an executive chef and restaurateur can only be attributed to destiny. McFarlane was looking for a new venture, a spiritual, life altering adventure. With his childhood friend Blas Gonzales
Hector Ruiz, Carmen Robles, Micah McFarlane and Rick Aguilar at Café Ena.
by his side, McFarlane traveled to Mexico where Revel Spirit was created. Revel is not your abuelo’s (Spanish for uncle) spirits … no lime or salt needed. It is a high-end sipping experience. While having the same foundation as tequila, Revel is made from the Weber blue agave plant in the Morelos region of Mexico, by Ruiz’ family who perfected their distillation processes until their handcrafting created a spirit that became known as Avila. Ruiz was following his grandfather’s request when he entered the world of culinary delights and opened the doors
REVEL TURN TO 7
39th Dr. Michael T. Fagin Pan African Student Leadership Conference will be held at MSU Edina The year 2015 will mark the 39th celebration of the Dr. Michael T. Fagin Pan African Student Leadership Conference. This year also marks a significant change for the conference in that it will be temporarily relocated from the Minnesota State University, Mankato campus to Minnesota State Mankato’s Edina location
Dr. Michael T. Fagin
(7700 France Ave.) to share the event with a wider audience and gauge the level of interest in the conference in the Twin Cities. Minnesota State Mankato President Richard Davenport, who named the conference to honor Fagin in 2010, has maintained his strong support of the conference. Davenport
major concerns of African and African-American people. This year the conference will highlight the significant accomplishments that have been made in regards to civil rights and the continued problems that people of African descent face in contemporary
said he would like to see the conference rise to the level of an international event while continuing to address the concerns of African and African-American people throughout the world, with particular interest in the United States. The conference has a long history of addressing the
FAGIN TURN TO 3
State’s economist projects $1.037 billion surplus for 2016-20 17 biennium up through the next economic forecast in February, the 2015 legislature will continue to work towards putting forth a balanced budget that keeps the state’s fiscal house in order, creates jobs that support Minneapolis families and address the many transportation needs of the community. Although it is difficult to predict specific priorities for a potential surplus, the state economist and other nonpartisan financial experts agree that Minnesota must hold onto an adequate budget reserve, or “rainy day fund,” to withstand future economic volatility. Under state law, a third of any surplus is automatically diverted to the reserve. The major factors that contributed to Minnesota’s 2016 - 2017 budget surplus and improved budget outlook are a $373 million surplus from
Minnesota finance officials released the state’s most recent economic forecast this week, which shows the state with a projected $1.037 billion budget surplus for the next two year budget cycle. State Sen. Bobby Joe Champion (DFL-59) sees the good news as another sign of the state’s continued economic improvement and evidence that a balanced budget leads to great things for Minnesotans. “Despite Republican opposition, we increased revenue and invested in education and job creation,” said Champion. “These investments are now paying off. Today, the state projections include a solid budget surplus and our unemployment rate that has shrunk to 3.9 percent. This forecast is proof that investing in key priorities and fairly raising revenue when needed works.” According to Champion, if the projected surplus holds
SURPLUS TURN TO 7
Insight 2 Health
Bryan Stevenson
Health challenge getting results
Ending the silence about the mass incarceration crisis
PAGE 2
PAGE 4
Valerie Wilson
Black workers rejoining the labor market By Freddie Allen NNPA Senior Washington Correspondent WASHINGTON (NNPA) – The Black unemployment rate rose to 11.1 percent in November, according to the latest jobs report from Labor Department, because of increasing optimism in the economy. The Black unemployment rate rose from 10.9 percent in October to 11.1 percent and the jobless rate for Whites increased slightly from 4.8 percent to 4.9 percent in November. The unemployment rate for Black men also increased from 10.7 percent in October to 11.2
MARKET TURN TO 9
Sports
Money
Torii Hunter returns to his baseball home
Tips for saving for retirement in your 20s
PAGE 7
PAGE 8