Insight News ::: 02.25.13

KMOJ’s Georgia Ellyse opens up about the loss of her first child; focuses on healing self and others MORE ON PAGE 5

Taylor Tupy

Georgia Ellyse

February 25 - March 3, 2013

Vol. 40 No. 9• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

FOOD FIGHT

Seeking a recipe for school safety, respect, and inclusion

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer

Kowsar Mohamed, 16, a junior at Minneapolis’ South High School fights back tears as she details incidents of bullying and harassment at the hands of her fellow students.

Harry Colbert, Jr.

Minneapolis School Board Member Hussein Samatar and the South High School SomaliAmerican students are calling on Minneapolis School District to better provide for their safety and to hire Somali speaking staff members.

Samatar said the students feel South High staff is not addressing the students’ safety concerns. At a press conference last week, Samatar said school board is well aware of safety concerns at the school.

“The students have come

to me about their concerns and I have shared it with the (school) board,” said Samatar, who said eight percent of the student population at South is Somali-American. “I ask these questions (of how to address safety concerns) all the time on the school board.”

What started on Feb. 14 as a food fight between a couple of girls ended in an all-out melee.

According to students who attended a press conference to discuss the incident, the brawl that sent several students and at least one staff to the hospital was the latest in a long history of daily bullying.

SOUTH TURN TO 10

Students set sights on college level athletics

By Ivan B. Phifer Staff Writer Two North Community High School students were celebrated by peers and teammates for accomplishing what few saw as a reality.

National Signing Day held on Wednesday, Feb. 6 was the first day that high school athletes could sign letters of intent and make their college selections official.

Harry Colbert, Jr.

Former Minneapolis City Council president, Jackie Cherryhomes, addresses a room of supporters as she launches her mayoral bid.

Suluki Fardan

NORTH TURN TO 6

Anthony Wallace, Julie Anderson and David Hall, Jr.

Unlearning racism requires positive (affirmative) action Irma McClaurin, PhD, Culture and Education Editor with Dr. Kesho Scott (Grinnell College) The recent racist incident at Washburn High School of Minneapolis, in which a black doll was hung (lynched), is disturbing. We are living in the 21st century. And yet, not too long ago in 2003 Duluth, MN built a memorial to commemorate the unlawful and unjustified lynching of three young Black men in 1920.

Despite this example of racial reconciliation, in 2008 an effigy of Presidential candidate Barrack Obama was found hanging from

Cherryhomes announces bid for mayor

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer The DFL field for Minneapolis mayor increased by one as former city council president and Northsider, Jackie Cherryhomes announced her candidacy for the

city’s top job.

The announcement came on Feb. 16 in front of a room full of enthusiastic supporters – many clad in red Cherryhomes campaign t-shirts –at Standard Heating and Air Conditioning, 130 Plymouth Ave. Cherryhomes said the location

of her announcement was significant because the company chose to stay in Minneapolis and relocate to North Minneapolis.

Though Cherryhomes has not served in office in more

CHERRYHOMES 10 TURN TO

Minnesotans with Chicago roots speak out on the killings in their hometown

By Harry Colbert, Jr. Contributing Writer

Dr. Irma McClaurin, PhD the Duluth memorial. Whether playing video games, watching movies set in the “wild” West, reading about suicide or violence

Education

South High UMOJA recognizes, reflects diveristy of African American students

PAGE 3

Dr. Kesho Scott in general, a reasonable child and adult knows that placing a noose

RACISM TURN TO 3

Business

Splatball, Inc. comes to North Minneapolis

PAGE 4

In all of last year Minneapolis tallied a total of 41 murders – Chicago had already eclipsed that number in January of 2013 – and the death toll keeps rising.

There appears to be no end in sight to the carnage in the Chicago streets. One Chicago mother lost all four of her

children to homicide and just recently, 15-year-old honor student Hadiya Pendleton was gunned down little more than a week after marching in President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Parade. Just last week two teenage girls were murdered in Chicago while the president was in the city giving a speech on ending gun violence. One of the murdered girl’s, 18-year-old Janay McFarlane, had a sister who

Commentary

The State of Equality and Justice in America

PAGE 9

was standing behind President Obama as he delivered his speech. Many are questioning what, if anything, can be done to stem the tide of violence in the Midwestern city.

Many in the Twin Cities are keeping a watchful eye on what is happening in Chicago. Several AfricanAmericans currently residing

CHICAGO TURN TO 11

Health

State expands health coverage for 350,000 Minnesotans

PAGE 11

Page 2 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

Workforce development creates gateway to opportunity

By Ivan B. Phifer Staff Writer Scott Gray became president and CEO of the Minneapolis Urban League (MUL) in July 2009.

The next year, Gray along with three coworkers; Kennedy Barber, David Johnson and Shawn Lewis, were instrumental in creating the Gateway to Opportunity initiative.

“You have to create an integrated model to make sure folks are working,” said Gray.

Gateway to Opportunity has four existing components; health and wellness; college readiness and career development, workforce solutions and wealth accumulation.

Two of Gateway’s initiatives include Big Step and RENEW. Launched two years ago and modeled after the Milwaukee Urban League program, Big Step is a partnership with labor unions Local 132 of St Paul and Local 563 of Minneapolis.

After completion, individuals obtains a union card, which

Suluki Fardan

Scott Gray

David E. Johnson

Kennedy Barber

Shawn Lewis

is valuable in seeking skilled labor employment.

“When we think construction, we think laborers and carpenters, especially in the African-American community,” said Barber construction program manager for MUL. Barber oversees the Labor Education Advancement Program (LEAP), which helps minorities and women receive apprenticeship opportunities.

LEAP has a 52-year history with the Minneapolis Building Trades, which consists of

laborers, carpenters and other construction work components.

According to Barber, out of 40 LEAP program graduates, 36 have gotten jobs with major construction companies earning a starting salary of at least $24 an hour.

“But this is hard work and it’s not for everybody,” said Barber.

RENEW is another Gateway Opportunity program, training 30 participants a year in three emerging areas; green jobs, advanced manufacturing and building systems and

construction.

“The RENEW program is a partnership through Minneapolis and St. Paul, which provide training upfront,” said Gray.

Participants work on projects along Highway 169, Interstate 694, and the light rail.

“MnDOT (Minnesota Department of Transportation) has been a real supporter of the program and is also a partner,” said Gray.

David Johnson runs the MUL Adult Placement

program.

The Adult Placement initiative started in May of 2012 placing 28 participants in the past fiscal year. The MUL fiscal years began in May. ‘Regardless of background, we assist with resume coaching, cover letter instructing and job searches,” said Johnson.

Johnson says two main resources participants look for are housing and jobs.

“It doesn’t matter which one is first, they run parallel with each other,” said Johnson.

Gray said the recession hit

many in the African American community hard. Ten to 15 years ago, people could come to the MUL and receive work.

“Those days are a little bit past us so we need a more customized strategy,” said Gray.

Even people with college degrees are having a challenging time seeking employment and housing.

“Imagine how tough it is for those with no schooling?

We are trying to answer the call in this community,” Johnson said.

Orientation for Adult Placement is held each Tuesday from 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

A soft skill training session is provided.

“We are just scratching the surface right now. We want to advocate for more resources for the community.

We want to prove people in this community want to work; they want a career, build wealth and make sure their neighborhood is a place they can live, work and enjoy. We just want to be the center of that at the Urban League,” said Gray.

For more information contact the Minneapolis Urban League at (612) 302-3100.

Beyond reflections, we need a 2013 movement Gateway to excellence

By Scott Gray MUL President/CEO Each Black History Month, for many African Americans there is always a deeper reflection on the events of the past and how our history has shaped the present and the implications for our future.

As I reflect this month, I am reminded of the power of a movement to drive change in our communities and transform our futures.

For a movement to ignite, at least one person must have the courage to stand up and remain steadfast in the face of challenges, naysayers, discouragers and dream crushers. None of us can begin to imagine what would have happened if the movement builders had not chosen to stand up in 1963.

Recipe for a Movement In the year 1963 there were many pivotal days in the historic Civil Rights Movement: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote “Letter from A Birmingham Jail; May 3, 1963.” Medgar Evers, leader of the Mississippi NAACP, was murdered outside his home after attending a civil

rights speech delivered by then President John F. Kennedy, Jr. On August 28, 1963 200,000 blacks and whites gathered at the Lincoln Memorial to hear dialogues about ending racism and segregationist practices.

Among the speakers was Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who gave the memorable “I Have a Dream” speech. Sunday, September 15th, 1963, the 16th Street Baptist Church was bombed, killing four little girls who had been at the church attending Sunday School, and November 22, 1963, was the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

President John F. Kennedy, in his civil rights speech of

June 11, 1963, the day Medgar Evers was killed, had called for a ‘Civil Right Act,’ asking for legislation “giving all Americans the right to be served in facilities which are open to the public; hotels, restaurants, theaters, retail stores, and similar establishments,” as well as “greater protection for the right to vote.” Kennedy had delivered this speech following a series of protests from the African-American community, the most concurrent being the Birmingham campaign which concluded in May 1963.

Each of these major events and countless other incidents, conversations, brainstorming sessions, activities, strategic planning and movement building acts performed by other people from all walks of life and ethnic backgrounds converged and became a recipe for the Civil Right Movement.

All of these moments in time led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act on July 1, 1964 and the Voting Rights Act August 10, 1965.

A Blueprint for Closing the Gap Right here in Minneapolis, while a number of indicators report that the city is thriving even in these days of economic challenge, when you look closely and segment this information by ethnic group, the disparities in our city are among some of the worse in the nation. For the second year in a row, the Economic Policy Institute reports that our city has the greatest employment disparity between whites

and blacks in the nation at 3:1. When it comes to health disparities, access and quality of care, more disparities.

Wealth accumulation, continued sluggish progress; and when it comes to the creation of generational wealth, dismal. Educational underachievement, affordable housing, still a slew of unaddressed needs.

Report after report and countless committees discuss poverty reduction, educational gains and the need to improve job seeker employability by eliminating skill gaps. Yet, as a community, and sadly as a nation, we find ourselves stuck at the discussion table making limited progress in our quest to reach a position of sustainable solutions.

On the Time Magazine List of Top Ten American Protest Movements, which also includes the Civil Rights Movement, it is interesting to note that all of the other movements have replicated the protest elements of the Civil Rights Movement; a movement considered a success, a movement viewed as a blueprint for creating change.

Key words in defining a movement are attaining an end, so I challenge us all to ask ourselves the questions, “When will disparities finally be eradicated so that measures of success will be equal regardless of ethnicity? When, if ever, will the gaps in employment, housing, health care, financial stability, and education attainment be closed?”

I was moved recently when

Harry Belafonte accepted the Springarm Award during the NAACP Image Awards a few weeks back. He challenged that we must “unleash radical thought” during the movement that exists today. Part of his speech was as follows: “What is missing, I think, from the equation in our struggle today is that we must unleash radical thought... America has never been moved to perfect our desire for greater democracy without radical thinking and radical voices being at the helm of any such quest.”

Each of us must take personal responsibility and be willing to invest the time and energy required to both recognize and maximize opportunities that are presented to us; opportunities that can improve our quality of life.

While many will argue that there is still much work to do, and that inequalities persist, I say sadly that will always be a part of the human experience. There will always be work to do, but progress can always be made, just as change is constant. The Civil Right Movement can serve as our blueprint for the NEXT MOVEMENT. For, the Civil Rights Movement teaches us that when people from all walks of life, from diverse ethnic groups decide to unite to halt injustice; when they cry out for human dignity, respect and opportunity, they become an unstoppable force which refuses to be denied until an end is achieved.

insightnews.com

Insight News • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Page 3

EDUCATION Cross-culture within culture: South High School UMOJA recognizes, reflects diversity of African American students

By Ivan B. Phifer Staff Writer To celebrate Black History Month, Minneapolis’ South High School student group UMOJA hosted National African American Parent Involvement Day (NAAPID) in the school’s media center.

The event featured keynote speaker Jesse L. Mason, Jr., Ph.D., as well as vendors from Job Corp and the TRIO Upward Bound Program.

“Without the students of UMOJA, staff and administration, this day would not be possible,” said South High Principal Cecelia Saddler.

“What’s great about South High is you have a lot of students and staff that already have an invested interest to make sure parents are involved.”

NAAPID is a yearly event that, according to organizers takes several months to plan.

A relationship built through Minneapolis Community & Technical College (MCTC) enabled UMOJA to feature Dr. Jesse L. Mason Jr. as speaker for

South High’s NAAPID. Mason opened his speech with a poem, titled “The Skin I’m in,” which depicted the love not only of himself, but his people despite negative

Jesse L. Mason, Jr.

stereotypes; as well as showing appreciation for other cultures.

Mason asked students a simple, yet perplexing question.

“Are we who they say we are,” quizzed Mason. “How

Suluki Fardan

many of you think there are more Black men in prison than college?”

More than half the room raised their hands.

“You would be incorrect.

There are actually more Black men in college,” said Mason.

In addition, he stated that the blame game is another aspect of affecting children’s environments and learning capabilities.

According to Mason, parents blame the school system and the teachers; AfricanAmerican administrators and teachers blame parents and the community, while faculty at colleges and university blame the public school system.

“Even if they (incoming college students) come in with a high GPA, they still have a problem with basic literacy,” said Mason.

Mason has participated in research and applied programming in health and education disparities and is a graduate from Morris Brown College with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a doctorate in Cognitive and Biological Psychology from the University of Minnesota.

UMOJA president and South senior, Amatullah Muhammad, said the purpose of UMOJA is to have a safe space and create a voice for African-Americans.

“We have a diverse group of African-American students.

Some are Somali, some are Sudanese, but we are all AfricanAmerican or Black. It’s a nice cross-culture within the culture,” said Muhammad.

The South High UMOJA student group meets every Thursday after school. Umoja, Swahili for unity, is the first of seven identifying Kwanzaa principals. The concept behind Umoja is to strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.

Every year, UMOJA goes on a Black College Tour with the money raised through volunteer work, such as bagging groceries at Cub Foods.

The principal at South, Saddler said African-American history is important year-round, not just during February.

“I am an African-American woman who happens to be in a position of authority,” she said. “I take that with pride and respect; it also means I have to make a difference with this position.”

Senator Franken discusses student mental health services; reads to first graders at Elizabeth Hall International Academy in North Minneapolis

U.S. Sen. Al Franken read to first graders at Elizabeth Hall International Academy

Racism From 1 around anything is no laughing matter. The “lynching” of a Black doll at Washburn High in Minneapolis, given Minnesota’s recent history, is NOT a matter to be taken lightly or to gloss over as “kids will be kids” or “they had no idea how bad this was.”

This incident points to the hidden side of “Minnesota Nice,” behavior that masks social segregation and exclusion.

As one (white) Minnesotan once described it to me: “Minnesotans are so nice, so nice, they’ll stop and give you the directions to anywhere….except their homes.” My personal experience confirmed this. In three years of living in Minneapolis, only one person invited me to their home.

Social segregation is real; thus opportunities for knowing people different from family and close friends are extremely limited.

Unfortunately, many African Americans in Minnesota have taken to practicing “Minnesota Nice.”

Racism and White Skin Privilege Acts of racism are manifestations of the contradictions of American democracy—we profess everyone is equal under the law, but we don’t treat people as such. Minneapolis is simply a microcosm filled with its own contradictions: an excellent educational system yet a large achievement gap among non-whites; some of the most cutting-edge medical and health research facilities in the world, yet increasing health disparities among non-whites; and economic underdevelopment in non-white communities. Sad, but true, Minneapolis, and by extension American society, is a far distance from being “a postracial society.”

Peggy McIntosh’s seminal 1988 essay “White Skin Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” (http:// www.amptoons.com/blog/files/ mcintosh.html) can provide some important lessons to the students, the principal, and the parents of Washburn High School, which both my niece and nephew attended, as well as the state. The world is watching.

McIntosh speaks about white privilege as an invisible system that confers dominance upon a group. On a daily level, the

privilege is buried within discrete events that appear innocuous: being served first when nonwhites were seated before you; assumed to be the leader, when your non-white boss is standing next you; being heard when others (non-whites) are ignored.

For many whites, the dilemma of white privilege is that you don’t have to do anything to earn it, promote it, or enjoy it.

Consider white privilege a monopoly card that you have in your wallet; it always gives you a free turn or allows you to “pass to GO” simply by virtue of your skin color. Conversely, non-whites, especially historical minorities (Blacks, American Indians, Puerto Ricans, Chicanos, Pacific Islanders and Alaskan Natives), are left holding the “go directly to jail” card and are confronted with consistently missing (economic, employment, same pay, equal justice, and wealth) turns. The outcomes are determined by whether opportunity is given or withdrawn, and have little to do with merit, persistence, or aptitude.

Whites are rarely told “you are so articulate,” while myself and other non-white colleagues with PhDs hear this frequently.

Trust me, the statement is not a compliment. Given that we hold advanced degrees, why would we not be articulate, and why is it a matter for comment? How many times have you (white or non-white) walked into an office looking for the person in charge, and just assumed that the non-white standing before you couldn’t be that person? White privilege is most frequently expressed through such behavior and attitudes that over time have become so ingrained, that they appear “natural.” White privilege also informs structures of racism.

My co-author, Dr. Kesho Scott, Associate Professor of American Studies and Sociology at Grinnell College and a diversity trainer for over twentygive years employs the concept of “Unlearning Racism.” This is a methodology that gained prominence in the 1980s by the late West Coast (white) activist, Ricky Sherover-Marcuse (http://www.unlearningracism. org/). She defined racism and all “ISMs” as “…the systematic mistreatment of one group of people by another group of people for a purpose or

RACISM TURN TO 5

Suluki Fardan

U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) read to first graders on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at Elizabeth Hall International Academy in north Minneapolis as part of I Love to Read Month.

The senator also met with school officials to learn about Minneapolis Public Schools’

school-linked mental health programs. Later that day, Franken paid a visit to two Minneapolis nontraditional programs designed to help young people succeed.

Franken visited Juxtaposition Arts, which is a community-based organization founded on education,

entrepreneurship and professional development for young artists.

He also visited Cookie Cart, a non-profit community bakery with the objective to help north Minneapolis teenagers develop workplace skills and find jobs.

Kitchen looking more like an office?

At this rate, you might want both.

Get a great rate on a Home Equity Line of Credit.

Home Equity Line of Credit

1.99

% APR*

Introductory Rate for 6 Months

There’s never been a better time to make those home improvements you’ve been thinking about. U.S. Bank is offering a Home Equity Line of Credit at a great rate with no closing costs. Not to mention potential tax advantages, great service and convenient branch locations. Start adding value to your home today.

Rates As Low As

3.99

% APR*

Variable Rate after Introductory Period

branch

usbank.com/lowrate

800.209.BANK (2265)

*1.99% Introductory Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is available on Equiline Home Equity Lines of Credit with a U.S. Bank Package and a 70% or 80% loan-to-value (LTV) or less, depending upon the market.

The introductory interest rate will be fixed at 1.99% during the six month introductory period. A higher introductory rate will apply for a credit limit of $15,000 to $24,999 and an LTV above 80%. After the six month introductory period: the APR is variable and is based upon an index plus a margin. The APR will vary with Prime Rate (the index) as published in the Wall Street Journal. As of February 1, 2013, the variable rate for home equity lines of credit ranged from 3.99% APR to 8.99% APR. Higher rates will apply for a credit limit below $99,999, an LTV above 80%, a low credit score and/or not having a U.S. Bank Package relationship. The rate will not vary above 25% APR, or applicable state law, or below 1.99% APR. An annual fee of up to $90 may apply after the first year. Offer is subject to normal credit qualifications. Rates are subject to change. Property insurance is required. Consult your tax advisor regarding the deductibility of interest. Other restrictions may apply. Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit are offered through U.S. Bank National Association ND. © 2013 U.S. Bank. All rights reserved. Member FDIC.

Page 4 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

BUSINESS BUSINESS PROFILE

Splatball, Inc. comes to North Minneapolis Shaina Brassard, West Broadway Coalition It’s been less than three months since Jim Emmerich welcomed players into his new paintball facility at 2921 N 2nd Street, but the owner of Splatball, Inc. is feeling settled in and happy to be there.

INSIGHT NEWS www.insightnews.com

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

Editor-In-Chief Al McFarlane CFO Adrianne Hamilton-Butler Publisher Batala-Ra McFarlane Associate Editor & Associate Publisher B.P. Ford Vice President of Sales & Marketing Selene White Culture and Education Editor Irma McClaurin Director of Content & Production Patricia Weaver Sr. Content & Production Coordinator Ben Williams Production Intern Miki Noland Distribution/Facilities Manager Jamal Mohamed Facilities Support / Assistant Producer, Conversations with Al McFarlane Bobby Rankin Receptionist Lue B. Lampley Staff Writer Ivan B. Phifer Insight Intern Abeni Hill Contributing Writers Cordie Aziz Harry Colbert, Jr. Julie Desmond Fred Easter Oshana Himot Timothy Houston Alaina L. Lewis Lydia Schwartz Photography Suluki Fardan Tobechi Tobechukwu 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) Postmaster: Send address changes to McFarlane Media Interests, Marcus Garvey House 1815 Bryant Avenue North, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55411.

Emmerich, who has been working in the paintball industry for 17 years, chose the north Minneapolis location after he got news that his indoor Splatball location on University Avenue in Dinkytown, near the TCF Stadium was going to be demolished.

“The move has been wonderful. We had more visibility over there but this facility is phenomenal. This is our third indoor facility, so we had the opportunity to take the lessons from the prior two and apply them,” said Emmerich. “(We’ve) gotten an amazing reception from the neighbors.”

The spacious indoor paintball facility is one of Emmerich’s four paintball establishments in the area. There’s an outdoor field in Jordan under the name Action Packed Paintball Games, the indoor Air Assault Paintball in Maple Plain, and a final outdoor Splatball, Inc. facility in Rogers.

The North 2nd Street Splatball has become something of a headquarters, and boasts a fully stocked shop where players can purchase equipment.

For those unfamiliar with paintball, Emmerich describes is as a “giant, grown up adult video game.” Players are divided into teams and equipped with guns that contain paintballs, which are composed of a non-toxic, biodegradable, water-soluble polymer paint that marks one’s opponent when hit. Players also wear protective masks while they navigate the game field, which is scattered with natural or artificial terrain used for tactical cover. The objective of the game is often compared to Capture the Flag, but the rules can vary depending on the type of space. Typically, games at the North 2nd Street location last between five and 10 minutes.

After the winning team is left

Jim Emmerich, owner of Splatball, Inc. standing, players leave the field to clean off and reload and get back out for as many as 15 games over the course of two or three hours. Referees monitor the game, making sure everyone is safe and following the rules.

At Splatball, and all of Emmerich’s paintball facilities, there are two different types of play – walk-on play and reservation play. Walk-on play, essentially a big game of pickup, happens Friday nights from 6 p.m. –11 p.m. and Sunday

afternoons between noon and 5 p.m. Players pay a $20 entry fee and can rent equipment or use their own. Groups of eight or more can call and schedule reservation play almost anytime other than walk-on hours.

Those that have never tried paintball before are in good company. Emmerich says that the majority of his customers have played between less than three times. Many are introduced to the game when they’re invited to gatherings such as corporate parties, bachelor parties, birthday parties and even end of season sports team parties.

There’s ample space with tables and chairs for groups to bring in food, and there are large windows so that parents or those in the sitting area can watch

the game while eating cake and socializing. Players can be as young as 10 years old; those under 18 years of age must bring a waiver signed by a guardian.

New players are also in good hands at Splatball because Emmerich knows his paintball.

He started playing during senior year of high school. When he went off to college, he found the local paintball facility.

“One day the owner threw a referee uniform at me and said, ‘You’re hired,’” recounts Emmerich.

Though he hadn’t even asked for a job, it was obviously meant to be. Working at that facility for four years during college gave him an opportunity to learn the business. Seventeen years later, he’s still working in paintball.

Shaina Brassard

He now manages around 25 employees spread out at his four locations, and is still looking to add staff. “This is what I do. I’ve always been an entrepreneur my entire life. I was the kid that had the lemonade stand,” explained Emmerich.

As Minnesotans brace for more winter, practicing indoor paintball at Splatball on North 2nd Street in north Minneapolis might be the perfect activity.

Those starting now will be ready for the outdoor fields right when spring rolls around!

Splatball, Inc. 2921 2nd St N. Minneapolis, MN 55411 952-492-6776 www.actionpackedpaintball. com

You need a good story Plan Your Career

By Julie Desmond julie@insightnews.com Inventor of the HANDy Paint Pail, Mark Bergman, spoke to a group of business leaders about his inarguable success: how he got where he is, what the joys and challenges are in his work, and how he incorporates

fundamentals including family, fitness and faith into his success.

His audience was curious about the topic to start with, and they stayed interested because Bergman had a great presentation style. He did not use loud music, Harlem Shake backup dancers or a PowerPoint.

He just sat on a stool in his jeans and sweater and told people a few short stories.

First, Bergman told a story about his son and the invention of a spoon. Ok, the spoon had already been invented. But his story was about how he was in his kitchen with his one year

old, feeding the baby his mashed carrots and making airplane noises when it occurred to him that a plastic spoon with wings on it would be something people might buy. As it turns out, they did.

Then he talked about noticing his kids’ shoes were always untied.

He thought about a doohickey he could remove from his gym bag, slide onto their shoe laces, tie a knot, cut them off, and then his kids wouldn’t have to tie their shoes anymore.

He manufactured cuter and sportier versions of the doohickey which appealed to the younger-than-gym-bag set, and another success was born.

Personally, I’ve purchased more than a few of these for my kids who were too old for Velcro but too busy to bend over and tie their laces Next, he described the Hallmark Movie afternoon when he was preparing a room for the new baby girl he was adopting from some faraway land. He had to paint the room and his hand got tired from holding the container with the paint in it. We already know the guy is clever.

Give a clever guy a roll of duct tape and a problem and you better just stand back because something interesting is sure to happen. He fashioned a strap out of the duct tape, attached it to the side of the paint can, and the million dollar HANDy Paint Pail was born.

Bergman wrapped up his presentation with a story about his company’s philanthropic initiatives, specifically around the Children’s Tumor Foundation. Giving back is a mainstay of the organization and the cause is one that an employee got him involved in, most likely piquing Bergman’s interest by telling a captivating, personal story.

Julie Desmond is IT Recruiting Manager with George Konik Associates, Inc. Send your resume and career planning questions to Julie at jdesmond@ georgekonik.com.

insightnews.com

Insight News • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Page 5

KMOJ’s Georgia Ellyse opens up about the loss of her first child; focuses on healing self and others

By Alaina L. Lewis When talent, beauty and brains meet activism and advocacy you get Georgia Ellyse, a Twin Cities native whose impressive resume has lead her from KMOJ-FM, all the way to BET’s “106 & Park.”

Now with the world yearning for programs to heal heartache after premature loss, this powerhouse is stepping up to restore everyone’s faith through an organization she is working with called Faith’s Lodge.

Faith’s Lodge is a retreat for families who have lost a child to violence or natural causes and need a place to heal and restore their hope. It has been in existence since 2007 and is the only facility like it in the country.

One thing people may not be aware of is that Ellyse first became affiliated with Faith’s Lodge, when she herself visited the weekend retreat several years ago after losing her daughter, Amana, when Amana was just 5 months old. It was through Faith’s Lodge where Ellyse found a new direction and the urge to heal and make sense of her loss.

“On Thursday, Feb. 21, my daughter would have been six,” said Ellyse. “She passed away when she was about 5 months old. In six years I have been able to cope, accept and forgive.

However, I believe that some experiences in life are so tragic that they are difficult to make sense of. In the case of losing a child, we are often left with a lot of unanswered questions.

Why did this happen? Why me?

I know that I experienced this after losing my daughter, yet the closure I found is utilizing my experience as a testament to other mothers and fathers that have lost a child.”

Ellyse’s story echoes the horrific aftermath many families face when scrambling to find a positive way to cope with an unfathomable event like the loss of a child. With her opening up to the world about her own emotional journey, and now coupling this with an organization like Faith’s

Andrew Xiong

Georgia Ellyse and her second daughter Araya Lodge, Ellyse is aiding others in finding the answer to their hearts unanswered question of how does one build a bridge towards renewal and hope.

“Looking back I recognize that Faith’s Lodge played a huge role in teaching me how to cope with my grief in a healthy way.

I want to share that with others who are grieving the unbearable loss of their child,” said Ellyse.

“Visiting Faith’s Lodge, allowed me to connect with other parents facing similar situations. This assured me that the thoughts

I was having after losing my daughter were normal. It also assured me that it was ok to feel upset that my job expected me to adapt an attitude of ‘life goes on’ just a short week after my daughter passed away.

“In all honestly, when you lose a child, your world stops, and you are so heart broken.

Unfortunately, the world doesn’t think enough of your child to stop with you. And because the world doesn’t stop with you, you start to feel like it leaves you behind. If it were not for

the connections that I made at Faith’s Lodge, if it weren’t for the conversations that I was able to have with Amana’s father while we were at Faith’s Lodge, I would still be left behind.

Losing a child is like living your worse nightmare, and speaking from experience the best thing anyone in that situation can do for themselves is take a trip to Faith’s Lodge.”

For those who know Ellyse personally, or even feel like they know her because they have supported her career goals by

cheering her on via twitter or as unwavering Facebook fans, it is still hard to say that anyone is equipped to truly know the figurative miles she has walked with her emotions after suffering this loss. Most always see the professional side of Ellyse, and now people are seeing her world through another window.

Ellyse has worked very closely with Faith’s Lodge to create and promote a new weekend called Campaign L2V, a weekend getaway for parents whose children were

lost to violence. The peaceful escape is scheduled for Apr. 18 – Apr. 21. Eight families from the Twin Cities metro area will be provided scholarships and transportation to Faith’s Lodge’s facilities in northern Minnesota.

For more information on Faith’s Lodge, and Campaign L2V, or to donate to the organization, visit, www. faithslodge.org or call (612) 825-2073.

For more information on Ellyse, visit www.georgiaellyse. com.

Walk Right In DVD reflects summer of 1968 In the summer of 1968, 140 students from inner city and rural America gathered at the Yale University Divinity School to participate in an educational experiment.

White, Black, Puerto Rican, Indian American, and Asian American students, labeled

by New Haven newspapers as “underachievers,” were introduced to a “Great American Books” curriculum that included The American Constitution, Native Son, Antigone, and The Communist Manifesto. No one told them they weren’t supposed to excel, and so they did.

The group of 110 boys and 30 girls (the first women to attend Yale before it went coed) participated in “T” (therapy) discussion groups to tackle the messy topic and tensions of race and social justice following the largest period of civil unrest in America after the assassination of Martin Luther King. Safe within the walls of Yale’s Divinity School, the YSHS students, encouraged

Racism From 3 advantage.” According to Scott, these systems of mistreatment are learned, approved, rewarded, and develop a life of their own because they are internalized by people and practiced (and perpetuated) in institutions.

Says Scott, “you can change the people,” as she has observed after conducting hundreds of “Unlearning Racism” and Diversity workshops nationally and internationally. However, she notes, unequal systems persists because they are part of the structure and the organizational behavior. The net result of structural racism and structural systems of inequality is that even when non-whites hold leadership positions, the structures can still be racist.

This presents non-whites with a dilemma; they feel powerless to protest or challenge the

McClaurin Solutions

Irma McClaurin ‘69, Lucy Flower Vocational High School, West Side of Chicago

by the staff, found their voices and the inspiration to succeed academically.

Larry Paros, the YSHS director from 1967-68, has captured the impact of this transformational summer in a documentary entitled “Walk Right In, The Story of Yale Summer High School (www. walkrightin.com). Using his perpetuation of inequality.

“And when policies and goals of diversity are ‘so-called’ institutionalized,” says Scott, “non-white attitudes might change, but power is not shared by all.”

To further complicate how inequality and all forms of “ISMs” play out in real life, scholars have begun to speak about the practice of “microagressions” or “microinequities.” It is not unlike McIntosh’s description of white skin privilege, but focuses on behavior that targets and is hurtful, but not in overt ways.

The most troubling application of the term is by Dr. Marcia Allen Owens who writes about what it’s like to be a Black woman faculty member at Historically Black institutions. Borrowing from the work of Derald Wing Sue, author of Microagressions in Everyday Life: Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation (Wiley, 2010), Allen Owen writes, “The term microinequities describe

own funds, he located former students, teachers, and staff whose testimonies prove his belief that education transforms lives. Yale Summer High School succeeded because it set high expectations and encouraged students to rise and learn. It offered a template for establishing a successful learning environment and a model of education reform.

The film explains why Yale University fired Paros and discontinued a program that all agreed, including Yale’s outside consultant, was a success.

Many YSHS alumni went on to college and became lawyers, community organizers, educators, counselors, therapists, and transportation employees. Most have children who attended college.

Paros has bet his life’s saving that the film holds a message for today’s efforts to reform education. He is distributing free copies during February (Black History) and March (Women’s History) to inspire a national conversation

the ‘pattern of being overlooked , under respected, and devalued because of one’s race or gender.’”

In her case, she experiences gender microagressions (http:// thefeministwire.com/2012/11/ is-that-healthy-experiencesof-microagressions-by-blackwomen-at-historically-blackinstitutions/). This description, when viewed in tandem with McIntosh’s analysis of white skin privilege point to nonwhites, non-males, and nonheterosexuals having to wake up every morning and enter into toxic environments in which they are directly and indirectly assaulted, often with the perpetrators totally unaware.

on race and education reform.

In exchange, he asks recipients to post their screening dates and reviews on the film’s website and Facebook page.

The film has been accepted

by Culture Unplugged for free streaming on its website: (http://www.cultureunplugged. com/documentary/watchonline/play/11452/Walk-RightIn. Dr. Irma McClaurin, a Raleigh-based consultant and Culture and Education Editor of Insight News and former President of Shaw University, is one of the people featured in the documentary. At a time when the country is erupting with concern about education reform, school success, and the growing Achievement Gap, “Walk Right In, The Story of Yale Summer High School,” documents successful education reform. McClaurin, is a past Associate VP at the

University of Minnesota, where she was tenured, and the Founding Executive Director of the University of Minnesota’s first Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center in North Minneapolis. She was also tenured at the University of Florida in Anthropology.

As a consultant in Raleigh, she has provided technical assistance to the Friends of Oberlin-Pineview Cemetery to help preserve an historic African American cemetery.

She is a published author in anthropology, literature, and poetry and a regular contributor to Insight News (www. insightnews.com).

McClaurin’s story is particularly telling. She grew up with her mom and siblings in the projects of Chicago after her parents divorced when she was eight. Her father had a second grade education and her mother had dropped out

of high school. In the 1960s residentially segregated educational system of Chicago, McClaurin attended an all-girls vocational high school and trained to become a secretary.

She worked her way through school as a legal secretary and took college prep classes, encouraged by teachers, and not discouraged by family who had never attended college.

McClaurin, along with the late Tonda Woolfolk, left Chicago for New Haven.

She had been selected by the Mundelein College (now closed) Upward Bound Program to participate in the Yale Summer High School.

The experimental curriculum included arts and culture trips, “T” (therapy) group discussions of race and social justice issues and offered youth dismissed as “underachievers” a unique learning experience.

TEN THOUSAND THINGS presents Will Power’s hip hop retelling of Aeschylus’ The Seven Against Thebes, the story of two brothers who try to rule their kingdom peacefully despite their father’s curse.

FEATURING Katie Bradley, Aimee K. Bryant, H. Adam Harris, Kinaundrae Lee, Brian Sostek, Ricardo Vazquez, Joetta Wright, AND Bruce A. Young

FEBRUARY 15 – MARCH 10, 2013 OPEN BOOK $25 (Students $15 on Sundays with valid ID)

“Unlearning Racism” Requires Taking Positive (Affirmative) Action So what’s a Washburn High or a city like Minneapolis, or this entire country, to do to eradicate structural racism and

RACISM TURN TO 7

www.tenthousandthings.org 1-800-838-3006

Page 6 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

FULL CIRCLE March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom Man Talk

By Timothy Houston The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom or “The Great March on Washington” was one of the largest political rallies for human rights in United States history and called for civil and economic rights for African Americans.

The march was planned and initiated by A. Philip Randolph, the president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, president of the Negro American Labor Council, and vice president of the AFLCIO. Randolph along with a group of civil rights, labor, and religious organizations

organized the march under the theme “jobs and freedom”.

The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was partly intended to demonstrate mass support for the civil rights legislation proposed by President Kennedy. Martin Luther King, Jr. and other leaders therefore agreed to keep their speeches calm, and to avoid provoking the civil disobedience which had become the hallmark of the civil rights movement.

King originally designed his speech as homage to Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, timed to correspond with the 100-year centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation.

The march took place in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, August 28, 1963. Martin Luther King, Jr., standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial, delivered his historic “I Have a Dream” speech advocating racial

harmony during the march.

Estimates of the number of participants varied from 200,000 to 300,000. The 1963

They were committed to the struggle. Like a line from the poem “Invictus,” their heads were bloodied, but still

It has been 50 years since the march on Washington, and we are still striving for equality.

march was an important part of the rapidly expanding Civil Rights Movement.

The people at the march were from all over the country.

unbowed. They came seeking hope and inspiration, and they were not disappointed. They went back to Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina,

Georgia, Louisiana, and other parts for the country with a new found energy and motivation.

Like Martin Luther King, Jr., they too dreamed of a day when all men would be able to sing the song of freedom.

It has been 50 years since the march on Washington, and we are still striving for equality.

With the advent of social media and instant news, we are bombarded with events that constantly remind us that the struggle is not over.

Although these images can be overwhelming, we must not give up the fight. Our children and grandchildren are looking to us to champion their cause.

They trust that we will leave them a better world full of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The time is now, and the mission is clear, we must not surrender the struggle for freedom and equality.

As we close out Black History month, I would like

to remind you that as the national theme suggested, we are at another crossroad. It is imperative that we seize the momentum that was created by those who have gone before us. We can and will achieve freedom and equality if we do not give up, give out, or give in. May we never stop striving for what is right.

Freedom is a God-given right, but quality is created by the will, determination, struggle, and sacrifice of the men and women who refuse to be denied.

Timothy Houston is an author, minister, and motivational speaker who is committed to guiding positive life changes in families and communities.

To get copies of his books, or for questions, comments or more information, go to www. tlhouston.com.

Boys Cry examines African-American on African bullying

Jones (“After the Dawn”) and is a collaborative production effort between international production company End Time Harvest Productions and U.S. based Triwar Pictures. “‘Boys Cry’ is a social contribution project that focuses on bullying from a cultural standpoint, said producer, Reggie Anderson of End Time Harvest Productions.

“Most of these efforts in a visual sense feature Caucasian children dealing with internet harassment, gender orientated backlash, size and body shape issues, but rarely do we cover bullying from a cultural standpoint. Racism is only

one aspect of color orientated harassment. We forget that cultures themselves clash and cause a negative atmosphere amongst children and teens.

Children who appear the same color attack each other purely based on origin of birth, and it is imperative that we address that problem and widen the focus of dialogues currently out their to combat this behavior.”

By thrusting this perspective on the bullying issue into the light, End Time Harvest Entertainment and Triwar Pictures hope to assist with efforts for uncovering a worldwide solution. Although it will take unanimous exertion

from a large collective to put an end to hate crimes, this team still believes “Boys Cry” is a great addition to the awareness trend. It also allows them to create an avenue of expression that encourages others to join their venture and become an evangelist for putting an end to hate.

“I don’t know that you can ever get rid of bullying for good but we can certainly reduce it and give kids resources to cope and deal with it,” said “Boys Cry” director Mitchel A. Jones. “The more we raise awareness and get people to stand up against it the better chance we have. All it takes is for people to make the decision to not stand by idle while it’s happening. If you see it happening say something, take a stand. If we as a society stop tolerating bullying it will take the power away from those who bully. I believe this film can be used as a tool by opening up a dialog about bullying. Getting kids to talk to their parents and teachers is the first step to reducing the problem. You can’t fix something that keeps lurking in the shadows and hopefully this film can serve as a light to expose some of the issues that effect students every day.”

Currently, “Boys Cry” is seeking assistance from the Twin Cities and individuals worldwide for post-production help. They have been accepted into a crowd funding program,

North

“You are setting the tone for those who come after you,” said Family Engagement Specialist, Deanna Smith.

As peers and teammates cheered in unison, Senior Academy Athletic Director Julie Anderson expressed high praise for her students.

“This is an example of what is possible when you handle business in the classroom and the field. I am so proud of you guys,” said Anderson.

The players signed their papers to attend North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, N.D.

By Alaina L. Lewis When we hear of bullying in the media, often we are only privy to stories of African-American and white race crimes, gender hate crimes, or race on race issues.

Rarely do we see the perspective of cultural bullying through the lens of the African versus African-American experience. It does not mean the issue is nonexistent, but it might however mean that people just do not realize how common and out of hand the phenomenon is.

All that is about to change.

The Twin Cities can start gearing up for an intriguing new film project coming to theaters this year. “Boys Cry” is a movie that explores the bullying trend from a cultural perspective – the struggle one African teen faces when bullied at school

by African-American children, with his same skin tone, simply for his cultural differences.

The film is currently finishing

Entertainment/Tri War Pictures

Actor/star Elijah Kondeh; Still courtesy of End Time Harvest up production this month in Brooklyn Park with the aid of both the Brooklyn Park Police Department as well as the Brooklyn Park Public School system. The film stars Elijah Kondeh, Montel Swaray, Boakai Kimba and Ambruce Freeman.

It is directed by Mitchel A.

From 1 Outside the gym by the Door 13 entrance, North High students, Anthony Wallace and David Hall, Jr. were honored.

with USA Projects, a causebased funding solution for artists, and are down to the wire to raise their $5,000 goal which will help with marketing needs, promotional costs and getting the film festival ready. The producers said they need people who believe in not only the project, but also the no bullying movement in general to give a contribution to aid in them bringing this project, which is almost done, completely to life.

“We are already filming and wrap the film’s production Mar. 3; however, our team has donated much of our time and personal finances to complete the work,” said producer Nicole Kruex. “We recently were selected to host a donation site through a company called USA Projects which is a 501(c)(3) non-profit donation platform which allows supporters to make a tax deductible donation to our project. We’ve raised over $1,000 so far, but our time is running short. If we do not raise the $6,500 we set our goal at by Feb. 28, we lose everything that was donated so far. We are looking for the community to help. Anything from $1 to $1,000 or more will get us closer to our goal.”

For more information on this film, it’s upcoming release and the filmmakers, visit www. boyscrymovie.com and to donate, visit www.usaprojects. org/project/boys_cry.

Defensive back and wide receiver, Hall, wants to study business management, and one day hopes to open his own business.

“Coming from the Northside, I’m encouraged

NORTH TURN TO 8

insightnews.com

Insight News • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Page 7

Dads: May I have this dance?

Positive Image 1st Annual Father Daughter Dance was held at the Crowne Plaza in Brooklyn Center, on Sunday, February 10, 2013. A community-sponsored, formal, elegant and fun-filled evening for girls ages 5 years and over, and the special men in their lives.

“The Father Daughter Dance focuses on the importance of fathers and their daughters having strong, healthy relationships. The first strong male bond girls have is with their father and this event teaches young girls what it means to be treated with love and respect,” said Terry Austin, executive director, Positive Image.

Over 200 fathers and daughters participated.

“Statistics show that a young girl will seek her father’s love first at home. If she doesn’t find it, she will seek it elsewhere.

The objective is that fathers will continue to be positive role models and influencers of their daughters, and that daughters will have healthy relationships as teens and adults as a result,” said Austin.

We’ve asked these fathers to join us in our efforts to promote healthy father-daughter relationships, which will in turn provide young girls with the guidance they need to become productive in our community.

For more information about Positive Image contact Terry Austin at (612) 239-4823 or positiveimageta@gmail.com.

The 1st Annual Positive Image Father Daughter Dance

Photo courtesy of Terry Austin

Irma McClaurin keynotes Black Nurses Association gala Dr. Irma McClaurin, former President of Shaw University, former University of Minnesota Associate VP and Founding Executive Director of UROC, and Ford Foundation Program Officer, 6pm Saturday, March 9, 2013 delivers the keynote address for the Minnesota

Chapter of National Black Nurses Association, (MNBNA) fundraising gala.

The “First Annual Springing towards Health Gala” launches the MNBNA scholarship fund for nursing students.

The organization believes that having more nurses interact

with communities will improve health outcomes and reduce health disparities.

Trained as a bio-cultural anthropologist, Dr. McClaurin, Principal of McClaurin Solutions of Raleigh, will speak on race and health disparities.

Rev. Deidre Walton, President

of the National Black Nurses Association, will appear as a special guest speaker.

Thomasina Petrus and Ray Covington will provide soulful musical entertainment from 9:30pm-1AM. The event is at Crowne Plaza Minneapolis North in Brooklyn

Center, Minnesota. Individual tickets are $60 and group tables of ten are $600. Sponsorship packages ($500-$5000) and Program Ads ($25-$250) are available.

For tickets, sponsorships and advertising information or to make a contribution to the

auction for recognition in the program, contact MNBNA by February 26, 2013.

For more information, contact MNBNA at (612) 3535136, info@mnbna.org, www. mnbna.org.

Racism

it means reflecting on the ways in which you may contribute to the perpetuation of such structures and systems. And, by the way, silence is the greatest form of consent.

At the Washburn High School level, the school (principal, faculty, staff, parents, and all students) has an opportunity to use the incident as an ongoing “teachable moment.” Those students who participated in the incident should be required to do community service in an arena that allows them to socially interact with people who are different from themselves.

They might be asked to design a play about lynching and its impact on the victims and the people who participated— teachable moments. These are just a few examples of that might provide information and exposure, while honing their critical thinking and analytical skills. Their parents should be involved as well since, frequently, such messages of

inequality (or inferiority) and white privilege and approval of microagressive behavior have been digested somewhere, and are often passed along close to home.

All schools in Minneapolis (which can become a model to the world) must look at ways in which it addresses the (mis) perceptions that whites hold about other cultures. Getting a diet of Black history, Hispanic History, Hmong or Laos History, Women’s History, or Somali History one month out of twelve is insufficient and only emphasizes that they (non-whites, women, etc.) are different from us (dominant groups).

The principal of Washburn can mobilize parents and teachers to review the mandatory texts students are assigned to read to see what messages are buried within. Teachers can draw upon the resources from the exhibit built by their own Minnesota Science Museum, “RACE: Are We So Different?”

( w w w. u n d e r s t a n d i n g r a c e . org) and incorporate into their curriculum (from art to STEM).

This might be a good time to take frequent field trips to the Minnesota African American Museum, the Laos Cultural Center, etc. Without a doubt, it should be evident that Washburn must establish ongoing inservice cultural competency (diversity, “Unlearning Racism” or “Unlearning ‘ISMs’”) workshops for teachers and staff and incorporate into the evaluation process. Most of us harbor stereotypes and may be communicating some of this unconsciously or engaging in racial “microagression” or “microassaults,” like hanging a Black effigy doll.

The TPT documentary “North Star: Minnesota’s Black Pioneers” should be mandatory viewing for all Minnesota principals, school boards, school staff, elected officials and all government staff throughout the state. Wish there was a way to test them on what

they learned! Maybe a citizen’s group can create a cultural competency report card. The purpose for all of this positive (affirmative) action should be self-evident. Any more than young girls should not have to attend school fearful of being raped, non-whites should not have to go school fearful of physical or psychological racial violence.

One thing we anthropologists do know about the human species is that despite surface (phenotypic) variation, people are pretty much the same (genes, organs, blood, etc.) underneath our skins.

The definition of a species is its ability to reproduce with each other—we can do that despite the social concepts and boundaries of the idea of race. Do we want to do it, should we do it? These are social questions, not biological ones.

Anthropologists also agree that the social behavior often dividing one group from another is learned. Humans are not born racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, or religious-phobic; nor are they born slaves—people can be born within an institution called slavery. We create these cultural institutions and then operationalize them.

That doesn’t make them real or “natural.” They are cultural inventions that allow us to privilege some groups by disadvantaging others. Systems of inequality (political, racial, gender, religious) emerge out of such cultural behavior.

Americans have spent decades dismantling a system that classified some groups as “slaves” or “unequal.” We created a restorative justice remedy (affirmative action), and then eradicated it. Now,

we must put as much effort into dismantling the beliefs that benefit the idea of white privilege, support structures of racism, and perpetuate inequality.

We are a smart species— after all, we learned to walk upright. If we have learned these maladaptive behaviors, they can be unlearned, along with other “isms.” Washburn High School is a good place to start for Minneapolis, but it’s only the beginning.

To Read More: http://www.tpt. org/?a=programs&id=15741 http://discovery. mnhs.org/MN150/index. php?title=Duluth_Lynchings h t t p : / / w w w . claytonjacksonmcghie.org/ h t t p : / / w w w . claytonjacksonmcghie.org/ Community http://people.duke. edu/~ldbaker/classes/AAIH/ caaih/ibwells/ibwbkgrd.html http://hunniebrown. wordpress.com/lynching-inamerica/ http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=BJL2P0JsAS4

From 5 white privilege? The first step is to acknowledge that racism, prejudice, microagressions, and microinequities exist; the second step is to name them when they occur; and the final step is put in place positive (affirmative) actions that will begin to dismantle the system of exclusion and make the practice of microagression and white skin privilege unacceptable.

For those who belong to the dominant groups (whites, males, heterosexuals) practicing positive (affirmative) action also means acceptance of the fact that you must give up some of your seemingly “natural” privilege, which some have come to enjoy a lot. For non-whites, women, non-heterosexuals who participate in the dominant culture and perpetuate the systems of structural inequality (intentionally or unintentionally),

© 2013 McClaurin Solutions Irma McClaurin, PhD is the Culture and Education Editor for Insight News of Minneapolis.

A bio-cultural anthropologist and writer, she lives in Raleigh, NC (www.irmamcclaurin. com) (@mcclaurintweets). Dr. Kesho Scott is an Associate professor of American Studies and Anthropology at Grinnell College in Iowa (website).

She is a leading national and international authority on “Unlearning ‘ISMs’” and a sought-after Diversity trainer ( h t t p : / / w w w. g r i n n e l l . e d u / academic/sociology/people/ faculty/scott).

Page 8 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

LIFESTYLE Farview Ski Team: Skiing strong into spring

By Ingrid Remak For the past four years, Farview Park has been home to one of the only neighborhood ski teams in Minneapolis.

Made possible through the collaboration of Minnesota winters and the Loppet Foundation, the Farview Ski Team meets biweekly for practice in Theodore Wirth Park.

“I wasn’t sure how they were going to like it at first,” said Louis Oatis, who has been supervising the youth in the program since the beginning.

Oatis meets the skiers at Farview and then takes them to Wirth where they strap on their poles and ski freely on the hills into the wintry nights.

Youth from Farview Park have been involved in the Loppet Foundation ski and bike program for four years.

Initially the team was formed to train for the City of Lakes Tri-Loppet, an event where the youth learned to canoe, mountain bike and trail run.

As the seasons changed, the Loppet Foundation talked with Oatis about carrying the summer program through the

Dylan Halberg (left), Wauneen Nieves and Jordan Halberg pose victoriously after skiing the City of Lakes Loppet’s Minneloppet event.

PUZZLES

North From 6

to set the bar higher, to show people I am more than the common perception,” said

winter with cross-country skiing.

“I told them I knew a few kids that were not into basketball or football. This was something new to try,” said Oatis.

Largely, Scott Kyser, who has seen the athletes develop throughout the years, has coached the team.

“Scott knows the kids and the kids know him. They love him,” said Oatis chuckling.

“He teaches them technique; how to go up and down the hills, and stop. They are really beginning to know the ins and outs of the sport.”

Even as temperatures dip near zero, the Farview Ski Team shows up ready to rock the trails.

“They keep coming back,” said Oatis. “I think they feel unique about it. Skiing is something not a lot of people can do. They know that it is a commitment to be on this team.

It’s great because for those that stick with it, they get the hang of skiing, they seem to enjoy it more.”

The Loppet Foundation provides team jackets, which Oatis distributes for practices

and races.

Babette Kamba said that she found out about the Farview Ski Team through Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Winter Program Guide. Although living closer to Harrison, Farview was the only north Minneapolis park with a ski team, so she brings her son to Wirth weekly to meet the team for practice.

“It is rare to have such positive winter experiences,” said Kamba. “I want him to have these life long skills.

We live close to Wirth and it is a way to be healthy in the winter.”

Oatis said several of the youth talk about skiing in high school.

The Loppet Foundation is hoping that by planting more ski teams in north Minneapolis schools and parks, this uniquely urban winter sport can be learned and embraced by more youth.

“It’s a way to be active in the winter,” said Oatis, who has also learned to ski as a result of the program.

With recent fresh coats of snow, the Farview Ski Team will keep skiing well into spring.

Name that sport ANSWERS TURN TO 10

Hall.

His advice to younger students is to stay balanced in their studies and put in extra time for personal goals.

Linebacker and offensive lineman, Wallace, wants to inspire others through his achievements.

“Don’t take anything for granted,” said Wallace. “Work hard; treat everything as a next step forward, eventually it will get you somewhere.”

After college Wallace hopes to have a career in the technical engineering field –

and also earn a Super Bowl ring.

“It feels good right now,” said Wallace.

Wallace’s mother, Carmea Hutchinson, said in between the summer of her son’s junior and senior year, she saw a transition.

“He got his first job and started making money. It was like a light-bulb went off,” said Hutchinson.

According to Hutchinson, a key component that helped Wallace was the simple aspect of discipline.

ACROSS 1. Money under mattress, e.g.

6. Convex and used for cooking 9. Practice in the ring 13. Male contessa 14. “A likely story!”

15. Pipsqueak 16. Run _____ of the law 17. George Gershwin’s brother 18. Speak like Pericles 19. *”Chariots of Fire” sport 21. *Mr. Miyagi’s sport 23. Sticky stuff 24. Not a hit 25. Writing point of pen 28. Comfy spot 30. Agitated 35. In a frenzy 37. To buy something “for a ____” 39. Stallion’s cry 40. What Simple Simon wanted to taste 41. Glorify 43. Expunge 44. Open-mouthed 46. Time for eggnog 47. Son of Aphrodite 48. *Manny Pacquiao’s sport 50. At a great distance 52. Lusitania’s last call 53. Flipside of pros 55. Part of smog 57. Gourmet’s organ?

60. *Grand Tour sport 64. Meeting place 65. Fish eggs 67. Divided country, e.g.

68. Compacted mass 69. Delivery vehicle 70. Give the boot 71. Freebie 72. Young newt 73. Office stations

DOWN 1. It’s often there for life 2. Vegan’s protein choice 3. Soon, to a bard 4. What bee did 5. Roman Sol 6. American Revolution supporter 7. Propel, in a way 8. Uniform shade 9. Evening in Italy 10. Everglades deposit 11. Chips, perhaps 12. Pastrami holder 15. Decline 20. Pirate’s necklace 22. ___ Wednesday 24. Marie Antoinette’s garments 25. Muslim ruler honorific 26. Insect, post-metamorphosis 27. Laundry booster 29. Jimi Hendrix’ “___ Lady” 31. Formally surrender 32. Wedding cake layers 33. Icy hut 34. *Bobby Fischer’s game 36. Civil War headgear 38. *Subject of “A Good Walk Spoiled” 42. Like kale and spinach greens 45. Live in a tent 49. Caught 51. Did this to one’s world 54. Bundle of axons 56. Taken to field in baseball 57. *a.k.a. “the sport of kings” 58. Mojito, _ ___ drink 59. Coal unit 60. Copper coin 61. Eye part 62. Adam’s apple spot 63. Gangster’s pistols 64. Communications regulator 66. Stumblebum

“You have to instill those values,” said Wallace’s mother. “When you get home, homework first, everything else comes later. He would want to stay up late and play games. I’d have to make him go to sleep. I had to be the mother, teacher and counselor all in one.”

Hutchinson feels triumphant, as she expressed beating the odds of the neighborhood.

“I’m glad he is doing something positive. Living where we live, I was worried, I

was scared, I wasn’t expecting it, but he did it, he surprised me as usual,” said Hutchinson.

A bit further north and to the west, New Hope honored Robbinsdale Cooper High School students Malik Rucker, Ashanti Payne, Briceon ScottBurch, Parris Fields, Francis Kanneh, Leroy Taylor, Billy Kellogg, Lenzel Koskela, Robert Murry, Cornell Walker, Logan Olesen, Dawoine Smoot, Andrew Kimbell, and Dashawn Williams; all of whom signed letters of intent.

insightnews.com

Insight News • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Page 9

COMMENTARY THE STATE OF EQUALITY AND JUSTICE IN AMERICA:

Let us not lose focus on the justice issues that still loom

By Dr. Elsie L. Scott “The State of Equality and Justice in America” is a 20-part series of columns written by an all-star list of contributors to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The contributors include: U. S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) LCCRUL 50th Anniversary Grand Marshal; Ms. Barbara Arnwine, President and Executive Director, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL); Mr. Charles Ogletree, Professor, Harvard University Law School/ Director, Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice; the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., President/CEO, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition; the Rev. Joseph Lowery, Co-founder, Southern Christian Leadership Conference; U. S. Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.); and 14 additional thought leaders and national advocates for equal justice.

Here’s the Sixth op-ed of the series: This year, we are celebrating the 150th Anniversary of the

Dr. Elsie L. Scott Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington. As African-Americans, we are pleased that this country has progressed from the forced enslavement of our race to the removal of the Jim Crow laws and practices.

We are also celebrating the reelection of a man of African descent to a second term as President of the United States.

There is a lot to celebrate in 2013, but there is still much work ahead.

One area that is seriously

flawed and that requires the attention of more than the progressive movement is the “justice system”. It is commonly known that the U.S. incarcerates more of its citizens than any other industrialized country.

The fact that a disproportionate number of the persons arrested, convicted and imprisoned are African-Americans is troubling.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), in 2010, 4,347 out of every 100,000 Black males were incarcerated in a state, federal or local facility. This number is seven times higher than the number of White males incarcerated.

In 2010, AfricanAmericans, at 13.1 percent of the U. S. population, made up 38 percent of the total state prison population. HispanicAmericans, at 16.7 percent of the U. S. population, made up 21 percent of the state prison population. Compare those statistics to White Americans, at 78.1 percent of the U. S. population, made up only 34 percent of the total state prison population.

When arrest data are compared to prison data, the percentage of Blacks in the total arrest numbers (27.8 percent) is

found to be 10 percent lower than the percentage incarcerated.

This seems to indicate that Blacks are more likely to be convicted and sentenced to time in prison than Whites.

Similarly, an examination of felony conviction data shows that Black felony convictions are more likely to result in incarceration than White felony convictions. According to BJS data for 2006, 39 percent of persons convicted on felonies were Black and 60 percent were White.

Conviction data show that Whites who are convicted are less likely to be incarcerated (66 percent to 72 percent Blacks).

For drug offenses, 72 percent of Blacks convicted were incarcerated in 2006 compared to 61 percent of whites. Only 59 percent of Whites convicted of drug trafficking were incarcerated compared to 70 percent of Blacks. The mean maximum sentence imposed by state courts on White felons was 37 months compared to 42 months for Black felons. If violent offenses are isolated, the statistics show that the mean maximum prison sentence given to whites was 99 months, but the mean for Blacks was

108 months.

Why are such large numbers of Blacks in prison? To answer that question one needs to drill down into the issue of race, arrests and convictions.

Almost any Black man can tell a story of being stopped by the police under questionable circumstances.

Regarding convictions, look at the fact that DNA testing has exonerated over 300 persons and 70 percent of the exonerations have been people of color.

As long as many see the image of crime as a Black man, this country will struggle with addressing race in the criminal justice system. Young Black boys will continue to be placed in the prison pipeline, beginning with childish pranks until society returns school discipline to the school system.

Prisons will continue to be full of Black men until investments are made in removing the barriers that are contributing to school dropouts because twothirds of school dropouts end up in the criminal justice system.

In recent years, there has been a reduction in the number of persons incarcerated. Now, action must be taken to address the problems faced by persons

released from prison. Laws and ordinances that prevent ex-inmates from securing housing and employment are impediments to them becoming productive citizens. Their paths to restoration must begin with reinstating their civil rights, especially their right to vote.

So as we celebrate the freedom and equality anniversaries, let us not lose focus on the justice issues that still loom before us.

Dr. Elsie L. Scott, founding director of the Ronald W. Walters Center at Howard University, is immediate past president/ CEO of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. This article - the sixth of a 20-part series - is written in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The Lawyers’ Committee is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to enlist the private bar’s leadership and resources in combating racial discrimination and the resulting inequality of opportunity - work that continues to be vital today.

For more information, please visit www.lawyerscommittee.org.

Guns, not the Klan, are the real threat

By Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rainbow PUSH Coalition February 18, 2013 — Chicago suffers unbearable levels of gun violence, yet the victims remain largely silent. They travel from funeral home to graveyard, rather than march from church to gun shop. The president is applauded when he calls for action on gun violence, but before his plane leaves the tarmac, more are shot, including even the sister of one of the young children standing behind him during his address.

If we are to free ourselves of this terror, we will have to change our minds.

Victims of tyranny have three options. They can adjust, they can resent but turn anger inward, or they can fight back.

I recently spoke at the King College Prep High School, the school that Hadiya Pendleton was attending when shot to death. When I asked the students if they had a classmate in jail or knew someone who used drugs, nearly all said yes. When I asked if they knew someone who had brought a gun to school or

secreted one in a car, they said yes. I asked if they would turn in someone who smuggled a gun into school — “No, no,” was the answer. I asked if they would turn in someone who had a rope and a white sheet and hood hidden in their car. “The Klan,” they said, “of course we’d turn them in to authorities.”

They are more forceful in defying the impotent Ku Klux Klan than in challenging the presence and reality of dope and guns. Silence undermines security and betrays the possibility of freedom.

No one doubts the threat posed by guns and drugs.

Last year, 65 young people in Chicago died in gun violence, the equivalent, as the president noted, of a Newtown every four months. This despite the fact that Chicago Police confiscate about 10,000 firearms each year.

This is a crisis.

Guns not only claim loved ones on the streets of Chicago.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that of the 30,000 suicides committed each year in the U.S., nearly 20,000 involve guns, and that

suicide is now the No. 3 cause of teenage deaths.

We are being terrorized, yet we treat the terror as a normal part of life.

Real change can only occur when victims fight back. The victim might not be responsible for being down; but they are responsible for getting up. That’s why Dr. Martin Luther King called upon us to be “creatively maladjusted” to abuse and injustice.

It is only when victims

change their own way of thinking and stop tolerating the status quo that change becomes possible. Slave masters never retire. Slavery ends when the enslaved changed their minds.

Segregationists did not end segregation; it ended when the segregated forced a new reality.

Yes, change requires leadership, inspiration and more. But in the end, the victims decide.

We will end the scourge of gun violence only when its

victims decide that they can no longer accept the losses in lives and in security.

Victims have power.

They have consumer power, boycott power, lawsuit power, marching power, the power of counterculture actions and moral authority. They have the power to disturb. They have the power to embrace a multifaceted approach that attacks the phenomena of guns in, drugs in, jobs out, home foreclosure exploitation and crippling

poverty.

To go from adjustment to freedom, we have to be willing to march, to protest, to go to jail, to risk the rage of the oppressors, to challenge their ways and construct the world that we want to live in, a world without guns, without drugs, without violence.

It can be done — but only if we decide to act.

Keep up with Rev. Jackson and the work of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition at www. rainbowpush.org.

Celebrating those who celebrate our community.

The month of February is a time to celebrate the visionaries and volunteers whose ties to the community remain strong year-round. Much like the leaders before them, our honorees strive for success as they continue to set paths so others may join them. We are committed to shining light on those who never fail to give back. To learn more, visit 365Black.com.

From left: Tony Hansberry II, Bishop T.D. Jakes, Harold & Tina Lewis, Grant & Tamia Hill, Chaka Khan & Mary-Pat Hector.

©2013 McDonald’s

Page 10 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

COMMUNITY Neighborhood organizations calendar Networking Happy Hour • Join WBC for Happy Hours Tuesday, February 26th from 4:30-6pm Good Sports Bar and Grill, 200 West Broadway.

Join other members of the Northside business community for some informal conversation and networking.

• Northside Resident Redevelopment Council are working to engage adolescent youth through Teen Job Assistance @ North Regional Library 1315 Lowry Ave N. for teens in grade 8 and up. Get the help you need to land your next job! Minneapolis WorkForce Center staff will present tips and information on job search, then provide one-onone assistance with your job search, applications, résumés and interview preparation.

Register online at http://www. hclib.org/pub/events/Register. cfm?SessionNo=12566, or call 952-847-8450.

STEP-UP Internships • Minneapolis youth ages 1421 can apply for a summer internship with STEP-UP. All applications must be completed online.

Visit the STEP-UP page for agencies that offer staff and/ or computer assistance. As part of the process of getting a STEP-UP internship, youth must complete a competitive application process and work readiness training through the program. Internships are paid, and youth are matched up with a wide range of local businesses for summer jobs.

The deadline is March 4th, 2013. If you need assistance with your application, call 612-673-5041 Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association • Women Venture will offer its “Plan to Succeed” course at the PPNA office. “Plan to Succeed” is a free 5-week training course for qualified

participants and offers vital sessions that will provide the skills and tools needed to grow a business that is feasible, viable and desirable.

In addition, participants will receive three 1-hour sessions with one of Women Venture’s seasoned Business Consultants.

The course is limited to only 10 participants so register early.

The next meeting takes place 6:00 – 9:00 pm February 25 Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association Office 821 E. 35th Street Minneapolis, MN 55407.

Victory VNA will hold a Board Meeting Wednesday March 6 from 7pm-9pm at the Victory Neighborhood Association Office.

Lind Bohanon Neighborhood Association Volunteer residents meet monthly for two hours to talk about projects, concerns,

Calendar • Classifieds and news literacy training for Minneapolis youth. The summit will take place at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

The following speakers will lend their expertise and share their experiences at the Minneapolis Youth Media Summit: Michael Hay, Youth Programs Director, Intermedia Youth Media Summit Feb. 27 Arts; Steve Brunsberg, The Foundation of the Alliance Interim Executive Director, for Community Media (ACM) SPNN; Cor Wilson, Executive host a free Youth Media Director, CTV North Suburbs; Summit on February 27, Barb Wiener, Executive 2013. The summit addresses Director, TVbyGIRLS; and funding, education, and policy John Gwinn, Migizi New and community building Media Pathways. For a full list issues as they relate to digital of speakers and registration information, please visit the Youth Media Summit Head of Schools website or http://www.

Bright Water Schools, Public Charter Elementary and Montessori, allcommunitymedia.org. seeks Head of Schools to start July 1, 2013. Founded in 2003 as an

Northside Funders Group Manager The Minneapolis Foundation is seeking a candidate to fill the position for a Northside Funders Group Manager. This is a part-time (20 hours) position that reports directly to The Director of Impact Strategy of Economic Vitality at The Minneapolis Foundation and receives overall direction from the NFG Advisory Committee. For a full copy of the announcement, please visit http://www.minneapolisfoundation.org/AboutUs/Employment.aspx.

Submit a resume and cover letter along with salary history and references to jstately@mplsfoundation.org.

From 1 The students said they are in constant fear and are calling on the administration and school board to act. Equally disturbing, according to the students, is that bullying is not only coming from fellow students, but staff as well.

“It’s beyond a food fight.

This has been going on for years.

Nobody has been listening to us,” said 16-year-old junior Kowsar Mohamed. “We go somewhere for an education and we don’t feel safe.”

Cherryhomes From 1 than 11 years, she said she has remained vigilant in improving the conditions of her city’s residents.

“My family and I recommitted to Minneapolis and found new ways to contribute to my city,” said Cherryhomes, whose husband, defense attorney F. Clayton Tyler and daughter, 15-year-old Emma Tyler, were on hand for the announcement. Emma Tyler introduced Cherryhomes to the crowd.

If elected, Cherryhomes, who would be the first Northsider to serve as the city’s mayor, said her top priority would be jobs.

She said the city has ample numbers of people who are ready and willing to work and it is up to city leaders to attract industry to the city.

Spend an evening for part two of An Evening with tpt’s MN Original series creating art through various mediums with internationally recognized Twin Cities artist, educator, and community activist, Ta-coumba Aiken. Through the power of art and narrative, Aiken will encourage dialogue about our similarities and differences and give insights to how we can celebrate them together.

Each participant will leave the event with a piece of art created during the event, a DVD insight to the internal workings of the police department.

Applications due by Oct. 15 are available by calling CPA Coordinator Don Luna at 651.

266.5583.

Library 1315 Lowry Ave N. Northside Resident Redevelopment Council NRRC will hold a board meeting Monday March 18th from 6:30-8pm at UROC 2100 Plymouth Ave N. For more information, 612) 335-5924 Cleveland • The Cleveland Neighborhood Association will host their monthly board meeting Monday 7-9pm March 18th at Lucy Craft Laney 3330 Penn Ave N. For more information, Ariah Fine, Director of CNA 612-588-1155.

• The Cleveland Neighborhood Association engages youth in decision making through the Youth Committee. Meetings are held every first Thursday of the month. The next Youth Committee meeting will be held March 20th 6:30-7:30pm at Lucey Craft Laney 3333 Penn Ave N.

Fax: 612.588.2031

copy of the episode featuring Aiken, and the corresponding set of educator guides. This event will be held Thursday, February 28, 7-9 p.m. at the Minnesota Humanities Center, 987 Ivy Avenue East, St. Paul.

Fee: $10/person, includes light snack and materials. Register: www.mnhum.org/mno Registration questions: Thien Nguyen August, 651772-4254, thien@mnhum.org.

Other questions: Shandi DiCosimo, 651-772-4255, shandi@mnhum.org.

Anderson Center Room 112, 774 Snelling Ave. N. Have fun and test your knowledge.

Prizes for all, including audience members.

Black Jeopardy XV Feb. 27 Faculty, staff, and students participate in a lively, competitive test of their knowledge of Black history and culture on Wednesday, February 27 at 6:30 p.m.

Capitol Construction Tour Mar. 1 From 1896-1905, hundreds of skilled workers came together to create one of the most beautiful Capitol buildings in the United States. Iron beams were riveted together to create

Sophomore Anisa Ahmed, said ethnic tensions have been a constant issue at the school and the South administration is well aware of the problems.

“We’ve been telling them (administrators) all along and they do nothing,” said Ahmed.

“We feel we do not have a voice.”

According to reports, during a lunch period, a food fight began between two girls. During a later lunch period, the earlier incident spawned a larger fight that involved several dozen students. By the time order was restored, at least four students and a staff member required

medical attention, but none of the injuries were considered serious. According to the group assembled at press conference, all the students who needed medical attention were of Somali descent.

Ahmed said once the Minneapolis Police were called, they targeted the Somali-American students as the aggressors and many were assaulted and maced by police.

Ahmed and others said police targeted the Somali-American students because an officer assigned to South participates is abusive toward Somali students, even using ethnic slurs to refer to

some Somali-American students.

Multiple calls to the Minneapolis Police Department went unreturned.

Students said school administrators have them write out essays on the alleged bullying and how it makes them feel, but little else is done.

Steve Flisk, associate superintendent of the Minneapolis Public Schools said he had not heard of any such incident of bullying or harassment.

“Anything that was supposed to have happened prior to (the brawl), I’m not aware of,” said Flisk.

“What I hear is we don’t have land and a workforce,” said 58-year-old Cherryhomes.

“I don’t believe either is true. I want to know why FedEx went to the north suburbs and not to northeast Minneapolis.”

Cherryhomes has not served in public office since Natalie Johnson defeated her in 2001 in her reelection bid for city council. Cherryhomes lost that race by just 72 votes. But Cherryhomes, who for the last decade has been working as a state and city lobbyist, said now is the time to reenter her career as a public servant.

“I’ve gotten to a point where I see a lot of dots that need to be connected (for this city) and I can’t (connect them) as a citizen anymore,” said Cherryhomes. “I need the bully pulpit as mayor.”

The city’s first woman and first African-American mayor, Sharon Sayles Belton agrees that Cherryhomes needs the platform of mayor to transform the city.

“As a former mayor (of Minneapolis), I care deeply about this city and I believe Jackie can grow this city’s tax base and create jobs,” said Sayles Belton. “She knows how to work with people to get things done. That’s the kind of leader we need.”

Sayles Belton said she and Cherryhomes worked closely together on a number of projects while the two were in office.

The two are credited with a revitalization of downtown.

During their terms, the city purchased the Target Center and redeveloped Block E and multiple theaters.

District 2 Hennepin County Commissioner Linda Higgins – who is also Cherryhomes’ campaign treasurer – said Cherryhomes’ top priority of jobs will resonate with voters.

“She’s going to make sure everybody in our city works,” said Higgins. “If people have barriers to jobs, she’s going to

work to remove those barriers.”

Higgins said Cherryhomes is currently working with a reentry program to assist former prison inmates in transitioning to civilian live.

Much is being made about the fact that no North Minneapolis resident has ever been elected mayor. Cherryhomes and her supporters said that barrier will soon be broken.

“There was a time when people said we couldn’t elect a woman; said we couldn’t elect an African-American, but we proved them wrong,” said Sayles Belton. “We’re interested in electing the best person for the job. Jackie is the best person for the job.”

“We’re a part of a big tent,” said Cherryhomes. “We have Democrats; we even have Republicans and we have Independents in this room all in support of me. This crowd looks like our city.”

Applications accepted via e-mail until 4:30 p.m. on February 28, 2013. No phone inquiries will be accepted.

The Minneapolis Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer

South

Folwell On Saturday March 9th from 12pm-2pm at North Regional

An evening with Ta-coumba Aiken: Celebrating our similarities and differences

EVENTS

Enrollment opens for 2012 / 2013 Saint Paul Citizen’s Police Academy Now thru Feb 27 Classes begin Dec. 19 and continue through Feb. 27on Wed. evenings 6:30–9:30pm.

25 community members will participate in training modeled after the Police Academy program that police officers complete. No cost to CPA participants.

The CPA is not intended to serve as accredited law enforcement courses but merely to provide

Hawthorne This month’s Hawthorne Huddle will focus on hearing from our community’s youth.

The Minneapolis Youth Congress will discuss their ideas for improving educational outcomes. Please feel welcome to offer your ideas, as they are appreciated.

The meeting takes place at Fairview Park 601 29th Ave N Thursday March 7th 7:308:45pm.

Phone: 612.588.1313

Send Community Calendar information to us by email: info@insightnews.com, by fax: 612.588.2031, by phone: 612.588-1313 or by mail: 1815 Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis, MN 55411. Free or low cost events preferred.

authentic, inner city Montessori school on Minneapolis’ North Side, we serve 100+ students 18 months - 12 years (grade 6). Our ideal administrator has a BA/BS (MA Ed preferred), 5+ years elementary classroom practice (preferred), or AMI/AMS diploma + administrator credential. Proven budget management, staff supervision; strong interpersonal communication skills; grant-writing and institutional development skills; effective leadership record and commitment to Montessori methods. Email application materials and three recommendations to hossearch@brightwatermontessori.org by 2/28/13. For detailed description see http://www.brightwatermontessori.org/employment.php

planning, crime and safety, civic engagement, and other activities or events in the neighborhood. All meetings are free and open to the public.

Everyone is welcome. LBNA will hold a board meeting Thursday March 7th 7pm9pm. For more information, contact Amy Luesebrink 763561-1616

Calling all youth media makers deadline Mar. 1 Organizers of the Second Annual Perpich Youth Cinema Festival at Perpich Center for Arts Education are inviting submissions of short videos (no more than eight minutes) in the categories of animation, experimental, narrative, documentary, music video or public service announcements.

From 8

Graffiti Removal Program • Hennepin County Sentence to Service has a work crew available to abate graffiti in our area! The WBC is here to help you get connected to this great resource. To re quest this service, you must fill out a form that gives Sentence to Service permission to clean up the graffiti that is present on your business, garage or home.

If you have any questions, please contact the WBC at 612-353-5178.

Email: info@insightnews.com

the building’s framework and derricks lifted cut stone into place inside and outside the state’s third capitol building.

A 90-minute guided tour features the construction methods used, the planners and the workers who helped create the state’s third capitol building. Learn how the building elements, decorations and furnishings come together to create a harmonious blend of architecture and art in Minnesota’s most important public building at the Minnesota State Capitol 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul. Fri. Mar. 1.

Phone: 651-296-2881. Time: 7 to 8:30 p.m. Fee: $9 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $6 children ages 6-17; $2 discount for MHS members.

Reservations: required; register online: http://tickets.mnhs.org/ default.asp?cgcode=41

Answers

• The Events Committee is made up of Cleveland Residents who help put on Live on the Drive, Spring Cleaning and Greening Day and other activities. Meetings are held every second Thursday of the month. The next meeting will be held Thursday March 14th from 6:30-8pm. For more information, 612-588-1155.

The festival is free to enter and submissions are due March 1. The submission form is at http://spnn.org/sites/spnn. org/files/submission_form_ copy.pdf and the submission itself must be in Quicktime format. The festival will be at 2 p.m., Saturday, April 13, at Perpich Center for Arts Education, 6125 Olson Memorial Highway, Golden Valley. It is open to the public.

Submissions to the festival will be judged by a panel of Perpich Arts High School students. All submissions must be free of copyright materials.

The festival program, in addition to showing the juried submissions will include an awards ceremony and a youth artist Q&A. Questions may be directed to Rebecca Bullen, Rebecca.bullen@pcae.k12. mn.us.

Organ Recital Mar. 2 Velma Warder, local church musician, will present an organ recital featuring organ compositions by AfricanAmerican composers. The free recital is on Saturday, March 2, 2013, 4:00 p.m. at the Dayton Avenue Presbyterian Church, 217 Mackubin St., St. Paul.

The church is handicapped accessible.

insightnews.com

Insight News • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Page 11

HEALTH State expands health coverage for 35,000 Minnesotans Governor Mark Dayton signed legislation that will provide access to quality health care coverage for an additional 35,000 low-income adults on Tuesday, February 19. The bill (HF9), authored by Rep. Tom Huntley (DFL – Duluth) and Sen. Kathy Sheran (DFL – Mankato), takes advantage of a key component of the federal Affordable Care Act, which allows states to expand Medical Assistance (MA) eligibility.

The expansion of MA eligibility provides $129 million in projected savings for the 2014-15 biennium.

This is in addition to the $1.3 billion Minnesota is already expected to save by 2015 as a result of the Affordable Care Act. The Governor’s budget proposal builds on these savings and includes additional improvements to Medical Assistance that will provide coverage for a total of 145,000 Minnesotans.

“Minnesotans who will be covered by this legislation desperately need better quality health care,” said Governor Dayton. “Instead of taking their health crises to emergency rooms, thousands of lowincome children, families, and individuals will be able to see doctors sooner and live healthier lives.”

“Our goal is to offer access to quality healthcare to

Governor Mark Dayton with bill authors everyone in Minnesota,” said Sen. Sheran, who authored the bill in the Senate. “This legislation gets us one step closer to that goal by covering healthcare for persons earning

less than $15,000 a year and will mean a cost savings of $1 billion to the state over the next couple of years. Saving those dollars will help us expand access to care for even more

Minnesotans.”

One of Governor Dayton’s first acts in office was signing an Executive Order expanding access to Medical Assistance for 83,000 low-income

Minnesotans. In doing so, the governor provided access to quality health care for those who need it most – reducing the burden of uncompensated care on hospitals and saving an

estimated 20,000 health care sector jobs.

The bill signed into law builds on that important progress by covering more uninsured Minnesotans, maximizing federal funding for public health care programs, and simplifying the enrollment process. Providing coverage for more Minnesotans will reduce the hidden tax that is passed onto Minnesotans with health insurance to pay for uncompensated care.

“This legislation allows us to cover more Minnesotans with health insurance and at the same time get more bang for our buck for Minnesota taxpayers,” said Rep. Huntley, the bill’s House author.

“In addition, this helps our hospitals across the state and is better for our economy and state budget moving forward.

This is a win-win for all Minnesotans.”

Across the country legislatures and both Democratic and Republican governors are opting to expand MA eligibility under federal health care reform. The federal government will fund 100 percent of the proposed expansion through 2016.

Starting in 2017, the federal government will gradually reduce that support, funding 90 percent of the expansion by 2020.

MDH report finds more than half of third-graders have cavities Minnesota’s first comprehensive oral health plan includes new information that while tooth decay is nearly 100 percent preventable, it is still one of Minnesota’s most common chronic childhood diseases, with 55 percent of third graders surveyed in 2010 experiencing tooth decay. This compares to the national rate of 53 percent for children six to eight years old.

In collaboration with a wide array of stakeholders, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has produced the Minnesota Oral Health Plan: Advancing Optimal Oral Health for All Minnesotans.

This strategic plan outlines the populations most at risk for oral disease, the obstacles to routine dental care, and strategies for improving oral health and reducing millions of dollars of unnecessary medical costs.

Low-income children bear the greatest burden of oral diseases in the state. Children eligible for free or reduced lunch were almost one and a half times more likely to experience tooth decay and almost three times more likely

to have the decay go untreated than more affluent peers. One encouraging finding is the proportion of Minnesota third graders with untreated tooth decay (18 percent) was lower than the national target (26 percent) set by Healthy People 2020.

Inadequate dental care has long-term health and cost consequences.

Most telling is the $148 million in emergency department charges in Minnesota between 2007 and 2010 for preventable, nontraumatic conditions that could have been treated by a dental provider in a more appropriate setting. The figure points to possible barriers to routine oral health care such as the lack of affordable dental insurance and clear information regarding public program dental benefits, along with the undervaluing of the importance of dental health to overall health.

“It is simply unacceptable to have so many of our children and adults negatively affected by these preventable dental conditions,” said Dr. Ed Ehlinger, Minnesota commissioner of health.

“We have to do a better job

investing in public health and access to routine dental care. If we do this, we can significantly reduce oral disease and health care costs in Minnesota.”

The state plan also cites income and education levels as risk factors for adults and the elderly. The poorest Minnesota adults, defined as making $15,000 or less yearly, were three times less likely to visit a dentist in 2010 than adults making $50,000 or more.

Among the elderly, a person without a high school degree was 10 times more likely to have all teeth extracted than someone with a college degree. A bright spot for the elderly was the slight decline in permanent teeth extractions from 36 to 33 percent while national trends remained stagnant at 44 percent between 2004 and 2010.

“A healthy mouth is fundamental to overall health, our ability to secure a job, and even our very sense of self-worth,” said Merry Jo Thoele, dental director for the Minnesota Oral Health Program, which was established in 2008 with grant funding from the CDC

and Health Resources and Services Administration. “That is why it is so important that we implement the proven strategies that are already available for eliminating most oral diseases.”

The state oral health plan calls for a range of solutions, such as providing dental sealants, increasing water fluoridation, enhancing the dental workforce, increasing use of public insurance programs, implementing a statewide dental health tracking system, and improving the integration of medical and dental care.

Sealants are a proven strategy for preventing tooth decay. A majority of Minnesota third graders (64 percent) show evidence of dental sealants on at least one permanent molar, which is two times higher than the national rate (32 percent) and supersedes the Healthy People 2020 goal of 28 percent.

However, Minnesota’s high sealant rate drops off to the low rate of 42 percent among the state’s poorest children in families earning 75 percent or less then federal poverty levels. Hispanic children lag

behind white children in dental sealant prevalence rates both nationally and locally; the gap in sealant rates between Hispanic and white children is twice as wide (50 percent) at the national level when compared to Minnesota (26 percent).

The plan also calls for the state to bolster its dental workforce through more innovative strategies to recruit, prepare, retain and equitably distribute oral health care providers throughout the state.

In response to workforce shortages, Minnesota has been a trailblazer in sanctioning mid-level dental professionals such as dental therapists, advanced dental therapists, and dental hygienists, to provide dental services to patients.

As the first and only state to license dental therapists under a 2009 law, Minnesota has been at the national forefront on institutionalizing these models.

“Minnesotans have a lot to be proud of on many key oral health indicators,” said Deb Jacobi, board chair of the Minnesota Oral Health Coalition, one of MDH’s key

partners providing strategic direction for the state plan, “but clearly there is much work to be done with health disparities and helping both the public and especially the dental and medical communities better understand how important oral health is to longevity and quality of life. The time is long overdue for putting oral health front and center rather than relegating it to the periphery of health care.”

On February 22, 2013, the Minnesota Oral Health Program and Minnesota Oral Health Coalition will convene a spectrum of stakeholders to move the work forward around strategies outlined in the Minnesota Oral Health Plan. Specifically, the theme of the day, Coming Together: Integrating Oral Health and Total Health, will focus on steps to improve the integration of oral health into the work of a cross-section of dental, health, medical, educational and social service sectors.

The Minnesota Oral Health Plan is available online at: http://www.health.state.mn.us/ oralhealth.

Chicago

her father was a high ranking member in the Rangers.

Because the Rangers and Disciples are rival factions, when Turner’s father died, her brother became an immediate target.

“The only thing protecting my brother (from the Rangers) was my father,” said Turner.

That dynamic influenced her move to the Twin Cities.

Though Turner brought her youngest brother to Minnesota with her, the lure of the gang lifestyle led him back to Chicago at 16. Within a year he was shot. Although he survived, he continued with the gang and at age 27 was shot again. Turner said he was recently released from prison.

Her eldest brother is currently incarcerated.

“It’s hard to say, but with my brother in jail, at least I know where he is – I know he’s alive,” said Turner. “With my baby brother, there’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think this could be the day I get a call that he’s been killed.

Even though he’s not perfect, you don’t want to get that call.”

Due to the volatile nature of this subject, Insight News has declined to publish the names of Turner’s brothers.

As for Smith, it was a promotion at his company that brought him to the Twin Cities.

And though he has been in Minnesota for 10 year, he said he’s a Chicagoan at heart. But Smith said his heart aches when he thinks of the violence that is killing off mostly minority

members of the city that raised him.

“I feel I abandoned my city,” said Smith. “Chicago needs young African-American role models who are college educated, who are making a difference. I feel more guilt than relief (that I’m no longer there). My parents are still there; my best friends are still there. I don’t apologize for leaving, but the successes I’ve achieved here, I wish I would have achieved there.”

Smith grew up on the southeast side of Chicago near 68th and St. Lawrence. He described the neighborhood as a mix of middle-class and impoverished households. He said as time has passed, it’s become less middle-class and more impoverished – and more violent.

“When I was coming up, you settled things with fists.

It’s not that way anymore,” said Smith, who said Chicago has had a storied culture of violence. “Chicago has always been a violent city. Chicago is famous for Michael Jordan, but also for Al Capone.”

Smith said gang culture was prevalent in his neighborhood, but what kept him from becoming engrossed in the culture was the fact that his father was very involved in his upbringing. “That and a strong self-desire to succeed,” said Smith.

Smith and Turner say that there is no easy fix to end the rampant violence in their hometown. Both say economics

and the family dynamic play a role in keeping kids from involving themselves in the gang and drug culture. The two also say city officials are not doing enough to end the killing; mostly because, they believe, the violence is concentrated in primarily African-American and Latino neighborhoods,

though with the killing of Hadiya Pendleton, a brighter spotlight shined on the city.

“My heart breaks for that little girl, but I’ll be honest; if she didn’t march in the Inauguration, we wouldn’t have heard about her,” said Turner. “She would have been just another statistic. Her death

would have been marked by some teddy bears and a couple of vigils. I’m tired of vigils, what are we going to do the stop this madness?

“When these kids join a gang, they’re looking for love,” said Turner. “At the end of the day, all they want is love.”

From 1 in the Twin Cities region have roots in Chicago. The number of transplants is so vast that some have dubbed areas in Minnesota, “North Chicago.”

Shereese Turner and Otha Smith are both Chicago transplants living in the Twin Cities. Turner said she escaped Chicago; Smith said he abandoned it.

Turner moved to Minneapolis in 1995 to get away from the violence in Chicago. During that time, Minneapolis was experiencing an unprecedented spike in violence, but Turner said it was still better than being in Chicago. Turner, who now works with ex-felons to help them adjust to life after prison, said she feared for her three young children and her youngest brother, who was 8-years-old at the time, so she decided to relocate them to Minnesota. According to Turner, the gang lure was too strong to safely raise her family.

“My father was a Black Stone Ranger and my older brother was a Gangster Disciple,” said Turner, who said her brother is still affiliated with the Disciples.

Turner said her father died due to the effects of years of addiction, and his death made her stay in Chicago even more perilous. According to Turner,

Page 12 • February 25 - March 3, 2013 • Insight News

insightnews.com

Ellison visits Somalia to address refugee issues

Rep. Keith Ellison and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud

MOGADISHU—Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) arrived in Mogadishu, Somalia recently on a humanitarian trip to discuss the status of Somali refugees and U.S. remittances with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and leaders of the new Somali government. Rep. Ellison is the first Member of Congress to visit Somalia since the United States recognized the Somali government earlier

this year.

Ellison traveled to Somalia with the American Refugee Committee, an NGO based in his district, after receiving numerous requests from his constituents to visit Somalia.

“We are at a critical juncture for the people of Somalia and their families in Minnesota and throughout the United States,” Rep. Ellison said. “The election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud

and a renewed U.S. relationship may be our best opportunity in decades to ensure peace and stability for the Somali people, and combat terrorism in the region. This visit provided an unparalleled opportunity to learn firsthand about issues facing the country, and the role the United States plays in promoting a stable Somalia.”

Ellison also met with the country director of the

American Refugee Committee, the Mayor of Mogadishu, the Somali Chamber of Commerce, and Somali-Americans from Minneapolis.

Rep. Ellison represents the 5th District of Minnesota, home to one of the largest Somali populations in the United States. More than 32,000 Somali-Americans live in Minnesota, according to 2011 Census figures.

37th Dr. Michael T. Fagin

PAN AFRICAN STUDENT LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE February 28 - March 2, 2013 “Accepting and Valuing Diversity in the Pan African Community” Featuring: t Educational Sessions and Inspirational Speakers t Mr. and Ms. Pan African Talent Ceremony Schedule and registration information www.mnsu.edu/cultdiv/conferences/

Judge Greg Mathis

March 1, 2013 7:00 P.M. CSU Ballroom

Award-winning television court show Judge

John Harper Student Presenter

Obie Kipper

Trancey Williams

Tamrat Tademe

Mary Whitney

Coretz Hollis

Tina Jackson

Kathy Ellison

George Amedee

El-Kati Mahmoud

institutional diversity MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY, MANKATO

Dr. Michael T. Fagin, Founder, PAC

Lissa Jones

College of

business M I N N E S O TA S T AT E U N I V E R S I T Y, M A N K AT O

A member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. Minnesota State University, Mankato is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity University.

Individuals with a disability who need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Institutional Diversity at 507-389-5268 (V), 800-627-3529 or 711 (MRS/TTY) at least five days prior to the event. This document is available in alternative format to individuals with disabilities by calling the above numbers. INDV161PO_0113