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March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021

Vol. 48 No. 12• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Photo by Shaquille Fields

Dr. Josie Robinson Johnson, Ph.D., a Minnesota elder stateswoman and visionary civic, cultural, and human rights leader recently received the COVID-19 vaccination and invited Insight News to document the experience. Dr. Johnson is part of a chorus of high-profile African American leaders who want to make sure our community embraces vaccination and other mitigation protocols. She says our community, disparately impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic, must champion following the science and proactively seek vaccine protection from the deadly virus. Kelly V. Robinsons, ED, Black Nurses Rock, MN, administers the vaccination.

The Transatlantic Slave Trade: A Day of Remembrance By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) continues its global news feature series on the history, contemporary realities and implications of the transatlantic slave trade. (Read the entire series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11) Evanston, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, is setting a reparations bar that could soon resonate throughout the nation – if not the globe. Evanston residents, who have lived in or have descendants that lived in the city before 1969, will receive $25,000 this spring in housing credits. The residents must have suﬀered discriminatory housing practices by the government or local banks. The city has set aside $10 million from a marijuana tax for reparations. Last summer, Asheville, North Carolina, City Council issued a formal apology for that municipality’s role in slavery and discrimination. They voted to provide reparations to Black residents and their descendants. In Amherst, which sits about 90 miles from Boston, and numerous other cities across the nation are ﬁnally seriously considering forms of reparations for their roles in the transatlantic slave trade. The federal government, through H.R. 40, is also considering action to repair the damage done to generations of African Americans for the brutal, racist and torturous slave trade where millions of Africans

were kidnapped, stolen, and sold into forced labor. Each year, the United Nations observes the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. U.N. officials and others will hold remembrance ceremonies on March 25. “The enslavement of Africans was a global experience of death and destruction that is beyond human comprehension. It is important that the U.N. hosts the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade to ensure that the world never forgets the atrocities committed against African people and never forgets the uniquely sustained and horrendous nature of African dehumanization in the midst of understanding the ubiquitous history of dehumanization of ‘the other,’” Dr. Kevin Cokley, the director of the Institute for Urban Policy Research & Analysis and professor of Education Psychology and African and African Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas, told NNPA Newswire. Dr. Cokley noted the importance of the U.N.’s International Decade for People of African Descent. The decade runs through 2024 and provides an operational framework to encourage States to eradicate social injustices inherited from history and fight against racism, prejudice, and racial discrimination. People of African descent still face such a fight each day. “It is important to recognize the International Decade for People of African Descent as an international corrective to combat the systematic indoctrination of the lie of African inferiority,” Dr.

Cokley remarked. Passing H.R. 40 would count as the most significant legislative achievement to impact the victims of the transatlantic slave trade, Cokley opined. “It would be a formal acknowledgment that the conditions and life outcomes of many African people throughout the diaspora are inextricably linked to the history of enslavement,” he stated. “For too long African descendants such as African Americans have been maligned and blamed for their circumstances without sufficient acknowledgment given to the historical impact of enslavement.” Dr. Cokley continued: “The notion that reparations for victims of the transatlantic slave trade are unfair, unwarranted, and not needed is ahistorical and it contradicts previous acknowledgements of egregious harm to U.S. citizens that warranted recompense – like victims of the Japanese internment, victims of forced sterilization programs in North Carolina, victims of the Tuskegee experiment, victims of the Rosewood race riot of 1923. “One of the key differences is that unlike these examples, the effects of the transatlantic slave trade have been multigenerational and are still very much present today.” Slavery was central to the making of the modern world – Europe’s and the United States’ rise to global power was inextricably linked to slavery, added Steven Mintz, a history professor at the University of Texas Austin. “Enslaved Africans and their descendants furnished the basic labor power that created dynamic New World economies. And slavery was the supreme issue in American

politics, playing a pivotal role in the outcome of the American Revolution, the creation of the U.S. Constitution, the nation’s geographical expansion, and the escalating conflicts that resulted in the Civil War,” Mintz offered. “Even after slavery’s abolition, the racism that slavery exacerbated persisted – and its consequences remain entrenched today,” he said. Mintz stated that racism was evident in lynching, disfranchisement, segregation, and a racial caste system that was national in scope and embedded in federal, state, and local policies that continue to institutionalize bias. “As a historian, I am not well-equipped to make specific recommendations about reparation policies,” Mintz responded. “But I can say this: It is absolutely essential that every American understand the history of slavery, the slave trade, and segregation, the inequities that this history has produced, and the ways that non-Blacks benefit from that history,” he continued. “If this country is to truly live up to its commitments to justice, democracy, and equality of opportunity, then it must take aggressive steps to redress longstanding racial disparities in income and wealth, remove barriers to voting rights, tackle systemic and institutional racism, and ensure education and employment opportunity.” It is imperative that the entire world better understand history, and the transatlantic slave trade, stated John Rosinbum, a Texas-based high school teacher. Rosinbum said, as much as any other event, the slave trade deserves further acknowledgment and understanding. “In my mind, there is no way to understand the development of the world’s

Photo: iStockphoto / NNPA

“In my mind, there is no way to understand the development of the world’s economic and political system post-1800 C.E. without a solid and sophisticated understanding of the transatlantic slave trade,” stated John Rosinbum, a Texas-based high school teacher. economic and political system post-1800 C.E. without a solid and sophisticated understanding of the transatlantic slave trade,” Rosinbum noted. “The Trade itself played a crucial role in creating the capital necessary for the First Industrial Revolution, and its victims cultivated, harvested and processed the raw materials critical to its success.” He continued: “The ﬁnancial instruments and institutions developed in large part as a result of the trade underpin the modern economic system. I put little stock in the threadbare trope ‘those who don’t know their past are doomed to repeat it,’ but I am a believer that the past’s choices formed our present and shape today’s choices that create our future. “Simplistic .... understandings of the choices that made the Transatlantic Slave Trade focus on where enslaved people were brought, soften the horrors of the experience and place historical blame on those who immediately played a role in the trade. “I try to encourage my students to look beyond

these simple understandings and explore the ways in which the trade developed, who proﬁted from it, what were its long-term consequences, and how it was resisted. ” Rosinbum further put forth that many of the arguments made by those opposed to H.R. 40 and say that reparations are unwarranted or unneeded are attacking straw men when referencing this proposed law. “To the best of my understanding, this bill is to establish a commission to investigate in which ways that slavery has shaped America’s past and present,” Rosinbum said. “It’s not targeted towards direct payments to the descendants of those enslaved. As Ta-Nehisi Coates said in both his congressional testimony and in his famous Atlantic article, victims of Jim Crow and ongoing racial discrimination are still very much alive and have legitimate claims against the state.”

The American Rescue Plan Provides Relief for Small Businesses By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Correspondent @StacyBrownMedia The White House on Tuesday released a fact sheet on President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, noting that millions of main street small businesses are struggling to make ends meet in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis. The White House “especially noted” the struggles of Black- and Brown-owned businesses. Without additional government assistance, these challenges could worsen in the months ahead and the national vaccination program would be hobbled, administration oﬃcials noted. The American Rescue Plan will change the course of the pandemic, deliver immediate

relief for small businesses and American workers, and build a bridge towards economic recovery. Many Americans already have received a $1,400 stimulus check, making good on President Biden’s pre-inaugural promise of $2,000 payments – Americans received $600 in the weeks prior to the new administration. The White House fact sheet noted full support for small businesses through the current crisis. “Since the beginning of this pandemic, 400,000 small businesses have closed and millions more are hanging by a thread,” the administration oﬀered in the fact sheet. “President Biden’s plan will provide emergency grants, lending, and investment to hard-hit small businesses so they can rehire and retain workers and purchase the health and sanitation equipment they need to keep workers safe,” the statement continued.

Photo: iStockphoto / NNPA

The American Rescue Plan will change the course of the pandemic, deliver immediate relief for small businesses and American workers, and build a bridge towards economic recovery. Further, the American Rescue Plan will: Deploy community navigators to increase awareness of the participation in COVID-19 relief programs for small business owners who currently lack access, especially underserved entrepreneurs without banking relationships, lawyers, accountants, and

consultants. Allocate $15 billion in ﬂexible grants to help the smallest, most severely impacted businesses persevere through the pandemic. Provide $28 billion for a new grant program to support hard-hit small restaurants and other food and drinking establishments.

Bolster the Paycheck Protection Program with an additional $7.25 billion in funding to support small businesses and nonproﬁts that were previously excluded. Devote an additional $1.25 billion in funding to support live venue operators, theatrical producers, live performing arts organization operators, museum operators, motion picture theatre operators, and talent representatives that are struggling to make ends meet. Invest $10 billion in successful state, local, and tribal small business ﬁnancing programs to help small businesses innovate, create and maintain jobs, and provide the essential goods and services that communities depend on. Help small businesses rehire and retain workers by extending the employee retention credit through the end of 2021. In addition to

providing direct relief to hard hit small businesses, the American Rescue Plan will bolster a whole-of-government COVID-19 response that will change the course of the public health crisis, administration oﬃcials wrote in the fact sheet. The American Rescue Plan will “devote $1 trillion toward building a bridge to economic recovery for working families, including those who work for small businesses; and provide critical support to communities that are struggling in the wake of the pandemic.” The White House concluded: “The American Rescue Plan will address the immediate crises facing small businesses. In the coming weeks, President Biden will lay out his economic recovery plan to invest in America, create millions of additional goodpaying jobs, and build back better than before.”

Page 2 • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Insight News

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Insight News • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Page 3 WINNER: 2020 T YPOGRAPHY & DESIGN, 1ST PLACE, PHOTOGRAPHY (PORTRAIT & PERSONALIT Y), 1ST PLACE, WEBSITE, 3RD PLACE

Insight News March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021

Vol. 48 No. 12• The Journal For Community News, Business & The Arts • insightnews.com

Q&A

The settlement, police reform, rebuilding Black Businneses

Dateline: Friday, March 12, 2021 Al McFarlane: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for the past couple of hours was part of a live press conference announcing the city’s $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd. That announcement comes at the end of the first week of jury selection for the trial of Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer charged with the murder of George Floyd last May.

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The $27 million settlement includes a $500,000 contribution from the George Floyd family to the community at 38th and Chicago.

$27 million settlement The City has reached a settlement in the civil lawsuit ﬁled by George Floyd’s family against the City of Minneapolis. The City Council voted today to approve the settlement in an action that will be signed by Mayor Frey. The $27 million settlement includes a $500,000 contribution from the George Floyd family to the community at 38th and Chicago. The killing of George Floyd in police custody on May 25, 2020 has forever transformed Minneapolis and sparked a racial reckoning around the world. The settlement in this civil lawsuit is independent and separate from the criminal trial underway. The other former oﬃcers J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao are

scheduled to go to trial on Aug. 23. “I cannot begin to thank the Floyd family enough for their strength and courage to use their voices to push us all to do better in our collective work in honoring their brother, father, and son. Amid unprecedented loss and pain, we have a oncein-a-generation opportunity before us to eﬀectuate change that has eluded policymakers, advocates, and community calls for far, far too long,” said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. “We need to be unrelenting and unapologetic in our pursuit of a more equitable local government and more just approach to community safety and policing. And we will be.” “On behalf of the entire City Council, I want to

oﬀer my deepest condolences to the family of George Floyd,” said City Council President Lisa Bender. “No amount of money can ever address the intense pain and trauma caused by his death to George Floyd’s family and to the people of our city. Minneapolis has been fundamentally changed by this time of racial reckoning. The Minneapolis City Council is united in working together with our community and the Floyd family to equitably reshape Minneapolis.” City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins expressed appreciation for the Floyd family’s gift to the 38th & Chicago community. “The settlement agreement the City Council approved today includes a

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$500,000 contribution from the Floyd family to our 38th and Chicago community,” Jenkins said. “As the trial of Derek Chauvin progresses, I want to call for peace and for calm in our streets. Regardless of the outcome of the trial now underway, the City, the Council, the Mayor, department staﬀ – we are all committed to seeking justice in all forms. We cannot control the actions of the past. But we do have control over our actions in the days, weeks and years to come and how we move forward together, to begin the healing process. Transformational healing. Today is where this begins. And the Floyd family has shown us the way.”

Jacob Frey: This is a heavy moment. And in heavy moments like this, I think it’s really essential to do exclusive interviews with Black media directly. And I’ll tell you, this is the only speciﬁc interview that I’m doing on the topic today. We were here with you right after the killing of George Floyd. And your coverage was excellent. You asked the right questions. They were rightfully cutting. And I’m proud to do this interview as well with you today. And so we just got out of the press conference related to the settlement with the George Floyd family. The settlement is for $27 million in total, $500,000 of which is to go to business assistance and community assistance down at 38th and Chicago. The family,

Mayor Jacob Frey

Mayor Jacob Frey along with myself and council vice president Andrea Jenkins is going to be working to make sure that we can get the funds to the right resources there. But today has been a heavy one. It’s a somber note. This is not a celebratory tone. This is one of reﬂection, of insight, perhaps, and looking to how we can improve going forward. Al McFarlane: So let’s reﬂect on what brought us here. Some of the people at the press conference had on hats or gear that said “8:46” reminding the public of the amount of time, eight minutes and forty-six seconds that Chauvin held George in lethal restraint. The mortal chokehold lasted 526 seconds. By today’s settlement, the city is paying some $51,330.80 per second for the execution that the world watched on social media. How do we arrive at that

FREY 4

Al McFarlane

Court okay’s 3rd-degree murder charge against Derek Chauvin

Personal context matters: Our lives, George Floyd, & Mayor Jacob Frey

The court in the trial of State of Minnesota vs. Derek Chauvin this morning reinstated the charge of 3rd-degree murder against Chauvin. “The charge of 3rddegree murder, in addition to manslaughter and felony murder, reﬂects the gravity of the allegations against Mr. Chauvin. We look forward to presenting all three charges to the jury,” said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison who is leading the trial. Days after the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Oﬃce charged Chauvin with 3rd-degree murder and 2nddegree manslaughter. On June 3, 2020, Ellison added a charge of 2nd-degree murder against Mr. Chauvin. On October 22, 2020, the district court upheld the charges of 2nd-degree murder and 2nd-degree manslaughter against Chauvin (and the charges of aiding and abetting 2nd-degree murder and 2nddegree manslaughter against his co-defendants), but dismissed the charge of 3rd-degree murder against Chauvin.

Commentary By Brenda Lyle-Gray Columnist

Judge Peter Cahill On Friday, March 5, the Court of Appeals ruled that the district court erred in not granting the State’s motion to reinstate the charge of 3rd-degree murder against Chauvin in the death of Floyd. In a precedential opinion on February 1, 2021, the Court of Appeals upheld the conviction for 3rd-degree murder of former Minneapolis police oﬃcer Mohamed Noor in the 2017 death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond. The court also ruled that Minnesota’s 3rd-degree murder statute is applicable in the case of force being applied

to a single person. In response, on February 4, the State moved to reinstate the charge of 3rddegree murder against Derek Chauvin. On February 11, the district court denied the motion. The State ﬁled a notice of appeal to the Minnesota Court of Appeals on February 12. The Court of Appeals held oral arguments on March 1. On Friday, March 5, the Court of Appeals ruled

News

Limits on ‘no-knock’ warrants advance to House Floor

PAGE 5

that the district court erred in not granting the State’s motion to reinstate the charge of 3rddegree murder against Chauvin in the death of Floyd. Yesterday, March 10, the Supreme Court denied Chauvin’s petition for review of the Court of Appeals decision. In response, the Court of Appeals late yesterday ordered judgment in its March 5 ruling to be immediately entered.

True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I had yet to connect with a childhood friend whom I would soon learn was a respected journalist and a media entrepreneur in the Twin Cities. Al McFarlane and I would later reminisce about those fun-filled days growing up in Kansas City; those happy times when we would laugh so hard, we would cry; guided by devoted, hardworking, community minded, and morally and spiritually grounded parents and educators. We knew the inequities. And discrimination was out there. I think our minds were just a little too underdeveloped at our young age to make sense as to why we sat on a dance hall floor for kindergarten; why Fern Webster had to teach us out of discarded National Geographics and lessons she would make up on her own; and why little ‘colored kids’ were afforded only one day a year to swim

at Swope Park and could only attend Fairyland Park once or twice a year. My father would never allow my attendance at either. I often wonder how young people who witnessed the horriﬁc events over the past year can wrap their minds around what they saw - what the world saw - on May 25th 2020 and January 6th 2021. How do we make sense of it all and be able to explain our thinking to our children? Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey wasn’t born when our parents, shocked and devastated themselves, struggled to even begin to explain that April day, 1968, or the Emmett Till murder in the preceding decade. For most chocolate baby boomers, that pain will never leave our heart. It has been a similar deep-seated anguish when we heard George Floyd call out for his mother, and then take his last breath. After watching the video several times, Frey declared, “He’d be alive if he had been white.” He called it murder but pleaded for protestors ‘not to let tragedy beget more tragedy.’ Mayor Frey, interviewed at that

CONVERSATIONS 5

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Page 4 • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Insight News

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Hennepin County looks to raise minimum wage to $20 for employees Hennepin County Board Chair Marion Greene introduced a measure today that would raise the hourly minimum wage for county employees from $15 per hour to $20 per hour. The resolution passed unanimously out of committee and will go for a ﬁnal vote next week at the board meeting on March 23. The last minimum wage increase for employees was ﬁve years ago. “It was time to move this forward,” said Greene. “The most compelling reason for this increase is to improve lives for our employees at the lower end of our pay scales.” The low minimum wage disproportionately

Frey From 3 number? Mayor Jacob Frey: I appreciate the question, Al. It’s one that I however cannot answer. We can’t discuss the settlement discussions themselves. I certainly wasn’t the chief negotiator. Our city attorney was the individual that was negotiating the settlement. I appreciate Jim Rowader’s work, and our entire city attorney’s office, in getting to a figure and being able to move forward as a collective enterprise. But I apologize, I can’t give you any more than that. Al McFarlane: Well, that’s fine. The important thing for me is to raise the question. Talk about the city right now, as the city is preparing to go through the trial. The world is watching Minneapolis. Where are we now in terms of what we are planning for to keep communities safe, people safe, businesses safe, and people calm? Mayor Jacob Frey: First, recognizing the magnitude of this moment, which is indeed profound, our city has been undergoing trauma after the last nine or so months. And no one has felt that trauma more than the Black community. They’ve felt it in a fairly acute fashion. And so yes, preparations are underway. Priorities of safety, which we must have, priorities of protecting First Amendment rights, and then continuing to deliver, of course, city services are really paramount. One of the assets that we have this go around that we certainly did not last time is the

impacts marginalized people including Black and Indigenous people, people of color, people with disabilities and women — all who stand to beneﬁt the most from this increase. “The combination of low wages and high rent keeps upward economic mobility for our residents out of reach. An hourly wage increase has the ability to immediately impact the wellbeing of county employees at the lower end of our pay scales. This is about money in people’s pockets,” said Greene. “This is one step the county can take as an employer, but it isn’t a complete solution. I hope that other employers in the region follow our example.”

asset of time. We’ve had time to prepare. And we’ve been working literally since August of last year towards this point, and that’s includes everything from deep community connections, to formalizing our relationships with our leaders and cultural communities, with businesses, nonprofits, neighborhood associations and block captains. We want to make sure that we’re able to quickly disseminate information, as well as get the right intelligence from the ground back. And so we’ve had the time to set up these relationships. We’ve also obviously had the time to work with law enforcement partners engaging mutual aid from other jurisdictions and the state, including our request of the National Guard in December. And so this is a difficult time. I recognize that it will be traumatic for so many. But we are prepared. Al McFarlane: Any specific advice for residents so community people can safely navigate daily movement and access? Any advice to those who choose to exercise their First Amendment rights to protest and to monitor the trial? Mayor Jacob Frey: First, make sure to follow the city’s social media pages and website at https:// www.minneapolismn.gov/ for regular and up to date information. We’ve found that one of the best ways to combat misinformation, which undoubtedly will be out there to some extent, is to continuously put forward the facts. And so you all can help us with that. Disseminate the city’s information that we’re putting out there. Tell us what’s going on as well, whether that’s through a neighborhood community relations department, and our neighborhood outreach teams,

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The low minimum wage disproportionately impacts marginalized people including Black and Indigenous people, people of color, people with disabilities and women — all who stand to benefit the most from this increase. or through our tips hotline, which is 612-692-TIPS. You can let us know what’s happening on the ground. And for those that are peacefully protesting, we want to protect you. We want to make sure that people are able to express their First Amendment rights. We think and believe fully that peaceful protest is not just an important and critical part of the healing process. It’s an essential part of our democratic process. And that work is continuing right now. And I think you look to some of the leaders in our community as examples because the first couple days of jury selection in the trial, we saw some wonderful peaceful protests that went off without a hitch. If you are a peaceful protestor or a community member and you see something that doesn’t look right, tell us. Last go round, in late May and early June, we saw white supremacists and others like Boogaloo Boys, coming in from outside of our city, in many instances, outside our state, with the intent to cause havoc and chaos. They used our peaceful protestors as a shield to do so. That is unacceptable. Our message to them, our message to anyone that is looking to cause chaos, or property damage, or injure people within our city is, you will be arrested. We’ll be very firm on that. And so it’s yes to peaceful protesting. We want to keep people safe. If you’re going beyond that to use violence, no. We will not tolerate it in any way, shape, or form. Al McFarlane: Bring forward both sides of the discussion around defunding or reforming the police. Mayor Jacob Frey: This notion of defund the police or abolish the police, is a Rorschach test. I like to be specific about what I am for and what I’m not for. And my position has remained entirely consistent throughout. And that’s regardless of whether I’m talking to you in the media, business leaders, or community activists, I’ve said the same thing to everyone. I believe we need deep structural change. I believe we need a full culture shift and revamp in terms of the way we do business within our police department. And by the way, Chief Arradondo is lockstep with me in that mission, in that vision around procedural justice. I do not believe that we should be getting rid of our police. I just don’t. I do not. I’ve said that to everyone. But, to be specific, if we’re talking about safety beyond policing, I’m all on board. Every single one of my budgets has included new and further investments in safety beyond policing. If we’re talking about decriminalizing addiction, again, I am all on board. However, if we’re talking about getting rid of police, I do not think that is the right decision, especially right now. Al McFarlane: Minneapolis City Council is considering a charter amendment proposal regarding the future of the police department, where’s that now? Mayor Jacob Frey: I believe they just voted on a portion of it today. And so there’s a couple of different charter amendments that seem to be moving forward, one from community, one from the Council. Let me be clear on what I do agree with and what I don’t agree with. I do believe in a comprehensive approach to public safety. I do believe that we should have alternatives to policing, where you do not need an officer with a gun showing up to every single situation. You just don’t. And whether that’s mental health responders, or that’s social workers, it is

helpful to have that additional set of tools and that additional skillset that is beyond and apart from what an officer normally has, so that part, I like. I’ll tell you what I don’t like. I do not think that either the chief of police or the head of public safety should be reporting to 14 different individuals, 13 council members and the mayor. I think that would be a significant reduction to accountability overall. I think that it would be one big finger pointing contest every single time something goes wrong. And the way I see it is when everybody’s in charge, nobody’s in charge. Right now when things go wrong, or things happen, there’s a very clear accountability. You blame the chief. You blame me. And yes, at times, that means that you step up. You take responsibility. And that’s where we’re at. Al McFarlane: But you have in fact initiated some reforms for the department since the killing of George Floyd. You have a change in use of force policy. You have a change in body camera use. You are recruiting more people of color.

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By ByLee Harry H. Jordan Colbert, Jr. Minneapolis Juneteenth Managing Editor Committee - 2018 harry@insightnews.com National Juneteenth Film & Bicycling Commissions

Mayor Jacob Frey: We’ve put forward a litany of reforms, some of them before George Floyd was killed, and many of them since he was killed. First, I’ll talk about the use of force revamp. We did an entire overhaul on our use of force policy to make it as stringent as possible under state law. And in part, the shift in state law itself, which recently happened this last year, allowed us to again be even more restrictive with instances in which officers are using force. Is that going to solve the whole equation? Is that going to shift the culture of the department? No. I’ll be honest with you. It will not. But it is an important step. Second, with respect to body cameras, and this is an area where I think we have made major progress in the last several years. When I first took office, we added accountability to our body camera policy by adding a disciplinary matrix. So in other words, if you don’t turn on the body camera when you should be, there is discipline associated with it. And it worked. That accountability took us from 55% compliance when I took office, to around 95% compliance now. So 55% then, 90% to 95% now, that is significant progress. But we didn’t want to stop there. We also recognized that there should be parity between officers who are potentially getting charged with a crime and civilians that are potentially getting charged with a crime. There shouldn’t be different rules. Previously, officers were able to review body camera footage prior to providing a statement. But if you or I did something, we wouldn’t have that same ability to review the body camera footage. And so now there’s parity between the two. We went even further though, and we wanted to make it really clear that officers couldn’t turn off the body cameras while they were involved or encountering a critical incident. So if you get an officer that’s on the scene, and they’re going to talk to other people, I think there’s oftentimes an impression that whatever happened when you turned off the body camera was some form of malfeasance or wrongdoing. Let’s just take that out of the equation, keep the body cameras on, and then there’s full transparency. So that was a big step as well. But we’ve done even more than that. I mean, we’ve gotten rid of “no knock” warrants, with the exception of exigent circumstances. We’ve overhauled our de-escalation policies to make sure that deescalation is baked into every interaction. And we wanted to have all de-escalation techniques reported out on every report. Additionally, we wanted to have

About one-third of households in Hennepin County are housing cost burdened, meaning they pay more than 30% of their income toward housing. More than 41,000 county residents pay more than half of their income towards rent. This puts these people at risk of being unable to meet other basic needs. “This change aligns with the county’s goal of reducing disparities in income and employment areas,” said County Administrator David Hough. “It also aligns with our workforce development strategy to potentially move clients off government support. But this is just one part of a larger regional problem we need to solve. We need regional employers to look that reporting structure in place where more incidents of use of force were actually put in the report. So whether that’s an arm bar, or a handcuffing, I mean, even lower level uses of force, we wanted to have that reported as well, so we get a full picture of what’s happening. That’s a mouthful. It’s a mouthful, but we’ve been doing a lot of work. And a lot of these things are specific. They don’t fit in a hashtag. These are not simplistic policies. Al McFarlane: How do you grapple with the confluence of what I call the pandemic of 1492/1619 and present day COVID-19 pandemic? And how do you assemble a narrative that connects the question of justice and the disparate impact of COVID-19 on Black and Brown people? Mayor Jacob Frey: It’s true, this is obviously not my quote, but when America gets a cold, the Black community gets the flu. And we are seeing those disproportionate impacts play themselves out, and it’s deep. It’s not just limited to a simple biology of perhaps who has antibodies and who doesn’t. That’s not at all what we’re talking about. It’s who’s on the front lines. It’s who’s delivering the food. It’s who is stepping up, whether that’s firefighters, or police officers, or medics, nurses. Al McFarlane: Bus drivers. Mayor Jacob Frey: This is bus drivers. This is cooks. I mean, the people that literally keep us alive in so many respects, literally and figuratively, are the Black community. But they then bear the disproportionate impact in terms of getting sick themselves from it. And so just that is absolutely the case. And it’s very real. Note that deep and systemic inequities that have health impacts associated with them far precede COVID-19. That’s where you live and the presence of pollutants. Carbon output, carbon monoxide in certain neighborhoods is far more than in fancier white neighborhoods. You see that all the time. It’s about access to fresh fruits and vegetables. We’ve got food deserts in so many of our Black and Brown communities. It’s housing justice. I mean, you can’t possibly think about getting healthy or getting well, mentally, physically, emotionally, if you don’t have a stable home to begin with. I mean, you could go down the line, economic inclusion, jobs, all of it has ultimately an impact on health. We know this not by opinion, we know this because the data proves it out. And so you’re right, in many instances, we’re still dealing with these pandemics of 1492 and beyond. And they’re exacerbated even more when a global pandemic like COVID-19 comes through. Al McFarlane: So how do we get our city and our corporate and public policy leadership to focus on shifting the dynamic, and not categorizing Black people and Brown people, as the problem? But rather to engage Black and Brown communities as, properly resourced, the owners of the solution? How do we move impacted communities to the solution side of the equation? Being on the solution side of the equation is measurable with money. How do you follow the money and analyze how we can invest differently that in ways that energize development and generational wealth and sustainability in our neighborhoods? I have said often, Mayor Frey, they get the money, we get the misery. Our misery becomes a commodity which fuels white people’s economic interests. It’s unacceptable. What do we do about that?

at wages to help be a part of this solution.” The new wage would go into effect starting March 28. In addition to the immediate increase, the board has directed an annual review of the minimum hourly wage and an increase when employment market data and other economic conditions warrant. This raises the floor for county employees to make $20 an hour but does not increase current pay ranges in job classifications. The fivedollar-an-hour increase could increase earnings for a fulltime employee by nearly ten thousand dollars annually. The increase would affect more than 400 employees.

Mayor Jacob Frey: And you are right. You’ve got to follow the money. And oftentimes, people talk about equity. They talk about making sure that monies are affirmatively put towards Black and Brown communities and ACP 50 areas, (insert pull quote box: The Metropolitan Council defines Areas of Concentrated Poverty (ACPs) as census tracts where 40% or more of the residents have family or individual incomes that are less than 185% of the federal poverty threshold. In 2015, 185% of the federal poverty threshold was $44,875 for a family of four or $22,352 for an individual living alone. To identify areas where people of color experience the most exposure to concentrated poverty, the Met Council further differentiates Areas of Concentrated Poverty where 50% or more of the residents are people of color (ACP50s)) and they’re all for it until the actual decision comes down. And a great example was just this last year when COVID-19 first hit, I made the decision that we should push forward and allocate money specifically to our more impoverished areas. We should make sure that business owners, Black and Brown business owners, were first getting that shot to make it through a global pandemic. And you know what, I’ll tell you, I got pushback from a couple council members that didn’t have money going to their respective wards. Now I understand the parochial nature of wanting to represent your wards. But when you’re looking out for the whole city, and specifically when you’re looking out to do right by communities of color and through equity, you’ve got to make investments where they’re needed most. Al McFarlane: Given the economic recovery at hand, and the federal government’s recently passed American Rescue Plan, where does Minneapolis come in? How do we use this opportunity to strengthen West Broadway, Lake Street, University Avenue in Saint Paul? It seems like because of the egregious nature of the challenges, there is significant opportunity. Do you see a resilience that allows us to move beyond historic entrapments and towards the unbridling of our strengths? Mayor Jacob Frey: And it’s not just ownership of a business. That’s an important component. I also believe that it should be ownership of the underlying land, the property and the building itself. We see Black excellence on West Broadway, on Plymouth Avenue, on Lake Street. We see it all around the city. And these communities and these business owners are the reason that a corridor becomes successful to begin with. But then what happens? That corridor becomes successful. More people want to go there. The value of the property creeps up. The rent gets jacked through the roof. And the same people that made these corridors wonderful to begin with get the boot because they can’t pay the rent. That’s what we want to change right now. And so we’ve started this commercial property development fund that provides gap financing for Black and Brown business owners in these corridors. It gives them the opportunity to purchase the land, to own the property, so that when those values get boosted up, and by the way, they will, they benefit. I mean, we want people to be successful, but the difference is who is successful. The difference is: Where is the money flowing? And if they own the property, and then the value gets boosted up, guess who benefits, them, especially if they’re the owners.

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Insight News • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Page 5

Week one of jury selection yields seven jurors, five men and two women By Donna Baeck, Contributing Writer Community members and a coalition of social justice organizations gathered outside of the Hennepin County Government Center on Monday March 8 to demand justice for George Floyd as the ﬁrst day of jury selection began for Derek Chauvin’s trial. Seven jurors, ﬁve men and two women, have been selected for the panel so far. The jury pool will be narrowed down to a total of twelve jurors and two alternates before the trial begins at the end of the month. Chauvin faces charges of second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter. On Thursday morning, a Hennepin County judge reinstated an additional charge of third-degree murder against Chauvin that was dropped last fall.

“I’m not confident [justice will be served for Floyd] because the tendency for government officials to specifically hold white male police offers accountable is non-existent,” Thea Munson, a student at Concordia University who was protesting outside the courthouse, said. “People feel apprehensive about the trial. It’s a big deal and the protests have been worldwide. We’re scared it’s going to be the same old, same old because it’s a white cop. But I’m inspired by the people who are here [protesting] today,” Gina Vanaram, a member of the Civilian Police Accountability Commission, said. Potential jurors are residents from Hennepin County. They were first sent a 14-page questionnaire to assess their familiarity with the case. The questionnaire includes a wide range of questions from their media habits to whether or

not they have watched the video of George Floyd’s murder. The jurors are then questioned by the judge and attorneys through a process called “voir dire.” This process assesses each person’s ability to judge fairly and the potential biases they may have, according to the American Bar Association. A juror may be dismissed “for cause” if either attorney thinks they are biased towards the case and the judge approves the dismissal. Both the prosecution and the defense have a speciﬁc number of peremptory causes which allows each attorney to dismiss a juror without stating a cause. The only exception is a juror cannot be dismissed based on race or sex, according to the American Bar Association. The jury selection process is scheduled to continue for the next two weeks before opening statements for the trial begin on March 29.

photo/Uche Iroegbu

The Minnesota v Derek Chauvin murder trial is being held in the Hennepin County Government Center courthouse. The jury selection process is scheduled to continue for the next two weeks before opening statements for the trial begin on March 29.

Limits on ‘no-knock’ warrants advance to House Floor By Tim Walker Session Daily Carlotta Madison said what happened to her brother was “horriﬁc.” Andre Madison died after a no-knock warrant — based on his suspected possession of $5 worth of marijuana — became a chaotic gun battle between Minneapolis police entering the front door of his residence and those entering the rear. Rep. Athena Hollins (DFL-St. Paul) sponsors HF1762, which would prohibit no-knock warrants when the only underlying crime is suspected drug possession. The House Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy Committee approved the bill, as amended, on a party-line

Conversations From 3 time by the Insight News editor recalled Insight’s questions as cutting yet honest. On Friday, March 12th, Jacob Frey gave another exclusive interview to Insight News. The interview again revealed Insight’s candor and sincerity and focus on the interests and well being of Black people. Insight reported last year, “On May 27th, Mayor Frey called for an arrest and charges against the now fired Minneapolis police officer who knelt on the neck of George Floyd as he pleaded to breathe shortly before his death in an incident caught on video that drew international outrage.” In last week’s interview, the Mayor said, “This city has had a barrage of trauma that has hit the Black communities in an acute fashion over the past year, but the data shows the disparities leading up to the tragedy have been apparent for decades. They’ve just been intentionally ignored until the pandemic exacerbated the injustices in lack of carbon monoxide-free affordable housing; health care accessibility and affordability especially for front line and essential workers; availability of fresh, nutritional food especially where there are food desserts; and economic inclusion.” Despite the $27 million settlement awarded the Floyd family on Friday, March 12th over the past year, Frey said, there has been push back from some City Council members to his initiatives to drive resources to neighborhoods that suffered disproportionally from historic underinvestment, and from disruptions flowing from the George Floyd incident. Frey said his goal was to conduct business differently and more equitably in order to move the city forward and there could be no turning back. The barricades, the presence Minnesota National Guard, and non-stop news stories of the Derek Chauvin trial amp up on-going sense of trauma, but a real reckoning is afoot. It’s no longer ‘business as usual’. Frey said this time

photo/Buzz Dean

Rep. Athena Hollis, DFL-Saint Paul the city has had time to prepare. Since August, the mayor and his team leaders have reached out to cultural community leaders, formalizing relationships with block captains and business associations, disseminating trustworthy, factual information pertaining to COVID19 and the Derek Chauvin trial. He said the City is encouraging residents to stay informed by checking the city’s website and social media outlets. By calling the TIPS hotline - 612692-TIPS, residents can let city officials and staff know what’s happening; what they hear from those on the ground, especially if it becomes obvious there are outside agitators with intentions of disrupting peaceful protests, Frey said. “It’s like a perfect storm, both beautiful and horrific at the same time,” McFarlane said to Frey. “One can be either elated or disturbed by the announcement of the $27 million settlement. As we wrap our minds around the transformative nature of that settlement, we are monitoring the Derek Chauvin trial, with a gnawing suspicion of the system’s ability to deliver justice.” “President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan is kicking in, bringing hope to our horizons, while pandemic and the George Floyd disruption illuminate disparities that shackle Black and Brown opportunity,” McFarlane said. “Is this an opportunity to transform policy making to recognize Black and Brown communities as owners of the solutions and not as the source of the problems in our communities? White people have made a business out of managing Black poverty,” McFarlane said. Mayor Frey agreed with the honest assessment without hesitation. “I believe in deep structural change; a cultural shift and a revamping in the way we do business within our police department; and a comprehensive approach to public safety. There should be alternatives to policing including mental health and social workers; professionals with skill sets beyond what an officer would normally have. I don’t believe the chief of police or the head of public safety

should have to report to 13 council persons and the mayor.” Frey described reforms within the police department that have been instituted before and after the murder of George Floyd. “Regarding the use of force, we have made it as stringent under state law as we can, but let me be clear. These corrective efforts will not shift the culture of the police force. With a discipline matrix measuring compliance in the use of body cameras, positive results have increased from 55% to 95% after I came into office. There is parity with the arresting officer and those being charged in reviewing the video footage as we aim for full transparency. Overall de-escalation policies are baked into every interaction and de-escalation technique with incidents spelled out in every report,” he said. Addressing economic disparity, Frey said the Commercial Property Land Fund targets Black and Brown business owners, enabling entrepreneurs to own the land and buildings that house their small businesses. McFarlane noted the importance of speaking to the Black community through the Black press. “What you are doing is important, Mayor Frey. You engage the Black community by reaching our community through the information infrastructure in the Black community. The work we do as journalists, and as businesses makes a difference in the lives, institutions, and economies of our communities,” he said.

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By LaurenofPoteat Courtesy University of Alejandra By Dr. Commentary By North Brandpoint Dr. Rhonda Nicole Rekha Kimya Memorial Winbush E.Oliveras N. Mankad by Moore (BPT) Sen. Staff Ian Roth NNPA Minnesota Washington News Staff Bobby Dennis, Incoming Joe Salem Board Champion College ChairAfrodescendientes Mayo Clinic Staff Correspondent By IanPhysician Roth NorthPoint www.TheConversation.com elect, WomenHeart Health & Mayo Clinic Staff Wellness Center

10-7 vote Friday and sent it to the House Floor. There is no Senate companion. The use of no-knock warrants — where police are not required to announce their presence before forcibly entering a property — have increased dramatically since the war on drugs began in the 1970s, Hollins said, adding they “are disproportionally executed in Black and brown communities.” She understands the need for law enforcement to sometimes move with the element of surprise, but that has to be balanced with a citizen’s right to reside safely in their own home. St. Cloud Police Chief William Blair Anderson opposes the legislation, saying it would raise the level of danger for both police and the suspects being served no-knock warrants. Prohibiting no-knock

warrants when the only underlying crime is suspected drug possession is not the right place to draw the line, he said, and doesn’t ﬁt with his experience as a police oﬃcer. “Wherever there are drugs, there are guns,” he said. Anderson added that law enforcement should not be prevented from asking a judge for a no-knock warrant based solely on the level of the suspected crime because a suspect’s past history, such as a propensity toward violence, must also be taken into account. Several Republicans echoed Anderson’s opposition. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to report quarterly to the Department of Public Safety on their use of no-knock warrants, and require the data received to be reported to the Legislature.

Page 6 • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Insight News

Insight 2 Health

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Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images

New mRNA vaccines use genes from the coronavirus to produce immunity.

How do mRNA vaccines work – and why do you need a second dose? 5 essential reads Daniel Merino Assistant Editor: Science, Health, Environment; Co-Host: The Conversation Weekly Podcast Tens of millions of people across the U.S. have received a coronavirus vaccine. So far, the majority of doses have been either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, both of which use mRNA to generate an immune response. These genebased vaccines have been in the works for decades, but this is the first time they have been used widely in people. MRNA vaccines are proving to be more effective than anyone had hoped, but as with any new medical advancement, people have a lot of questions. How do they work? Are they safe? Do I really need two shots? Why do they need to be kept so cold? And will this be the vaccine

technology of the future? Below, we highlight ﬁve articles from The Conversation that will help answer your questions about mRNA vaccines. 1.

vaccine revolution “DNA and mRNA vaccines offer huge advantages over traditional types of vaccines, since they use only genetic code from a pathogen – rather than the entire virus or bacteria,” writes Deborah Fuller, a microbiologist at the University of Washington who has been working on genebased vaccines for decades. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are proof that mRNA vaccines are ready for prime time – and far surpass their predecessors. “The hopes that gene-based vaccines could one day provide a vaccine for malaria or HIV, cure cancer, replace less effective traditional vaccines or be ready to stop the next pandemic before it gets started are no longer far-fetched,” explains Fuller.

Do experts have something to add to public debate? 2. How does an mRNA vaccine work These vaccines are not only effective, they work in a fundamentally different way from traditional vaccines, explains Sanjay Mishra, a staff scientist at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Traditional vaccines use an entire dead virus – or just a piece of one – to generate immunity. “But an mRNA vaccine is different,” writes Mishra, “because rather than having the viral protein injected, a person receives genetic material – mRNA – that encodes the viral protein. When these genetic instructions are injected into the upper arm, the muscle cells translate them to make the viral protein directly in the body.” 3. Quick to market, but still safe “Safety is the

ﬁrst and foremost goal for a vaccine,” says William Petri, a Professor of Medicine at the University of Virginia. A lot of people have expressed safety concerns based on how fast these vaccines were developed, approved and distributed. According to Petri, the vaccines still went through every normal step – they just did them simultaneously. “In my opinion, safety is not compromised by the speed of vaccine development and emergency use authorization. The reason that vaccines may be approved so quickly is that the large clinical trials to assess vaccine eﬃcacy and safety are happening at the same time as the large-scale manufacturing preparation, funded by the federal government’s Operation Warp Speed program.” 4. to

Why it’s important get your second shot You got your ﬁrst vaccine shot. But with shortages and supply problems, getting

the second dose might be becoming a hassle. Does it really matter? Yes, explains William Petri in another article. “The ﬁrst dose primes the immune system and introduces the body to the germ of interest. This allows the immune system to prepare its defense. The second dose, or booster, provides the opportunity for the immune system to ramp up the quality and quantity of the antibodies used to ﬁght the virus.” Immunity is a complex process, and “if the booster isn’t given within the appropriate window, lower quantities of antibodies will be produced that may not provide as powerful protection from the virus,” writes Petri. So go get your second shot if you can, even if you have to get it a bit later than expected. 5. Subzero storage makes distribution a challenge For all of their amazing attributes, mRNA vaccines do

have at least one weakness: “If they get too warm or too cold they spoil. And, just like fish, a spoiled vaccine must be thrown away,” explains Anna Nagurney, Professor of Operations Management at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, who studies medical supply chains. The mRNA molecule is very fragile, so vaccines need to be kept at extremely cold, very specific temperatures – a challenge for distribution. “The answer is something called the vaccine cold chain – a supply chain that can keep vaccines in tightly controlled temperatures from the moment they are made to the moment that they are administered to a person,” explains Nagurney. This cold supply chain is critical to getting vaccines where they need to go, and without it, no matter how good the vaccines are, they can’t make much of a difference. Editor’s note: This story is a roundup of articles from The Conversation’s archives.

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Insight News • March 22, 2021 - March 28, 2021 • Page 7

Aesthetically It

Hip-hop professor looks to open doors with world’s first peer-reviewed rap album By A.D. Carson, Assistant Professor of Hip-Hop, University of Virginia As a rap artist who is also a professor of hip-hop, I always make it a point to have my songs reviewed by other artists I admire. So when I released “i used to love to dream” – my latest album – in 2020, I turned to Phonte Coleman, one half of the trailblazing rap group Little Brother. “Just listened to the album. S— is dope!” Phonte texted me after he checked it out. “Salute!” I responded with sincere appreciation for his encouraging words. I told him they meant a lot to me, especially coming from him. “Nah, bro. The bars are on point,” he replied. “Much love and respect.” This informal conversation with a highly esteemed rapper – one whose work I’ve studied and hold in high regard – is perhaps the most resounding aﬃrmation I can ask for as an artist. The situation is similar in academia. That is, in order to establish oneself as a serious scholar, an academic must get their work – typically some sort of written product – published in a peer-reviewed journal, which is a journal in which works are evaluated by others in a given ﬁeld to ensure their relevance and quality. As a rap artist and academic, I wondered if I could do the same thing with my new album. Could I get my album “published” through an academic press? Thankfully, I have discovered that the answer was

photo/Dan Addison, CC BY

Hip-hop professor A.D. Carson. “yes.” In August 2020, my album became what Michigan Publishing described as the “ﬁrst ever peer-reviewed rap album published by a university press.” This is a development that I believe could open doors for scholars from all kinds of diﬀerent backgrounds – including but not limited to hiphop scholars – to contribute new forms of knowledge. New methods “With this new form of scholarship comes a new approach to the peer review and production process,” the University of Michigan Press stated in an article about my work. But in order to get a peer-reviewed rap album, it’s not like I just went into the studio, rapped over some beats and hoped for the best. I presented liner notes and created a documentary about how I made the album, which I refer to as a “mixtap/e/ssay” – an amalgamation of the words

“mixtape,” which is a sampling of an array of select songs, and “essay.” I also submitted articles that help explain how the music relates to certain academic conversations, events in society and my own life. For instance, since the album is semi-autobiographical and I am from Decatur, Illinois, I note how in May 2020, my hometown was listed as America’s third-fastest shrinking city. Since my album deals with Black life, I note how USA Today ranked Decatur as one of “the 15 worst cities in America for Black people” in terms of various metrics, such as household income, educational attainment, homeownership, incarceration and life spans. My album – which is free and open source – deals with topics that range from race and justice to identity and citizenship.

career as an assistant professor of hip-hop at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville – on my memories growing up and living in the central Illinois town. The content of the album demonstrates this, covering issues like the war on drugs and its legacy in the 1980s and 1990s and contrasting it with the current opioid crisis on the song “crack, usa”; the seeming inevitability of police killings of Black people and how we might prepare ourselves and our loved ones on “just in case”; and the trap of incarceration and institutionalization presented on “nword gem.” It also provides space for processing mental health matters like trauma, alienation, alcoholism and depression with tracks like “ampersand,” “stage fright” and “asterisk.” I published my album with University of Michigan Press because I believe it’s important that hip-hop – and hip-hop scholarship – occupies

Confronting societal ills In the lyrics, I reﬂect from where I am now – in my

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