Insight ::: 05.15.2023

Cash rules everything around me - Wu-Tang Clan

By Roger Olds

John rolled slowly to a stop at the light. As he waited for it to change, he closed his eyes and remembered that afternoon when he destroyed an ant hill in the backyard. He recalled how he punched the air, rolled in the grass and looked up at the sky shouting ‘God! King of the Hill! Superman!’ right before his legs caught fire.

It taught him a powerful lesson, and hopefully, today his son John, Jr. and friends Keisha and Caleb will learn what he learned decades ago, the power of a community who know the real enemy and their strength against that enemy.

Caleb asked John, “Mr. Williams, how did you get this idea?”

John answered,

“When I was small, I stomped an ant hill into a flat bare patch of dead ants. Thirty seconds later, I was running into my house crying and removing my pants to find dozens of those ants onemillionth my size doing their part to stop a threat, me. There was no leader, no coordination, just action. Now, I walk around ant hills, not through them.”

“Ant pheromones!” contributed Caleb.

“Respect!” Keisha shouted, and gripped her “Black Lives Matter” sign a little tighter. They were on their way to a protest, but first they had to stop and open another account at a regional bank for John, Jr. That way his friends could watch him participate with his father in a new kind of protest for the first time.

As John and his young trio prepared to leave, the banker stood and said, “John, Jr.’s account is activated and his debit card should arrive next week. His savings will earn 1% interest, and as long as he maintains a minimum balance of $500, there will be no fees on withdrawals.” John smiled.

Junior’s paycheck would continue to go into Central National Bank, but his $9600 college savings would now be here in Acme, a regional bank.

The group was back in the car and headed downtown to the protest. John continued to explain, “My plan is simple. Move savings out of my regional bank when government is not passing laws protecting and helping Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers making minimum wage, ‘B-I-P-O-C-E’. My withdrawal of my money shouts ‘instability!’ and ‘lack of confidence in the economy!’ to nervous billionaires and business people. My picket sign tells them what I want done to restore my confidence and stability.

“I am a member of B-I-P-O-C-E, the U.S. voting majority, speaking our demands to power. Our mass marches in the streets to government office buildings are good, but long picket lines at banks........ long picket lines at banks, that’s better. I guarantee you billionaires won’t sleep well tonight!”

“Why, dad?” John Jr. looked puzzled.

“Billionaires don’t care about our social injustices. They only care about our money.”

“Are they stealing our money?!” John, Jr. looked upset now.

“No, son. Our economy allows regional banks to loan our money, our savings, to billionaires so they can make more money. It happens every day of the year as long as I have confidence in the economy and leave my money in Acme Regional Bank. If I and other protesters lose confidence in the economy and withdraw our savings, this economy becomes shaky and billionaires lose money.”

“So, my ‘confidence in the economy’ is my power. Now, all social injustice lowers my ‘confidence in the economy’. If legislation to help B-I-P-O-C-E fails, that lowers my ‘confidence in the economy’. I have the attention of people a million times richer than I who are using my money. I don’t need a leader to tell me when or where or how much cash to withdraw.

I withdraw my cash based on

the billionaires’ priority to put money before the reduction of human sufferings. When they do that, I ‘bite’ hard. Not only are they hurting the people who do the essential work at their bidding, they are hurting the very hands that feed them!”

“Why cash, Mr. Williams?” Keisha asked. “We can act faster, easier, and anytime of day on the internet.”

“Marketing!” he answered with a broad smile. The protest march is like the “ant” pheromone to old Black people like me, and the cash withdrawal lines at our banks is our bite into the threat, billionaires. My Great Grandfather lived during Reconstruction and my Grandfather lived through the great depression in 1929. My Grandfather taught me to not trust banks. Grandma said money in land, not banks. I am passing it on to you. Threaten to withdraw or start to withdraw or even appear to be withdrawing your cash, and watch billionaires respect us the way I respect ants one-millionth my size.

Billionaires know that Junior’s savings are not cash dollars in the bank. Junior’s confidence is in the number $9600 in his savings account app, and his confidence that he can come to the bank on any business day and get his money in cash. That is true when hundreds ask for their cash. It might not be true when thousands ask for their cash.”

Caleb blurted out, “Cash rules everything around me, CREAM, get the money, dolla dolla bill y’all*! Wu-Tang Clan is at the bank! Https:// youtu.be/PBwAxmrE194.

John was caught at another red light, so he turned and looked at each one of them and said, “cash withdrawal makes a demand that is harder for regional banks to fulfill. It advertises your power like a bullhorn or 30-second popup ad. It is also safer for you, because the police cannot shoot rubber bullets at customers standing in a line 100 strong to enter their bank. Their time will be directed to managing the traffic jams you cause. But most importantly, each dollar has two words, ‘legal tender’, printed on its face that forces stores to accept your dollars. Stores do not have to accept your debit card as a form of payment.”

John massaged his chin like a judge giving a verdict, “if big business can support politicians and laws that benefit business with money earned from my savings, I can remove my savings based on my concerns about inequality and injustice in my community. Business cares about money; We care about social security and humanity. When legislation favors business over humanity, I can’t sleep. When I remove my cash and my ‘confidence in the economy’, they can’t sleep. We need to understand each other. They have lobbyists and We have legal protest signs in the streets. If We start lining up at our banks with our signs, they better read them, because We are not happy.”

“Has this been tried before, Mr. Williams?” Caleb asked.

“Yes, Caleb. We tried it last year, only, then it wasn’t spontaneous. A youngster was telling me about rave parties. I thought about the ants and my Grandfather then asked myself, ‘What are billionaires afraid of?’

The answer was long lines of ordinary citizens, withdrawing their money from banks. It was people lacking confidence in billionaires using their savings to make more billions. It was my Grandfather. Now, they are afraid of people’s general knowledge that their savings aren’t in the banks, but in construction materials and in each billionaire’s version of a trump tower and in company payroll checks at the end of the month and in inventories of products We have to buy at ridiculously high prices.

I along with some old college friends scheduled a rave. But, it wasn’t a party party. it was a ‘go draw yo’ money out the banks’ party in two states. In those states U.S. Senators were holding up legislation we needed for a national $15/hour minimum wage.”

John parked the

car, closed his eyes and continued, “There were lines of protesters with $15/hour protest signs everywhere, quietly withdrawing their $200 and $300 from their accounts and putting them in their national bank accounts or under their mattresses. The public, bankers and billionaires only saw the long lines outside banks in West Virginia and Arizona. Before those two Senators could change their vote on the $15/ hour national minimum wage, two banks actually failed. Unfortunately, We didn’t get credit. Corruption took the credit for our two state raves of ‘no confidence’.” John laughed, shook his head and explained that it was a perfect storm. “Those states had three banks that were in trouble before We started withdrawing our money. It took the President going on national TV to correct the damage.

Listen, when the President of the United States comes on national television and says don’t worry, worry! Yes, corruption got the blame, but those Senators and their billionaire backers got the message. Walk around ant hills and Black communities. The bill for a $15/hour national minimum wage passed last December before Congress’s Christmas break. Now when a small group of BIPOCE line up with their picket signs and quietly wait outside banks, billionaires pay attention to the demands We have on our picket signs. We don’t have to do raves anymore. A small, quiet, spontaneous group in picket lines at banks on Monday after a loud march downtown on Sunday is usually enough to get our billionaires and legislators to remember, ‘if BIPOCE, Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers at minimum wage aren’t happy, ain’t nobody gonna be happy.’ There are no leaders for billionaires to threaten or to bribe or to negotiate an elitist deal. Leaders are not in control! It’s the pheromones in each protester. Since last year’s rave, it has entered into the ‘ways of knowing’ of most people among BIPOCE in Arizona and here in West Virginia that social injustice requires economic unrest to achieve genuine mutual respect between the billionaire owner and the $15/hour worker. Billionaires in Arizona and West Virginia have become more humane to all BIPOCE, because almost all of that group have a little bit of their Great Grandparents’ distrust of banks and the new BIPOCE pheromone ‘unhappy? go withdraw your money’. Bank failures and depressions got my Great Grandfather into this mess during the turn of the last century and the potential of bank failures is gonna get his Great Great Grandchildren out. No sane person intentionally kicks an ant hill.

Today, I taught Junior what my dad taught me: never put all your eggs in one basket. That is a good defensive strategy for your money. This afternoon I hope he learns something new, that two bank accounts are also a good offensive strategy to gain respect. People my age value having two bank accounts and cold cash over debit cards and cash apps.

Downtown We should

see spontaneity and a new type of protest against the Senator in our state who is blocking legislation protecting Voting Rights. It’s before Congress next week and a lot of people are upset. I think you’ll like this new “ant” mentality.” We act on our own depending on our feelings on issues before Congress. We realize almost all issues affect our pocketbooks. Often 70 to 80% of the country want a particular issue resolved, but Congress can’t get it done because of money in politics.”

“The group supporting our Senator against this bill are business executives across the river in Ohio,” John Jr. volunteered.

“Right,” replied Caleb, “and business owners sleep well as long as I am happy with my savings in the bank collecting that 1% interest year after year. We sleep well too, because it is insured.”

John had a serious look as he locked the car. “Our money is insured, but business owners have millions in uninsured deposits in the same regional banks that provide the lifeblood to their companies to make more profits. Some of those profits are being used to try to stop our Voting Rights bill. The action of money creating more money takes place in regional banks.”

Caleb gathered the protest signs and distributed each to the group as they joined the people chanting and marching the few blocks to the Capitol.

There were thousands of people surrounding the building. Caleb found a spot, and they joined the crowd shouting the slogans printed on their signs. Everyone was waving to all cars as they passed.

After an hour of speeches and 30 minutes of protest chants, an elderly woman to John’s left and a group of retired soldiers to Keisha’s right shouted, “it’s time to go to the banks!”, “to the banks!”. The crowd slowly started chanting “remember the fight for minimum wage”. The crowd dispersed. Each went their separate way. John took his group north back to the car and the closest branch of Acme Regional Bank.

As they approached, they saw a dozen people then two dozen standing quietly in line with picket signs. A guard was just outside the door of the bank admitting people as each group exited. Unlike the Capitol grounds, there was almost no noise. People silently waited in single file. While John and his trio waited, a reporter came up to him and asked, “why are you standing in line?”

He responded, “we need the Voting Rights legislation passed. Until it does, I have little confidence in our economy.”

The reporter scratched his head and asked, “what does Voting Rights have to do with the economy?”

Mr. Williams looked at him eye-to-eye and said, “We need the Voting Rights bill passed. Until it does, I have little ‘confidence in our economy’.”

“Do you have anything else to say?”

“No comment.” The line inched forward. The reporter went to a woman, and asked the same questions. She said, “No Voting Rights. No confidence.” to every

question. An old protester in overalls and a t-shirt explained to the reporter, “police brutality makes me lose confidence in the system. Let me take my money out and put it under my mattress where I can use it and the bankers and billionaires can’t.”

The door of the bank opened. Three picketers with their signs quietly walked out and across the street to Central National Bank and got in line. The Williams group inched forward. Soon it was John, jr and his father’s turn to enter the bank. Caleb and Keisha remained outside and held the signs. The two went in and withdrew part of their savings. When they came out, all four walked across the street to get in line at Central National Bank.

The same reporter saw them in the Central National Bank line, and asked, “why are you over here?”

John Jr. replied this time, “We need voting rights legislation. Until We have it, We have little confidence in the economy”. John Jr. smiled. He wanted to say more, but he resisted and quietly and proudly held his sign.

This time it was Keisha who volunteered in a soft voice, “CREAM get the money, dolla dolla bill y’all.*” She then saluted the reporter. “Credit that quote to the Wu-Tang Clan in your article.”

Finally, it was time to enter Central National Bank. The two went in, but this time they didn’t withdraw money. They deposited the money they had just received and went back out to join Caleb and Keisha.

They hurried around the block to the Acme Regional Bank line which was wrapped around the corner, and they waited in line a second time. John, Jr. and his father repeated the process through Acme and back to Central National Bank. The reporter asked, “you back?”

John looked serious and replied, “my confidence fell as I saw the lines grow. We need Voting Rights legislation now.” They got into their car to go. The lines continued to grow. On the way home, they saw other banks with groups of people quietly holding their signs.

Keisha volunteered.

“That was Rad! Will you do it again tomorrow, Mr. Williams?”

“Yes,” John replied, “We’ll do it for the next three days, and then, We’ll march with the crowds on the weekend for two final days, but no bank visits. We’ll wait to see what happens with our Senator on Monday.”

“Is that the way you normally do it?” Keisha continued.

“Yes. First, I make my usual protest sign and go downtown and picket in support of the legislation. If We have the votes, that’s all I do. If there are undecided or problem legislators, I take my picket sign to Acme before it opens at 10:00 and withdraw $1000.

I walk down the block and deposit $1000 in Central Bank.

Second, I quietly chant a slogan in line outside the bank if there are only a few protesters.

I repeat my chant and continue to transfer $1000 for four days before the vote or until we have the votes necessary to

pass it.”

“What if the bill fails?” Caleb, the devil’s advocate, smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

“I chant ‘my confidence in big business is gone’. The bill was defeated,” John smiled. Then I take my phone and wire all but $500 of my Acme savings to my Central Bank and go home.

Finally, after three or four months, I quietly move the money back to Acme or another regional bank if Acme has failed. I file for insurance replacement of Acme’s saving, if necessary, and place the savings in a new regional bank. Then I prepare for the next micro fight against big business and its need to always make more money.

When you are talking with your friends”, John said very slowly, “remember to tell them billionaires have money. That’s power. But BIPOCE has money and provide the confidence in billionaires’ use of our money to make more money. That’s power too.”

John listened to the conversation of the young adults in his driveway. Keisha, Caleb and Junior were starting to understand that billionaires brought money into politics. So BIPOCE must take money out of the economy by making their savings in regional banks unavailable if billionaires and politicians will not solve social injustices and will not provide basic human rights. Billionaires can use their own money to invest and make more money instead of BIPOCE savings. BIPOCE power is centered in the regional banks where the economy functions and billionaires are born.

John started chanting Wu-Tang and went into the house. He left praying that these conversations today would be repeated a thousand times more by the end of Spring. He hoped they would spread to all countries where billionaires rule. He could see it, a future when “Respect on Earth; good will toward BIPOCE” can be accomplished with a sustainable profit for business.

“That was a good day.” Keisha said again. “i’m going to open my accounts before the next vote for the George Floyd act in July.”

Caleb added, “i’m going to ask dad to put my college savings in a regional bank. This guy is going to put his money where his mouth is. ‘No Justice, No Peace.’ ‘No Justice, No Money!’ “

“Awesome,” John Jr. sighed, “JAH speaks through ants!? Just like ants, I can command respect from enemies a million times my size if I know my strength against their weakness.”

“And I have to be satisfied with equality and justice in a nation before I put my confidence in its economy,” Keisha chimed in. Caleb turned to John Jr., “here’s to ants and the individual, spontaneous action of the many!”

John, jr sighed again and announced, “imagine that! Ants teaching Blacks, Indigenous, People Of Color, and Essential Workers making minimum wage how to command Respect. And it’s“ “ACTION!” they all shouted with one voice.

*Wu-Tang Clan official youtube video.

Art by Don Walker

Purple Lanes: Minnesota highway signs to honor Prince

By Steve Karnowski Associated Press

The late pop superstar Prince will have a highway named after him in his home state, following a vote by Minnesota lawmakers Thursday.

The Senate vote was 55-5 to rename the highway that runs past Prince’s Paisley Park museum and studios. Among those watching was his oldest sister, Sharon Nelson. The bill passed the House unanimously last month on the seventh anniversary of Prince’s death, and now goes to Gov. Tim Walz, who is expected to sign.

Purple signs will soon go up along a seven-mile stretch of State Highway 5 in the Minneapolis suburbs of Chanhassen and Eden Prairie — designating it the Prince

Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway. Prince’s friends and fans are footing the bill, said the lead sponsor, Republican Sen. Julia Coleman, of Waconia.

“Prince was a true genius, a visionary artist who pushed the boundaries of music and cultures in ways that will never be forgotten,” Coleman told her fellow senators. “His influence can be heard in the work of countless musicians who came after him, and his legacy continues to inspire new generations of artists to this day.”

Paisley Park, where Prince lived and recorded, now draws visitors from around the world.

Paisley Park is also where Prince died on April 21, 2016, of an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 57. The 65,000-square-foot complex in Chanhassen is now a museum

run by his estate as well as an event venue and recoding studio.

Sharon Nelson told reporters her brother’s music will live forever, and that his spirit “sneaks up on me sometimes.” And she urged fans to take the tour and see his 3,000 shoes on display.

The idea to name the highway after Prince came three years ago from Mark Webster, a longtime friend of the star who works security at Paisley Park. He was among the fans who gathered at the Minnesota Capitol to celebrate the vote. He said they’ll find a date that works for fans soon for the signs to go up.

Prince’s birthday was June 7, but he didn’t celebrate birthdays because he was a Jehovah’s Witness. The singer, songwriter, arranger and

instrumentalist broke through in the late 1970s and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. He created hits including “Little Red Corvette,” “Let’s Go Crazy” and “When Doves Cry,” and sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

Several years ago, Prince’s 1984 “Purple Rain” was added by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry. After a six-year legal battle that consumed tens of millions of dollars, the Internal Revenue Service and the estate administrator put the value of his estate at $156.4 million. Since Prince died without a will, his six surviving siblings at the time of his death were designated as his heirs. The three youngest eventually sold most of their interests to the music company Primary Wave.

Prosecutors charge mosque arson suspect

By Trisha Ahmed Associated Press/Report for America

A man suspected of setting fires to Minneapolis mosques was indicted Thursday on federal charges of arson and damage to religious property while investigators look into a series of crimes targeting Muslims and Somali Americans.

Jackie Rahm Little, 36, was indicted by a federal grand jury for an April 24 fire at the Masjid Al-Rahma mosque. Authorities are also investigating him as a suspect in a fire that damaged the Masjid Omar Islamic Center inside a Somali shopping mall on April 23, as well as in the January vandalism of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Minneapolis office and of a Somali American police officer’s vehicle, among other crimes, U.S. Attorney Andy Luger said at a news conference.

“The freedom to worship is sacrosanct. We will respond to any attack on any house of worship with urgency and determination,”

said Luger, who noted that the charge accusing Little of damaging religious property is a civil rights violation.

Little pleaded not guilty at a brief hearing Thursday, where his attorney said he may seek an evaluation

of his client’s mental competency. Hennepin County court records show that Little had been committed as mentally ill three times in 2021 and 2022 but had been free recently on a provisional discharge that was formally revoked last Friday.

Little was arrested Saturday on a state charge of second-degree arson in the April 24 fire, which had prompted the evacuation of about 40 children from a day care at the

A Minnesota man who immigrated to the U.S. and built a successful food business was named Monday as the National Small Business Person of the Year.

The honor for Abdirahman Kahin, CEO and owner of Afro Deli & Grill in St. Paul, was announced at an awards ceremony in Washington D.C. marking National Small Business Week.

Kahin, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1996, opened Afro Deli & Grill in 2014 as a fast-casual restaurant serving healthy, fresh African fusion cuisine.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the restaurant to close and change to grab-andgo products, according to a news release from the Small Business Administration.

Afro Deli & Grill now supplies eight stores in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport and 15 other stores across the Twin Cities area, and has expanded to four locations. The business also partners with Meals on Wheels and Minnesota Central Kitchen to provide home-delivered meals to vulnerable community

members.

Juanny Romero, of Mothership Coffee, which operates multiple cafes and a coffee roasting business in Nevada, was named national runner-up for the award.

Douglas Emhoff, husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, and Small Business Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman will travel to Minneapolis on Wednesday to have a roundtable discussion with small business community leaders and present the award to Kahin.

Minnesota deli owner named Small Business Person of the Year House passes $1 billion investment in housing, including increased metro sales tax

By Tessa Pieper Session Daily

From homeless people to renters to wannabe-homeowners, help is likely forthcoming.

The conference committee agreement on the omnibus housing finance bill passed the House 70-61 Monday.

Sponsored by Rep. Michael Howard (DFLRichfield) and Sen. Lindsey Port (DFL-Burnsville), HF2335 would appropriate $1.07 billion during the 2024-25 biennium for needs across the housing continuum, $950 million in mostly onetime new cash.

“This bill makes historic investments all across the housing continuum, all across the state,” Howard said. “… It’s excellent to see it at the 1-yard line here.”

While the Senate agreed to a seven-county metropolitan sales tax increase, the House accepted lower spending on other priorities.

Raising tax for metro shoppers by 0.25%, the

increased sales tax would split its estimated $353.2 million in revenue as follows: 50% to metropolitan county aid; 25% to metropolitan city aid; and 25% to statewide rent assistance. A new firstgeneration homebuyer down payment assistance program, originally a $150 million appropriation in the House is now $50 million. The other $100 million would create a community-based firstgeneration homebuyers assistance program. Not in either body’s omnibus bill, assistance would be limited to 10% of the home purchase price, up to $32,000, and it could be used on closing costs, down payment, or principal reduction.

We know that homeownership is a way to build wealth and want to give that opportunity to as many people as possible, said Rep. Esther Agbaje (DFLMpls). “I do hope that this is a signal to future legislators in Minnesota that this is the

photo/Steve Karnowski

Sharon Nelson, oldest sister of the late pop superstar Prince, speaks to reporters at the Minnesota Capitol, Thursday, May 4, 2023, in St. Paul, Minn. She appeared after the Minnesota Senate voted to honor him by designating the highway that runs past his Paisley Park museum and studios in Chanhassen, Minn., as the Prince Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway.

photo/Blue Earth County Sherrif Jackie Rahm Little, 36, was indicted by a federal grand jury for an April 24 fire at the Masjid AlRahma mosque. According to the affidavit, surveillance video captured Little entering the Masjid Al-Rahma mosque minutes before the fire.

Abdirahman Kahin, CEO and owner of Afro Deli & Grill in St. Paul,

Somalia scores first goal ever, secures first point ever at U-17 Sports

By: Tamir Hussein

See our previous tournaments articles here: https://www. insightnews.com/sports/ somalia-in-the-u17-afcon-hopein-the-horn-of-african-football/ article_50fac4f4-e7dd-11ed897d-cffecd8bc97f.html

Congo possess a respectable trophy cabinet consisting of 1972 AFCON in their historic run, and a U-20 AFCON in 2007 while hosting the tournament, winning a trophy on their home ground. Congo won a 3rd place medal in the U-17 AFCON in 2011.

Congo is not recognized by many in the pantheon of African football but this team really has a future

Congo’s roster has numerous players who play in French youth academies, France being one the hot spots in European football development. So, in terms of advanced development, Congo had the upper hand in it recent matchup vs Somalia.

The Congo lineup along with their academies can be found here on transfermarkt https://www. transfermarkt.com/republikkongo-u17/startseite/ verein/31519

Somalia’s lineup found here on transfermarkt https://www. transfermarkt.us/somalia-u17/ startseite/verein/105350

The Congo Red Devils:

Watching the Congo play is a really tricky thing to analyze. Congo doesn’t seem to have a patent style of play.

Manager Fabrizio Cesana allows the kids to play however they wish to play so long as they have compactness in the back and play according to their position. Congo relied on

toughness and aerial attacks as well as overloading the midfield and trying to overwhelm the Somalia Ocean Stars. The most fascinating aspect of Congo’s play is the back line and how they shift. They based a lot of their game on width and with that the fullbacks were constantly booming forward. On top of that their centerbacks would play on the ball relatively high up mainly with Brad-Hamilton Mantsounga Makouangou their left center back from OGC Nice. He’s only 15 years old.

Like I said before, being able to play wide was pivotal to Congo. Ayel Wumba Niati Nzouzi was immense, dribbling through the deep Somali defense and finding the gaps and exploiting them.

Beside the goal he scored, he was a constant threat the entire game and getting the ball to him wasn’t complicated. Congo sent the ball to their play makers, letting them play their ball.

There is a reason why they were able to be so free and without any tactical reliance but I will get to that on the Ocean Stars section of the breakdown. But on to the next segment of the formation and movement.

The Formations of Congo: Congo entered the game in a 4-3-3 but very rarely did they maintain this shape because the game wasn’t really played in the midfield. Occasionally they come in narrow in the midfield with a few passes strung together but for the ambition to play wide and push forward. That’s how Congo’s front-footed approach got them 26 shots.

The narrowness would come during aerial moments and to attempt to overwhelm the middle and when the ball was won they would try to create

triangles with the wide players and play. When in a goal kick position and playing out the back, Congo often skipped any forms of proper or traditional build up and would focus on the fullback and gave #4 Makouangou the keys to play in the back.

The Ocean Stars: In the last report I talked about Somalia’s tactics, not accounting for the personnel and how it didn’t cater to their strengths. Coach Nuur Amin saw and changed immediately. With an addition in the middle field being Idriis Aden, Somalia found a creative outlet in the middle and decided to have him sit deep and handle a lot of the technical responsibilities (turning and controlling deep).

In the breakdown prior, I advised Somalia to base their game around the counter and to not be concerned with controlling the game and keeping possession for sake of keeping possession. Having a low block would not only help Somalia keep Abdkadir Ali but it’s also their best chance at creating scoring opportunities.

In the Algeria game they played a 4-4-2 and channeled the possession centrally. In this game they took Dini Mohamed Dahir and dragged him to the RM/ RW spot and had Aden in the center with Bahur taking the ball from each counter. They still transitioned into a 5-3-2 out of possession but continued to lack compactness. Although Somalia didn’t traditionally dominate this game their counters provided a real threat and had you on the edge of your seat and had you jumping out of it because Somalia scored their first goal in an international competition in

history. In technical ability, these players have been improving. And the fluidity of Somalia has been improving. You can tell that their next game will be their best. Idriis Aden was superb and easily the best player on the pitch. If Somalia continues in this pattern of patching their mistakes each game they can definitely get into the knockout round.

Defensively, Somalia repeated numerous mistakes from the last game, lacking a lot of compactness in their backline and continuing to leave gaps. The philosophy behind low blocks is you allow a high volume of low quality chances. Somalia allows far too many good chances and rely on the heroics of the keeper and the occasional one vs one tackle. Of those many chances most of them had a high percentage to be scored in my opinion. Somalia took their chances on the poor striking of Congo but that doesn’t fly with a championship caliber side like Senegal. The gaps within the defense and midfield allowed Congo to go in transition and the wide players to cut in and around their defensive shape and still create quality opportunities. On Somalia’s bench there’s

a center back named Hassan

Barre who plays in the Leicester City Academy. The 15 years old is technically and positionally sound, given that he plays for a top academy in England. I believe he will provide stability in the back line.

The goal that Somalia conceded like every goal this tournament is more on Somalia than on the opponent. The ball was sent through in the 50th minute and both defenders were oblivious to the threat of Nzouzi. Both defenders thinking the other would mark the presser, jogged and allowed him to get a shot. Towards the end of the run they did provide some form of contention. Abdikadir just unfortunately fell asleep on his near post, closing in but not thinking it would go there and unfortunately it did. Somalia needs sharpness, and alertness in order to keep their defense impenetrable.

History Made:

The importance of this game is huge, Somalia gaining their first point and first goal is a moment that will only be built on for future generations. The fact that it is our youth team scoring and making us proud to me is a

symbol that the children and possessors of the future are the ones who will bring pride to our nation and our names. The brotherhood shown by Dini Mohamed after he scored pointing at star boy Abdihafid after not qualify adds to the feel and symbolism of the entire moment. In the biggest moment of our federation’s history he dedicates his goal to the people who got him there, a story known well by diaspora. For me it was so amazing to see my people just be happy about one thing and love each other because they are all Somali.

Favorite players:

MID - Idriis

Abdiwahab Aden - IFK

Uddevalla (Somalia)

MID - Yasiin

Abdirahman Abdelqadir - Lyn

1896 (Somalia)

ATT - Dini Mohamed

Dahir - Banadir SC (Somalia)

ATT - Ayel Wumba

Niati Nzouzi - AC Capaco

Beni (Congo)

DEF - BradHamilton Mantsounga

Makouangou - OGC Nice (Congo)

Retired NFL All-Pro FINALLY makes fan’s dream come true

Canadian Football League (CFL). In the NFL, the nine [9] time Pro Bowl selection also played for the Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks, and Kansas City Chiefs before his retirement at the conclusion of the 2000 season.

By Leahjean M. Denley, MBA

Former MN Vikings QB Warren Moon, one of the greatest undrafted players in NFL history, recently hosted the “Brothers in Arms” golf tournament, a charity fundraising event in Houston, TX to provide scholarships.

Moon spent the majority of his career with the Houston Oilers of the National Football League (NFL) and the Edmonton Eskimos of the

Moon’s legacy extends beyond his success on the football field. In 2006, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, becoming the first African American quarterback honored, and both the first Canadian Football Hall of Fame player and first undrafted quarterback. He was elected in his first year of eligibility.

Moon’s impact on the game of football is immeasurable, but he also made a difference in the life of

a Houston fan, Alton Thomas.

As an 8-year-old child, Thomas met Moon at a sports convention and tried in vain to get Moon to acknowledge him for an autograph. When he didn’t succeed in making contact, Thomas was heartbroken at not getting to meet his hero. Thomas

would grow up, admittingly, as an angry and bitter fan who resented Moon afterward. The story was shared by Thomas in several sports social media groups and grew traction. Thomas later mentioned that he was struggling with quitting

smoking. Richard Walker, an avid national sportswriter and media Sports Director, saw his post and reached out to him.

Walker challenged Thomas to quit smoking for 6 months. If Thomas was successful, Walker would personally ask Moon for an autograph on his behalf and tell Moon the story.

Since Thomas, to date, had successfully quit smoking for over 10 months, Walker held up his end of the bargain at the recent charity event in Houston by telling Moon the story and asking for this autograph. When he heard about Alton’s story, Moon complied and then expressed to Thomas, “You made the best decision of your life, one that will add many years to your life. It will be a pleasure

to sign this autograph. Sorry you didn’t get the autograph then, but you got it now!”

The story of a heartbroken football fan ends in success. Thomas later captures the autograph of his hero as motivation to stop smoking. Moon’s impact on the game of football and the lives of his fans continues to be felt to this day.

Contributing Writer and Sports Director, Richard Walker, is a member of the US Basketball Writers Association, the Football Writers Association of America, and can be heard weelky on KCAA 102.3FM in Southern California. Check out www.btpsportsonkcaa.com for more information regarding show times.

Insight News Honors the Legacy of Frank Gilliam, Sr.

By Leahjean M. Denley, MBA

Sports Editor

Legendary and influential NFL scout for the Minnesota Vikings, Frank Gilliam, Sr., passed away on Sunday, April 2, 2023 at the age of 89. When Jim Finks, the Viking’s general manager at the time, recruited Gilliam in 1970, he was one of the first Black scouts in the entire NFL.

Gilliam is a remarkably familiar name in football circles. All-Pro NFL nephew, Joe Gilliam Jr., was one of the first Black starting quarterbacks for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and brother, Joe Gilliam Sr,. was a highly respected collegiate assistant head football coach, defensive coordinator, and head coach retiring from Tennessee State University [TSU]and inducted into the TSU Sports Hall of Fame.

Born in Steubenville, Ohio, Gilliam was a member of

the famous “Steubenville Trio,” together with Calvin Jones and Eddie Vincent. The trio became star Hawkeye football players at the University of Iowa in the early 1950s.

For three seasons, from 1957 to 1959, Gilliam played for the Canadian Football League’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Gilliam spent a few years teaching after retiring from professional football before returning to Iowa City to work as head coach Jerry Burns’ assistant coach at the University of Iowa from 1966 to 1970.

During the 100th anniversary celebration of Iowa football in 1989, Iowa fans chose an “All-Time University of Iowa Football Team,” and Frank Gilliam was chosen as a starting end.

When Frank Gilliam was signed by the Vikings, another Hawkeye teammate, Jerry Reichow, was the team’s director of player personnel at the time. Upon hearing of Gilliam’s passing, Reichow said to Vikings.com, “Frank and I

were freshmen together at Iowa and became close friends — friends forever really.” Reichow added, “Frank went on to play in Canada and was back coaching at Iowa when I started scouting with the Vikings. I was down there once and asked if he would be interested in scouting with the Vikings, and he became the first guy I hired, and we worked together for over 30 years. Frank was a great guy and a really good scout. He had grown up in football and really studied it. I don’t think we ever had an argument in all those years working together because I think we complemented each other with how we did things. From the start, we hit it off really well. We never did get over the hump, but we got the Vikings real close. I’ll miss him.”

The Gilliam-Reichow Personnel Fellowship was established by the Vikings in 2022 in remembrance of Gilliam and Reichow. The fellowship’s goal is to educate participants on “player evaluation, scouting, film study, data analysis, and

intangible factors” that go into creating an NFL roster. Jim Marshall, a defensive end who played for the Vikings for 19 seasons, commended Gilliam in an interview that was posted on the team website. “I always had a great deal of respect for Frank and not because we’re the same race. It was because he had a lot of skill, a lot of talent.” Marshall added, “He had the ability to look out and pick players who had a significance that they could offer to the team. I know as a group we were very proud of him because we could see he did his job and did it well.” Scott Studwell, a retired Vikings player and scout, was one another who praised Gilliam’s legacy stating, “Not only was he a great leader with unmatched skills and a keen eye for what it takes to play and be successful in the NFL, he was also a great mentor and friend. The Vikings family lost an iconic piece of their past successes, and I am forever grateful to have Frank in my life- RIP my friend.

I love you and will miss you for the rest of my days.” Gilliam not only made an impact on the football field for the Vikings, but the Twin Cities also felt his impact through the Gilliam family’s social community engagement and philanthropic activities.

Frank Gilliam, Sr.’s legacy will live on through the surviving immediate family members, a host of nieces and nephews blessed with the family genius and athletic gene, as well as through all whose life he touched.

Sports Editor

Ben Donahue

Warren Moon Houston Oilers, Circa 1985.

Marie Blackwell Crawley

Family Photo: Left to right – Michael Blackwell [Great Nephew], Frank Gilliam, Sr., Marie Blackwell Crawley [Niece] and Robert Blackwell [Nephew].

Janely Rodriguez joins CTC Acting Company

Janely Rodriguez will join CTC’s Acting Company, beginning with the 2023-2024 Season.

Rodriguez has enjoyed roles in Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!; Annie; Cinderella; Spamtown; and Diary of a Wimpy Kid the Musical at Children’s Theatre Company. She has also performed in productions with other organizations in the Twin Cities, including Hello, Dolly!at Theater Latté Da and Iphigenia at Aulis presented at Ten Thousand Things Theatre. Other credits include Man of La Mancha at Asolo Repertory Theatre; Nick’s Famingo Grill and The Ghosts of Lote Bravo at Alliance Theatre); and Thumbelita and Schoolhouse Rock Live! At Birmingham Children’s Theatre). Rodregues holds a B.F.A. from Brenau University. “We are thrilled to welcome Janely Rodriguez into our Children’s Theatre Company Acting Company,” said Artistic Director Peter C. Brosius. “Janely started at CTC as a performing apprentice and has since been cast again and

again. She brings a huge talent, an incredible energy and a giant heart to all of her work and we are delighted to welcome her.”

“As one of the very few theatres in the entire country to support and maintain a professional acting company, we know well the gift of having an ensemble who work so brilliantly together, trust each other, challenge themselves and our actors, mentor and guide our apprentices and our student actors and bring powerful and delight theatre to our audiences year after year. The history of so much of the greatest theatre in our history from Shakespeare’s Globe to the present day is the history of committed and dedicated ensembles. We are proud to have an Acting Company that brings so much to our audiences and our community,” Brosius said.

CTC’s 2023-2024

Season of seven productions features two world premieres, Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress and Babble Lab, the international sensation Cookin’ from South Korea, the only Minnesota stop of the national tour of The Carp Who

According to the affidavit, surveillance video captured Little entering the Masjid Al-Rahma mosque minutes before the fire.

Would Not Quit and Other

Animal Stories from Honolulu Theatre for Youth, the return of last year’s sold out production of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, the 3-time Tony Award®-nominated musical A Year With Frog and Toad, and the wildly inventive Alice in Wonderland

Full season subscriptions and renewals for the 2023-2024 Season are now on sale and can be purchased online at https:// childrenstheatre.org/shows-andtickets/subscribe-and-save/ or by calling the ticket office at 612.874.0400.

Currently, the World Premiere of An American Tail the Musical is playing at CTC’s UnitedHealth Group Stage thru June 18, 2023.

Tickets may be purchase online at childrenstheatre.org/ AmericanTail or by calling the ticket office at 612.874.0400.

Ticket prices start at $15.

Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) is the nation’s largest and most acclaimed theatre for young people and serves a multigenerational audience. It creates theatre

Relations, said in an interview with The Associated Press that he was at Masjid Al-Rahma at the time, discussing the previous day’s fire with an imam.

experiences that educate, challenge, and inspire for more than 250,000 people annually.

CTC is the only theatre focused on young audiences to win the coveted Tony Award® for regional theatre and is the only theatre in Minnesota to receive three Tony® nominations (for its production of A Year with Frog and Toad). CTC is committed to creating worldclass productions at the highest level and to developing new works, more than 200 to date, dramatically changing the canon of work for young audiences.

CTC’s engagement and learning programs annually serve more than 93,000 young people and their communities through Theatre Arts Training, student matinees, Neighborhood Bridges, and early childhood arts education programs. ACT One is CTC’s comprehensive platform for access, diversity, and inclusion in our audiences, programs, staff, and board that strives to ensure the theatre is a home for all people, all families, reflective of our community. childrenstheatre.org

or try to attack other mosques.

Masjid Al-Rahma mosque.

Little’s mother told investigators she recognized her son in video surveillance photos from the arsons and vandalism, according to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint. She also said she strongly suspected that Little was involved in several unreported arsons.

House Bill

From 3

baseline. This is where we

Investigators later found cardboard, metal canisters designed to hold olive oil, and an odor consistent with gasoline in the third-floor hallway of the mosque, the affidavit said. The hallway and stairwells on both ends were damaged.

Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic

should always be starting from, and we should go higher.”

The “Bring It Home” rental assistance program would receive $46 million, less than half of what the House initially sought and roughly a third of

“We were literally talking about the other incident” when someone told them the mosque they were in was on fire, Hussein said. “I could not believe it. Then I went up there and saw the smoke and fire.”

The affidavit alleges that a day earlier, Little lit a cardboard box on fire in a bathroom of the Masjid Omar Islamic Center. An employee

the Senate’s original proposal. In the agreement, but less than the House sought are:

 $90 million to establish a community stabilization program to preserve naturally occurring affordable housing through

interrupted Little and chased him out of the building. Little’s mother also told law enforcement officials that her son “extensively harassed a Muslim female,” including by sending her a photo of the Quran in a toilet, according to the affidavit. State Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, of Minneapolis, a Muslim and Somali American, said in an interview with the AP that people in the community have been frightened that the person who lit the fires would come back

acquisition or rehabilitation, a $60 million drop;

 $65.54 million for homelessness prevention, a $30 million decrease;  $40 million for homeownership investment grants, half of what was sought;

 $39 million for the

“It’s alarming.

It’s scary for the community,” she said. She is pursuing legislation to expand data collection on hate crimes that she hopes will address the issue. Instead of leaving it solely to law enforcement to report data on bias crimes, the legislation would direct the state Department of Human Rights to also collect data from community organizations, school districts and individuals who might not report such incidents to law

Greater Minnesota workforce housing development, $5 million below the House offer; and

 $10 million for manufactured home lending grants. The House sought $25 million.

The Senate agreed to allocate $50 million to establish a stable housing organization relief fund — double the original House-only provision — that would go to nonprofits experiencing significant detrimental financial impact due to loss of rental income, increased expenses, etc.

Other major financial stipulations include:

 $200 million in new, one-time funding for the housing infrastructure program;

 $120.85 million — $95 million in new money —

enforcement. The provision is part of a broad public safety budget proposal being considered by the Legislature.

Trisha Ahmed is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Trisha Ahmed on Twitter: @ TrishaAhmed15

for local housing needs, namely the economic development and housing challenge program; and

 $20.5 million in new money to expand a workforce homeownership program. The two bodies had already agreed on $74.26 million for housing infrastructure bonds debt service.

Rep. Brian Johnson (R-Cambridge) is “disappointed” in the agreement, particularly because of what he believes is inadequate funding for workforce housing and lack of oversight for nonprofits. “This isn’t free money. This is tax dollars that was overpaid by the citizens of Minnesota to the point of $17.5 billion.”

CTC

Janely Rodriguez

My Girl Gigi

following the birth of her little brother “Picklehead.” Passed around from one relative to another, she and Picklehead finally have a forever home with Granny.

MY GIRL GIGI

By Thomas Davison

Not every child grows up in a “traditional” nuclear family like I, a Baby Boomer, read about in the Further Adventures of Dick and Jane children’s books of the 1950s.

In the 21st century, we have blended families, extended families, modern families, single mothers, single fathers, etc. That being said, I present to you Thomas Davison’s children’s book My Girl Gigi.

12-year-old Gigi had experienced a nomadic life since the death of her parents; her father during active duty in the military and her mother from postnatal complications

Gigi excels at DoubleDutch jump roping. It is her passion, and her team is a semifinalist for the upcoming state championship. As it happens, Granny has some plans of her own—to take Gigi and Picklehead to Disney World, something she has saved for and planned for a long time. The downside? The trip takes place at the same time of the DoubleDutch competition.

What is Gigi to do?

How will this work out?

Davison’s story is heartwarming, with the powerful theme of “Family

First.” I remember growing up as a child here in south Minneapolis, seeing the girls on my elementary school playground playing DoubleDutch jump roping. Davison doesn’t diminish the losses Gigi has had in her life, but

her present and future are not defined by them. Her ultimate decisions show where her true priorities are, and they are made out of love. The ending was a pleasant revelation, underscoring the power of faith that everything would work out as it was meant to. As African Americans, there can never be enough children’s books by us and for us to encourage our children not only to read, but to enjoy it. Davison’s story gives us yet another lesson to last a lifetime, and Neil McKnight’s illustrations make it vivid and fun. As one who is taking care of my 93-year-old mother, “Family First” resonates powerfully with me, and I thank him for that. My Girl Gigi is available through Ultimate Joy Publications.

Thank you, Thomas, for a story that will touch hearts everywhere. May your gifts continue to make room for you. At the end of the day, it’s all about the love.