N RTH NEWS March 28, 2019 Serving the neighborhoods of North Minneapolis www.mynorthnews.org A seat at the table Jen White reflects on her path from community waitress to senior policy aide for Mayor Jacob Frey. Page 21 INSIDE Polars take second in state 2A basketball tournament Page 4 Micro- entrepreneurs have major impact Page 6 Community development update Page 10 2 NORTH NEWS March 28, 2019 NEWS stream Minnesota newsrooms are overwhelm- were: mitted to those things too; for example, I'm ac- ingly white and most professionals have never 1. Cover people of color and indigenous (POCI) tively working to work myself out of my job). We Letter from received racial bias and other relevant training. communities beyond stories about race. need to think intersectionally about the topics we And while many individual reporters believe they 2. Apply journalistic values and ethics by con- cover. We need to create all of our narratives as the Editor are capable of competently covering communi- sidering what "fair and accurate reporting" collaboratively as possible. We need to resist the ties that are not their own, few believe their in- means within different community contexts. urge to sacrifice depth in service of breaking sto- Welcome to the April edition of North News. dustry is doing so well as a whole. 3. Diversify access. ries. I'm inspired by the words of Mark Trahant, Our team has appreciated the warmer tempera- As a multicultural, multiethnic, multiracial com- 4. Build trust through relationships. editor of Indian Country Today, who said, during tures and brighter nights as we've been report- munity that has experienced generations of 5. Turn critics into sources. a panel at the conference, "We're a small orga- ing, teaching, and being out and about in the structural marginalization, North Minneapolis 6. Embrace a role in opening up conversations nization; we're always looking for ways to defy community — and beyond — this month. has felt the consequences of white supremacy about identity. gravity." North News will continue doing our best On March 19 and 20, our staff was at Hamline in media. Phrases like "gang-related" and words 7. Get past preconceived notions. to defy what we've been taught to believe about University, putting on the Truth and Transforma- like "minority" are used to tell coded stories about 8. Be informed. the gravity of journalism. tion: Changing Racial Narratives in Media con- who deserves to live and prosper in our cities. 9. Practice (and publish) self-reflective assess- Huge thanks to conference attendees, partic- ference. We did so in partnership with six other In order to deeply understand and document ments. ularly the people of color, queer folks, and other media and community organizations: KMOJ, these experiences for conference learning, our 10. Be intentional about hiring. marginalized community members who educat- KRSM, Hamline, Minnesota Public Radio, The cross-sector team hosted over 15 listening ses- 11. Allow journalists to proudly identify their ed and emotionally labored for those two days in Minnesota Humanities Center, and ThreeSixty sions with mainstream and community media race and ethnicity. service of beginning to create a media industry Journalism. professionals and populations served (often 12. Follow through and follow up on reporting. that better serves all of us. harmfully) by them across the state prior to the As I've helped pull together this edition of our As part of the preparatory efforts for the con- Until next time, ference, a Wilder Research study was commis- conference. paper in the immediate aftermath of the confer- Kenzie O'Keefe sioned that (unsurprisingly) showed that Min- What we heard was again,unsurprising, but ence, I'm feeling an even greater urgency to do Editor/Publisher, North News nesota media professionals "overwhelmingly also extremely helpful in beginning to discuss this work, and do it NOW. Changing the narrative [email protected] believe racial bias in their ranks leads to inaccu- ways of tracking towards change. A few of the will require more than just changing the words 651-245-2647 rate news stories and understanding that bias is recommendations we heard from community we use or hiring a few people from groups un- necessary to be effective in their jobs." Yet, main- members and addressed during the conference derrepresented in the industry (but we are com- NORTH NEWS 2019 Issue #3 Circulation: 10,000 in North Minneapolis. INSIDE OUR "O" Delivered free on a monthly basis to public places & homes in Near North & Camden. 125 West Broadway Ave. Suite 130, Minneapolis, MN 55411 Phone: 651-245-2647 Website: www.mynorthnews.org Kenzie O’Keefe Editor/Publisher/Advertising Cirien Saadeh Staff Reporter Daija Triplett David Pierini Intern Freelance Photographer Emily Ronning Anya Johanna DeNiro Graphic Designer Copy Editor • Habitat Home Open House North News is produced in part by our journalism Saturday, June 1, 2019 class at North High School, taught in partnership with 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. • Resident Block Projects Sam Wilbur. Additional support is provided by The • Free Food & Entertainment Jay & Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Minnesota. Russell Avenue N, Minneapolis • Health & Housing Resources BETWEEN th & th AVENUES Story ideas and letters to the editor under 300 words are always welcome. Unsigned letters will not be run. Interested vendors may contact [email protected] or call 612-886-4539 If you want North News on your doorstep NOW, A married couple in Victory plan to buy a vacant subscribe for $30 per year. building on 44th and Thomas Ave. N and turn it Email [email protected] into a multipurpose chocolate studio. or call 651-245-2647 to sign up. Read the full story on Page 8 Next issue delivered: April 25, 2019 Learn more about volunteering at North News is an enterprise of tchabitat.org/nr NEWS NORTH NEWS 3 North Minneapolis at a glance North Commons renovated New pool needs swim gear Families celebrated in Northside Achievement Zone ceremony North Commons Recreation Center is receiv- Students at Franklin Middle School need your ing a completely renovated gym with mod- new or gently used swim gear: one-piece ern technology and new teen room due to its swimsuits, trunks, googles, and swim caps. selection as the recipient of the 2019 NCAA Gear is needed for youth, ages 11-15, men’s Final Four Minneapolis Local Organizing small, boys’ 14-18, women’s size up to size 8, Committee Legacy Project. Tri-Construction, and girl’s sizes 16-18. These tax-deductible a minority-owned, North Minneapolis-based donations can be dropped off at the Franklin community construction and development Middle School main office. firm, donated its time and construction to help complete it. The project will be unveiled Northside doctor named family on April 2. medicine educator of the year University of Minnesota’s Broadway Fami- Beloved coach to receive award ly Medicine Clinic's Andrea Westby, MD, has during NCAA tournament been awarded the 2019 Family Medicine Ed- ucator of the year award by the The Minne- Larry McKenzie, the boys' basketball coach at sota Academy of Family Physicians (MAFP). North High School, is the recipient of the 2019 Westby is a family physician and assistant Guardians of the Game Pillar Award for Edu- professor at the University of Minnesota Med- cation from the National Association of Bas- ical School. Westby has also done work in the The Northside Achievement Zone held a ceremony for graduates of its Family Academy at Sanctuary ketball Coaches (NABC). He will receive the Church on Saturday, March 16. NAZ builds in a culture of achievement for North Minneapolis families and North Minneapolis community, being a advo- award on Sunday, April 7, at the AT&T NABC offers “cradle-to-college” support to develop kids into scholars and future leaders. Here, Liberty Perkins and cate for health equity. Westby was given her Guardians of the Game Awards Show, which other scholars perform an African dance for families and friends in attendance. Photo by David Pierini award on March 28. By Daija Triplett is held during the annual NABC Convention in conjunction with the NCAA Division I Men’s Final Four. The Guardians of the Game Pillar Visit your neighbors! Awards are presented annually for advocacy, …and a selection of education, leadership and service. McKenzie, 8 the first African-American coach to be induct- homes for sale at seven ed into the Minnesota Boys Basketball Hall of Fame, is the first coach to win four consecutive Northside places on the state titles in the 100-year history of Minne- sota boys’ basketball with his team at Patrick Henry High School. Most recently, he is the first coach to lead two schools to multiple state ti- tles. His North Polars won two straight state championships in 2016 and 2017. Saturday, April 27, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Northern Metals settlement services available to communtiy Sunday, April 28, 1 to 5 p.m. As part of the Northern Metals Settlement, the Minneapolis Health Department has an- Seven in Northeast also. Free Author Discussion with TOP CHEF Finalist nounced that residents of Bottineau, Sheri- Four dozen homes dan, McKinley, or Hawthorne are eligible for a number of services, if they meet the appro- throughout the Twin Cities The Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival priate requirements. More details on services offering ideas for presents and requirements, related to lead paint can be 14 Films @ the Capri Kwame remodeling, preservation, directed to Lisa Smestad at 612-673-3733 or April 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19 [email protected], and Eliza and lifestyles, details at Full Capri Schedule: thecapritheater.org Onwuachi Schell, related to asthma, at 612-685-8512 or www.MSPHomeTour.com Full MSPIFF Schedule: mspfilm.org [email protected].