Podcasts about sahan journal

About 4,500 people are released from Minnesota prisons each year. Many of them have spent years, if not decades, behind bars, separated from friends, family and community.What happens when they finally return? How do they rebuild their lives during this complex and often precarious transition?That was the topic at a collaborative Sahan Community Live and North Star Journey Live event recorded on April 24 at the St. Paul Neighborhood Network. Co-hosted by MPR News senior editor Brandt Williams and Sahan Journal digital producer Alberto Villafan, formerly incarcerated Minnesotans shared first-hand stories of what makes reentry such a difficult process. Community leaders and reentry advocates also shared what helps and what holds back people as they exit incarceration and reintegrate into their community.Guests: Antonio Williams is the founder and executive director of T.O.N.E. U.P., a grassroots organization dedicated to empowering formerly incarcerated individuals.Rea Smith is the Women's Services Project Coordinator of the Behavioral Health Division at the Minnesota Department of Human Services.Erick Washington is the co-founder of the Kingsmen Project.James Becker is the assistant federal defender and federal defender representative in the District of Minnesota Reentry Court program.David Riley is an addictions counselor at RS Eden, a Minneapolis-based organization that offers treatment for drug addictions, housing assistance and reentry support.

About 4,500 people are released from Minnesota prisons each year. Many of them have spent years, if not decades, behind bars, separated from friends, family and community.What happens when they finally return? How do they rebuild their lives during this complex and often precarious transition?That was the topic at a collaborative Sahan Community Live and North Star Journey Live event recorded on April 24 at the St. Paul Neighborhood Network. Co-hosted by MPR News senior editor Brandt Williams and Sahan Journal digital producer Alberto Villafan, formerly incarcerated Minnesotans shared first-hand stories of what makes reentry such a difficult process. Community leaders and reentry advocates also shared what helps and what holds back people as they exit incarceration and reintegrate into their community.Guests: Antonio Williams is the founder and executive director of T.O.N.E. U.P., a grassroots organization dedicated to empowering formerly incarcerated individuals.Rea Smith is the Women's Services Project Coordinator of the Behavioral Health Division at the Minnesota Department of Human Services.Erick Washington is the co-founder of the Kingsmen Project.James Becker is the assistant federal defender and federal defender representative in the District of Minnesota Reentry Court program.David Riley is an addictions counselor at RS Eden, a Minneapolis-based organization that offers treatment for drug addictions, housing assistance and reentry support.

The Minnesota Senate has passed a bill providing some benefits to Hmong and Lao veterans who helped the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. In the 1960s and early ‘70s, the CIA recruited tens of thousands of Hmong people in an operation known as the Secret War. Many of those recruits lost their lives. Others fled their home country when the war ended 50 years ago, eventually moving to states like Minnesota.  The bill still needs to be passed by the Minnesota House to become law. DFL Sen. Susan Pha, DFL-Brooklyn Park, is a co-author of the bill and joined Minnesota Now to talk about the impact it may have.  This story was first reported by Sahan Journal.

Five counties in Minnesota recently made agreements with ICE to help with immigration enforcement. What that means is different depending on the county, and its separate from previous agreements to hold ICE detainees in three local jails around the state. Sahan Journal reporter Andrew Hazzard is following this story. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to explain.This conversation was produced by Alanna Elder.

A Minneapolis charter school is under new leadership after multiple lawsuits called into question the school's practices. According to reporting from Sahan Journal, Harvest Best Academy's school board fired their CEO and founder Eric Mahmoud after a lawsuit claimed he chose to protect a prominent teacher accused of sexual abuse. Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach joins MPR News host Nina Moini with the latest.

A woman has filed a class-action lawsuit against a factory that produces metal parts near her home. The suit says the Northern Iron metal foundry is releasing pollution that is harming health and property values in the area. The company that owns the foundry is also in a legal battle with the state of Minnesota over its permit. Reporter Andrew Hazzard has been following the situation for Sahan Journal and joined Minnesota Now to talk about what he's learned.

How did your family end up in Minnesota? Do you know the story of your ancestors' journey? In the 1800s, immigrants to our region primarily came from Scandinavia and Germany. More recently, major populations have come to Minnesota from Laos, Somalia, Mexico, Liberia, Ecuador, Afghanistan and India. In fact, almost 500,000 people who live in Minnesota today were born outside of the United States. But behind the where is also a why. And over time, those narratives can get lost if not recorded. North Star Journey Live: Immigrant Stories That's why MPR News, together with Sahan Journal, presented a collaborative North Star Journey Live and Sahan Community Live conversation at St. Paul Neighborhood Network on Feb. 20. Hosted by immigration reporters Sarah Thamer and Katelyn Vue, this in-person event focused on how immigrant communities in Minnesota preserve their histories and pass them on to new generations. Panelists shared their own arrival stories and tips for recording your own family's journey. Immigration stories Mu Performing Arts Real immigrant stories, told with puppets At Wellstone International High Students, Swedish-Americans swap immigrant stories How this Minneapolis street Grew from immigrant neighborhood to culinary hotspot You can listen to and watch more immigrant and refugee stories at the Minnesota Historical Society's Becoming Minnesotan online archive and the Immigrant History Research Center at the University of Minnesota. Panelists: Diego Guaman is the interim director of Movimiento Comunitario Minnesota and cofounder of the Aztec dance group Kalpulli Tlaloctecuhtli. Julie Vang is program manager at Green Card Voices — a nonprofit that uses storytelling to build community connections between immigrants and their neighbors.Marian Hassan is an educator and author helping to preserve Somali oral histories.Saengmany Ratsabout is an independent scholar and community advocate who studies Southeast Asian history and is helping to document the history of the Lao diaspora. He's also one of the founders of the Immigrant Stories project at the University of Minnesota's Immigration History Research Center. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

A Minneapolis charter school can be held legally responsible for hiring a gym teacher who sexually assaulted students, according to the Minnesota Supreme Court, who ruled on the case Wednesday. Adam Hjermstad was convicted in 2021 for the sexual assaults of students where he taught and coached basketball. One of the survivors and his family sued the charter school Harvest Best Academy for hiring Hjermstad. Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach joined Minnesota Now to talk about how the Supreme Court's ruling could have implications for schools across the state. Former teacher, coach in Minneapolis faces new charges of sexually assaulting childrenMinneapolis charter school may be liable for hiring teacher who sexually assaulted student, court rules

How did your family end up in Minnesota? Do you know the story of your ancestors' journey? In the 1800s, immigrants to our region primarily came from Scandinavia and Germany. More recently, major populations have come to Minnesota from Laos, Somalia, Mexico, Liberia, Ecuador, Afghanistan and India. In fact, almost 500,000 people who live in Minnesota today were born outside of the United States. But behind the where is also a why. And over time, those narratives can get lost if not recorded. North Star Journey Live: Immigrant Stories That's why MPR News, together with Sahan Journal, presented a collaborative North Star Journey Live and Sahan Community Live conversation at St. Paul Neighborhood Network on Feb. 20. Hosted by immigration reporters Sarah Thamer and Katelyn Vue, this in-person event focused on how immigrant communities in Minnesota preserve their histories and pass them on to new generations. Panelists shared their own arrival stories and tips for recording your own family's journey. Immigration stories Mu Performing Arts Real immigrant stories, told with puppets At Wellstone International High Students, Swedish-Americans swap immigrant stories How this Minneapolis street Grew from immigrant neighborhood to culinary hotspot You can listen to and watch more immigrant and refugee stories at the Minnesota Historical Society's Becoming Minnesotan online archive and the Immigrant History Research Center at the University of Minnesota. Panelists: Diego Guaman is the interim director of Movimiento Comunitario Minnesota and cofounder of the Aztec dance group Kalpulli Tlaloctecuhtli. Julie Vang is program manager at Green Card Voices — a nonprofit that uses storytelling to build community connections between immigrants and their neighbors.Marian Hassan is an educator and author helping to preserve Somali oral histories.Saengmany Ratsabout is an independent scholar and community advocate who studies Southeast Asian history and is helping to document the history of the Lao diaspora. He's also one of the founders of the Immigrant Stories project at the University of Minnesota's Immigration History Research Center. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

On this episode, we're joined by Katelyn Vue. Katelyn is a reporter for the non-profit newsroom Sahan Journal in Minnesota covering the immigration and housing beats. She's been with them for a little over 2 years. In 2024 she shared the Young Journalist of the Year award from the Minnesota branch of the Society of Professional Journalists.Katelyn is a graduate of the University of Minnesota. She's our 2nd Hmong guest to appear, joining tv news anchor Chenue Her.Katelyn is a product of Report for America, a non-profit that helps pay the salaries of journalists across the country. Applications to join the next Report for America corps of reporters are due on February 3.Katelyn talked about the importance of building trust with sources and recounted notable stories, including those on housing issues and different cultural communities. She also reflected on the challenges and rewards of her work, the impact of Report for America on her career, and the importance of maintaining mental health as a journalist.Notable articlesYou live day by day': Language, cultural stigma add to barriers for unhoused Hmonghttps://sahanjournal.com/housing/hmong-homeless-st-paul-minnesota-encampmentsThe funeral with 400 Whopper Juniorshttps://sahanjournal.com/immigration/burger-king-whopper-jr-400-burgers-hmong-funeral/The West Side Flats Displacementhttps://sahanjournal.com/housing/st-paul-west-side-flats-displacement-report-apology-reparations/ Lebanese Community Response To Israeli Attackshttps://sahanjournal.com/immigration/lebanon-minnesota-community-response-israeli-attacks/Katelyn's Salutes: Susan Du, Minneapolis Star Tribune and Chao Xiong, Sahan JournalThank you as always for listening. Please send us feedback to journalismsalute@gmail.com Visit our website: thejournalismsalute.org Mark's website (MarkSimonmedia.com)Tweet us at @journalismpod and Bluesky at @marksimon.bsky.socialSubscribe to our newsletter– journalismsalute.substack.com

A state program created by a 2023 law allows teachers to become licensed to teach heritage languages. Since then, the group of teachers getting a license has been growing.In 2024, on Minnesota Now we spoke to one of the 15 teachers who became the first in the state to teach Hmong. Now a new group of teachers have become licensed to teach in Somali and Karen.Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach wrote about this recently and she joined the program. Ehtalow Zar is a math teacher who also teaches Karen language and culture at Johnson Senior High School in St. Paul. She's one of two teachers who just became the first licensed to teach Karen language in the state, and maybe the nation. She joined the program as well.

The Vikings suffered a devasting lost in the first round of the NFL playoffs. The boys mourn the loss and ask where do they go from here. Max details his recent expedition pheasant hunting South Dakota. Matt goes over his spear fishing excursion up on Lake Winnibigoshish.Later in  the show (48:43) Matt sits down with Joey Peters from the Sahan Journal. Joey is a journalist who has been covering the Feeding Out Futures trial and more recently the autism treatment centers that are being accused of defrauding Medicaid for millions of dollars. You can check out his latest work here:https://sahanjournal.com/news/autism-center-raid-minneapolis-st-cloud-feeding-our-future/ Send us a text

Temperatures are dropping and winter is on its way. That means conditions are more dangerous for people experiencing homelessness and living outside. A recent story from Sahan Journal looked at two encampments that have become a home base for unhoused Hmong and Karen people in East St. Paul. A new organization is visiting encampments every Tuesday with food and supplies while trying to connect residents with services. Sahan Journal reporter Katelyn Vue reported on the organization and spoke with MPR News host Nina Moini about it.

It has been a month since Israel launched a ground invasion in Lebanon in the escalating conflict with Hezbollah. More than 2,700 people in Lebanon have been killed and more than a million have been displaced since the Hamas attacks on Israel, according to the latest estimates reported by BBC. This violence is also taking a toll on Minnesotans with ties to the region. MPR News host Cathy Wurzer talks with a Minneapolis business owner who has family in Lebanon. Louisa Farhat is the owner of Sweet Lou's Craft Sausage and Butchery — a retailer and food truck. She was recently featured in Sahan Journal and is selling gift cards to raise money for the Lebanese Red Cross.

Shayla Owodunni is running for an at-large seat on the Minneapolis School Board, which means every voter in the city will have her on their ballot There are two competitive school board races this year. One is for a citywide at-large seat and the other is in district 6. This is one of four episodes with candidates for those two seats. In addition to listening to this podcast, I recommend reading the candidate interviews in Minneapolis Schools Voices (https://www.mplsschoolsvoices.news) and Sahan Journal (https://sahanjournal.com). Watch: https://youtube.com/wedgelive Join the conversation: https://twitter.com/wedgelive Support the show: https://patreon.com/wedgelive Wedge LIVE theme song by Anthony Kasper x LaFontsee

Kim Ellison is running for re-election to an at-large seat on the Minneapolis School Board, which means every voter in the city will have her on their ballot There are two competitive school board races this year. One is for a citywide at-large seat and the other is in district 6. This is one of four episodes with candidates for those two seats. In addition to listening to this podcast, I recommend reading the candidate interviews in Minneapolis Schools Voices (https://www.mplsschoolsvoices.news) and Sahan Journal (https://sahanjournal.com). Watch: https://youtube.com/wedgelive Join the conversation: https://twitter.com/wedgelive Support the show: https://patreon.com/wedgelive Wedge LIVE theme song by Anthony Kasper x LaFontsee

For immigrants to America, so much is new. New culture, new language, new systems, new opportunities.The learning curve is steep. But eventually, someone pushes through to a new level and becomes the first in their community to achieve a goal. Maybe they become the first in their family to graduate from college, or the first to start a small business. Maybe they are the first to purchase farmland or the first to publish a book that integrates their culture into the American story.On Oct. 17, MPR News' North Star Journey Live partnered with Sahan Journal to host a conversation about firsts. What do these trailblazers from immigrant communities have in common? What are the unique rewards and challenges that come with being the first to embark on a new journey?The celebration was hosted by MPR News' Nina Moini, who herself is the first American journalist in her immigrant family, and Sahan Journal digital producer Alberto Gomez. North Star Journey Live: The Firsts Panelists included Chenue Her, the first Hmong man to become a TV news anchor; Rodrigo Cala, who is the first in his family to buy a farm in the U.S.; Michael Vang, one of the first Hmong soccer players to play professionally in the U.S.; Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, the first person under age 26 to win a seat in the Minnesota Senate; Remona Htoo, one of the first Karen children's book authors in the U.S.; and Abenezer Merdassa, an Ethiopian-American comic who found his way into the stand-up world thanks to procrastinating his finals.

Lara Bergman is running for Minneapolis School Board in district 6, located in southwest Minneapolis. There are two competitive school board races this year. One is for a citywide at-large seat and the other is in district 6. This is one of four episodes with candidates for those two seats. In addition to listening to this podcast, I recommend reading the candidate interviews in Minneapolis Schools Voices (https://www.mplsschoolsvoices.news) and Sahan Journal (https://sahanjournal.com). Watch: https://youtube.com/wedgelive Join the conversation: https://twitter.com/wedgelive Support the show: https://patreon.com/wedgelive Wedge LIVE theme song by Anthony Kasper x LaFontsee

Greta Callahan is running for Minneapolis School Board in district 6, located in southwest Minneapolis. There are two competitive school board races this year. One is for a citywide at-large seat and the other is in district 6. This is one of four episodes with candidates for those two seats. In addition to listening to this podcast, I recommend reading the candidate interviews in Minneapolis Schools Voices (https://www.mplsschoolsvoices.news) and Sahan Journal (https://sahanjournal.com). Watch: https://youtube.com/wedgelive Join the conversation: https://twitter.com/wedgelive Support the show: https://patreon.com/wedgelive Wedge LIVE theme song by Anthony Kasper x LaFontsee

For immigrants to America, so much is new. New culture, new language, new systems, new opportunities.The learning curve is steep. But eventually, someone pushes through to a new level and becomes the first in their community to achieve a goal. Maybe they become the first in their family to graduate from college, or the first to start a small business. Maybe they are the first to purchase farmland or the first to publish a book that integrates their culture into the American story.On Oct. 17, MPR News' North Star Journey Live partnered with Sahan Journal to host a conversation about firsts. What do these trailblazers from immigrant communities have in common? What are the unique rewards and challenges that come with being the first to embark on a new journey?The celebration was hosted by MPR News' Nina Moini, who herself is the first American journalist in her immigrant family, and Sahan Journal digital producer Alberto Gomez. North Star Journey Live: The Firsts Panelists included Chenue Her, the first Hmong man to become a TV news anchor; Rodrigo Cala, who is the first in his family to buy a farm in the U.S.; Michael Vang, one of the first Hmong soccer players to play professionally in the U.S.; Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, the first person under age 26 to win a seat in the Minnesota Senate; Remona Htoo, one of the first Karen children's book authors in the U.S.; and Abenezer Merdassa, an Ethiopian-American comic who found his way into the stand-up world thanks to procrastinating his finals.

The Minnesota Supreme Court is considering a challenge to a deal between the Minneapolis school district and teachers' union. The agreement in question ended a Minneapolis teachers' strike two and a half years ago and included job protections for teachers of color.Before the agreement, Minneapolis Public Schools would have to lay off teachers in order of seniority, so the last ones hired would be the first let go. Now the district can exempt teachers from underrepresented groups from that rule. But a Minneapolis resident sued over this provision, saying it's unconstitutional. What the court is weighing is whether a taxpayer, who helps fund the district, has legal standing to sue over something like a union contract. Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach has been following this and she joins MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to break it down.

Minnesota's new climate laws passed in 2023 require all electricity in the state to come from carbon-free sources by the year 2040. But it's up to regulators to decide what exactly counts as carbon free — the key question that has arisen is whether burning trash and timber for energy should be a part of the mix. There may not be an answer until the end of 2025 after the Public Utilities Commission recently moved to delay the decision. Andrew Hazzard has been following this. He covers climate change and environmental justice for Sahan Journal and he joined Minnesota Now to talk about his reporting.

Hour 2: Jason talks with Marques Johnson who just opened Tender Lovin Chix in Uptown on DeRusha Eats. Then he talks with the new head of the Sahan Journal, Vanan Murugesan about local digital journalism

Vanan Murugesan is now running the Sahan Journal and joins Jason to talk about the importance of the local, digital journalism model and his vision for the Journal

Join us for a discussion hosted by our colleagues at Sahan Journal — a nonprofit dedicated to reporting for immigrants and communities of color in Minnesota — about how to thrive as a business in Minnesota.Mukhtar Ibrahim, the founding publisher and CEO of Sahan Journal, talks with a panel of Black, immigrant entrepreneurs in tech, farming, fashion, food and wellness — including the man who started the first Jamaican restaurant in the U.S. that catered to the unique palates of Minnesotans.How did they get their businesses started and what did they learn about how to thrive as a business in Minnesota? Tune in for the conversation.Guests:Beatrice Adenodi, interim director of economic and community development at the African Career Education and Resource, Inc.David Manly, founder and CEO of the tech startup Juduh.Modoh Wanda, CEO of African Fashion Week Minnesota.Dr. Stephen Menya, chiropractor and co-owner of Lions Gym and Wellness Center.Tomme Beevas, founder and chief strategic officer of Pimento Jamaican Kitchen.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

It has been nearly a month since all Minnesota-born adoptees gained access to their birth records. The Open Records Bill was a huge win for adoptees, in part because it allowed them to request medical history from their birth parents. However, there are still many Minnesota adoptees born in a different country whose medical history remains a question mark. Heewon Lee is assistant program director of the Genetic Counseling Program at the University of Minnesota. She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about a new Sahan Journal story looking at how international adoptees piece together a personal health history and what they can — and cannot —learn from genetic testing.

Dan and Ellen talk to Larry Ryckman. Ryckman is editor of The Colorado Sun, the subject of a chapter that Dan wrote for our book, "What Works in Community News." The Sun was founded by journalists who worked at The Denver Post, which had been cut and cut and cut under the ownership of Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund that the Post staff called "vulture capitalists." The Sun was founded as a for-profit public benefit corporation. A PBC is a legal designation covering for-profit organizations that serve society in some way. Among other things, a PBC is under no fiduciary obligation to enrich its owners and may instead plow revenues back into the enterprise. And we've found that for-profit models are rare in the world of news startups. But that changed last year, when The Sun joined its nonprofit peers. Ryckman explains. Dan gives a listen to a New York Times podcast with Robert Putnam, the Harvard University political scientist who wrote “Bowling Alone” some years back. In a fascinating 40 minutes, Putnam talks about his work in trying to build social capital. He never once mentions local news, but there are important intersections between his ideas and what this podcast is focused on. Ellen reports on an important transition at Sahan Journal in Minnesota, one of the projects we wrote about in our book. The founding CEO and publisher, Mukhtar Ibrahim, is moving on and a successor has been named. Starting in September, Vanan Murugesan will be leading Sahan. He has experience in the nonprofit sector and also has experience in public media.      

On Minnesota Now, we've heard many stories brought to light by reporters at Sahan Journal. It's a nonprofit newsroom launched in 2019 to cover immigrants and communities of color in Minnesota. On Monday, the organization announced its new leader. Vanan Murugesan is taking the helm as executive director after founder Mukhtar Ibrahim announced he was stepping down last October. For the last nine years, Murugesan has worked at Pillsbury United Communities, where he co-founded a nonprofit grocery store in north Minneapolis. And he stepped into the local media landscape by helping with the launches of the community news outlet North News and south Minneapolis radio station KRSM. Murugesen joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer.

Donald Trump announced his running mate, JD Vance, at the Republican National Convention Monday. We have the latest live from the convention. Plus, we unpacked the rhetoric and conspiracy theories that are swirling after an assassination attempt on the former president. And as Republican party leaders gather in Milwaukee, we heard what two young conservative voters are thinking about the election now. It was another weekend with heavy rain. We found out how recent floods are affecting water quality.Plus, we met the new leader of the news organization Sahan Journal. And we recapped the Lynx's sold-out game against the Indiana Fever, with the new voice of Lynx Radio.

Some Democrats, including Minnesota congressmembers, are joining calls for a new nominee for president. We spoke about upheaval in the party as President Joe Biden says he's committed to the race. Plus, we heard from one of Minnesota's uncommitted delegates.A new data story by Sahan Journal shows the heavy — and unequal — toll of fentanyl in Minnesota. A historian has learned the state may have been more important to the Underground Railroad than previously thought. We found out about the time that a well-known abolitionist spent living in St. Paul. We learned how people in the city of Cook are trying to prevent health problems caused by indoor flooding.And we heard stories by young journalists who recently finished Radio Camp here at MPR News.Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Unbound” by Bizhiki, and our Song of the Day was “Two Wheels and Westerns” by Luke Lynell.

A late-night Yemeni coffee chain is expanding into the Twin Cities. The first Minnesota location of Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Company opened its Little Canada roastery in early May. But the service that Qamaria provides goes beyond coffee — the coffee shop creates much-needed spaces for young Muslims to gather and socialize in the evenings. Sahan Journal reporter Hibah Ansari recently visited Qamaria and published a story about it. Ansari joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the increase in late-night third spaces for Muslim youth like Qamaria.

On  this episode we chat with Joey Peters. Joey is a journalist for the Sahan Journal and has been covering the Feeding Our Futures Trial.The "Feeding Our Future" case involves a significant fraud scheme where multiple individuals and entities exploited federal nutrition programs intended to provide free meals to children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The nonprofit organization Feeding Our Future, along with other participants, allegedly submitted false documentation and reports for meals that were never served and created fake meal distribution sites. The funds obtained through this fraudulent activity were misappropriated for personal use, including luxury purchases and real estate.Federal authorities, including the FBI and the Department of Justice, launched an investigation leading to several indictments and arrests on charges such as wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. This case, involving tens of millions of dollars, is one of the largest pandemic-related fraud cases, highlighting vulnerabilities in emergency federal aid programs and undermining public trust in charitable organizations. Legal proceedings are ongoing, with further indictments and actions anticipated.You can check out some of Joey's work here: https://sahanjournal.com/author/joey-peters/ 

Public schools in Minnesota have a growing need to be equipped for a wide range of temperatures. School years in the state can be hot and muggy on either end and freezing in the middle. And if students are uncomfortable, it's difficult to focus on learning. A high school on the East Side of Saint Paul is wrapping up its first year with a new heating and cooling system that draws energy from the ground. The district plans to install more of these geothermal systems at two other schools as part of its goal of cutting greenhouse gas pollution. The district is joining a larger wave of investments in geothermal energy. Sahan Journal climate and environment reporter Andrew Hazzard wrote about the district's switch and joined Minnesota Now to talk about it.

Students from the largest school district in the state are standing up to their school board. A march and rally are planned ahead of the Anoka-Hennepin school board meeting on Monday night. This comes after a school board member backed by a conservative parents rights group said he plans to force a budget showdown if the district does not scrap all programs aimed at racial and gender equity. Education reporter Becky Dernbach has been covering the controversy for Sahan Journal and joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about it.

Karen and Hmong parents in Minnesota say they are increasingly alarmed by the substance abuse they see in their communities' youth. Opioids are the largest problem, specifically the the deadly drug fentanyl.MPR News partnered with Sahan Journal to talk about this painful topic, at a special North Star Journey Live event in mid-November, hosted at the Washington Technology Magnet School in St. Paul.There, health leaders, community members and youth advocates explored the complex interplay of genetic factors and life experiences that contribute to substance abuse, addiction and mental health challenges in Minnesota's Hmong and Karen communities.They also addressed the long-lasting impacts of immigration experiences, highlighting the urgent need for improved mental health data within Minnesota's communities of color.Listen to this special North Star Journey Live discussion, moderated by MPR News host Angela Davis and Sahan Journal's Samantha HoangLong.Guests:Say Klo Wah is a youth case manager at the Karen Organization of Minnesota.François Vang is a clinical social worker who currently works as a therapist at Nystrom and Associates.Dr. Dziwe Ntaba is an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Thanks to a Bush Foundation Fellowship in 2021, Dr. Ntaba also worked within the Minneapolis Health Department's Opioid Response Team.Abdirahman Mukhtar is a community leader, youth advocate and the founder of Daryeel Youth, a nonprofit organization that specifically targets substance abuse and addiction issues among East African youth in the Twin Cities.North Star Journey Live (formerly known as In Focus) is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.

If you've ever tried to learn a second or third language, you know translating words from one language to another is not a one-to-one deal. Professional translators need to know the nuances of both languages to communicate meaning.The Minnesota Department of Human Services translates some of its documents into five languages besides English, according to its website. Those are Hmong, Russian, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese. The website says other languages are available based on need. Some of the agency's Hmong and Somali translations drew criticism recently, as freelance journalist Gustav DeMars reported for Sahan Journal. They reviewed translations in the five other languages. And Somali speakers found one of the sentences was also lost its meaning to a literal translation.

Ellen Clegg and Dan Kennedy have become recognized and respected news media analysts with their highly listened to podcast series: “What Works. The future of local news.”  However recently, Clegg a three-decade Boston Globe veteran who helped get a few Pulitzer Prizes for the paper and Kennedy a Northeastern University journalism professor who writes the Media Nation blog, have released a critically acclaimed book entitled: “What Works in Community News: Media Startups, News Deserts, and the Future of the Fourth Estate,” that explores how a number of news media operations seem to be on their way to finding sustainable local journalism business models. Some of the local media companies they examine, include the Sahan Journal, a digital publication reporting on Minnesota's immigrant communities, the Storm Lake Times Pilot, a legacy print newspaper in Iowa, published by Pulitzer Prize winner Art Cullen, who developed a hybrid for-profit/nonprofit model,  the New Haven Independent , a multilingual, digital news project that expanded its audience through radio and others. In this episode of “E&P Reports” we spend 20-minutes with Ellen Clegg and Dan Kennedy the authors of the new book: “What Works in Community News,” to learn how they selected the featured nine media operations and why they believed these are worth exploring to find models for sustainable local journalism. Clegg a seasoned editor and local news media entrepreneur along with Kennedy a respected professor of Journalism also offer advice gleaned from the book to news publishing executives on how to navigate the challenging and ever-changing local news media ecosystem.

Beginning Wednesday, houses of worship in the Twin Cities will open their doors to provide extra beds to migrant families who need a place to stay. According to a recent story in the Sahan Journal, Hennepin County staff say their shelters for families experiencing homelessness are beyond capacity and half of the families in the shelters are recent arrivals from the southern border and major U.S. cities. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Liliana Letran-Garcia, CEO of the nonprofit Interfaith Action of Greater St. Paul, the nonprofit coordinating the program.

On Thursday, Minnesota senators in the Housing and Homelessness Prevention Committee are meeting at the State Capitol. One of the bills on their agenda today would create protections for homebuyers who sign on to a contract-for-deed.That's where instead of taking out a mortgage loan, you pay in installments. It offers a path to home ownership for people who struggle to get approved for a loan or don't want one. Many Muslims, for example, do not pay or earn interest as part of their faith, and members of the Somali community have lost homes and huge sums of money to these deals. State and federal lawmakers have introduced reforms in response to work by Sahan Journal and Propublica. Jessica Lussenhop, a Propublica reporter based in in Minneapolis, joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

The rhetoric is inflammatory, but there's no disputing the data. The number of migrants who crossed the southern U.S. border is hitting historic highs. In December, the Department of Homeland Security reported more than 300,000 people crossed the border, either by applying for asylum at entry points or by trying to cross the border illegally. According a Pew survey, Americans across party lines say the government is doing a bad job handling the current surge. Congress is locked in a standoff. Earlier this month, it failed to pass a bipartisan bill to increase border security, after Republicans in the House said it was “dead on arrival.” Meanwhile, thousands of migrants — coming from a wide variety of countries like Venezuela, Ecuador, Russia and India — are stuck in makeshift camps at the border, waiting to be processed. The reality of this broken system is not a surprise to Minnesota's immigrant communities. Many have fought their way through it or are still waiting for action. And all are watching for what happens next. Beyond the Border: The immigration crisis, up close To get some answers, MPR News, together with Sahan Journal, convened a panel of immigration experts on Feb. 8, at El Colegio High School in Minneapolis. Hosts Angela Davis and Sahan Journal immigration reporter Hibah Ansari asked them to share stories about Minnesotans caught in the system and how immigrants and refugees to Minnesota are viewing this election year. Don't miss this special Sahan Community and North Star Journey Live discussion. Experts: Emilia Gonzalez is the executive director for Unidos MN.John Bruning is the supervising litigation attorney at The Advocates for Human Rights.Jenny Stohl Powell is the legal director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota.Nasra Ismail is the the U.S. enterprise executive director of Alight. North Star Journey Live is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

The rhetoric is inflammatory, but there's no disputing the data. The number of migrants who crossed the southern U.S. border is hitting historic highs. In December, the Department of Homeland Security reported more than 300,000 people crossed the border, either by applying for asylum at entry points or by trying to cross the border illegally. According a Pew survey, Americans across party lines say the government is doing a bad job handling the current surge. Congress is locked in a standoff. Earlier this month, it failed to pass a bipartisan bill to increase border security, after Republicans in the House said it was “dead on arrival.” Meanwhile, thousands of migrants — coming from a wide variety of countries like Venezuela, Ecuador, Russia and India — are stuck in makeshift camps at the border, waiting to be processed. The reality of this broken system is not a surprise to Minnesota's immigrant communities. Many have fought their way through it or are still waiting for action. And all are watching for what happens next. Beyond the Border: The immigration crisis, up close To get some answers, MPR News, together with Sahan Journal, convened a panel of immigration experts on Feb. 8, at El Colegio High School in Minneapolis. Hosts Angela Davis and Sahan Journal immigration reporter Hibah Ansari asked them to share stories about Minnesotans caught in the system and how immigrants and refugees to Minnesota are viewing this election year. Don't miss this special Sahan Community and North Star Journey Live discussion. Experts: Emilia Gonzalez is the executive director for Unidos MN.John Bruning is the supervising litigation attorney at The Advocates for Human Rights.Jenny Stohl Powell is the legal director at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota.Nasra Ismail is the the U.S. enterprise executive director of Alight. North Star Journey Live is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

Have you ever checked the ingredients in a bottle of nail polish? How about hair dye or chemical straighteners? Many of these products do what they do thanks to strong chemicals that can be bad for our health. Ngan Hoang, owner of Cali Nails in Minneapolis, slowly switched over to safer products over four years. The University of Minnesota School of Public Health recently received federal money to talk to salon owners in the Twin Cities about doing the same. Sahan Journal reporter Joey Peters covered the program and joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it. You can read his story here.

This story comes to you from Sahan Journal through a partnership with MPR News.Sahan Journal | By Alfonzo GalvanA viral trend of massive bouquets, some costing hundreds of dollars, is finding an audience in the Twin Cities among social media-savvy florists and their Latino clientele.Ramos buchónes is what 21-year-old Brittany Vega of Designs by B calls the big bouquets of roses she sells as a side gig between working full-time and going to school.These aren't your typical flower arrangements, and most florists in Minnesota don't make them. But they're all over social media where some #ramobuchon videos on TikTok have more than 30 million views.According to one Mexican newspaper, a ramo buchón is characterized by being very ostentatious in its decoration and size.The elaborate arrangements start at about 50 flowers, usually roses, and can go up to as many as 100. Ramo” is Spanish for bouquet.“It's not a necessity, but it's a luxury,” Vega said from her makeshift workshop at her Bloomington home, as she dipped roses in glitter, “It's not every day that a girl gets a big ‘ramo.'”In addition to the sheer quantity of roses, florists like Vega wrap them in carefully folded Korean paper, and add LED lights, glitter, pins, chocolates, ribbons, and even stuffed animals. Some even include money in the form of folded bills.Vega said she's been getting two to five orders a day in the weeks before Valentine's Day. It's her first year selling the arrangements.She isn't the only florist driving the ramo buchón trend locally. Joselyn Chacon, owner of Siempre Con Amor, was in the middle of a gap year in college when she started selling flower arrangements to a majority Hispanic clientele.“We really consider flowers, and especially roses, a love language,” Chacon said. “Giving someone flowers is really a sign that you appreciate them, and that you love them.”Chacon has since moved to New York to finish college but still makes occasional trips back home to Minnesota to fill orders for her customers.She's even scheduled a weeklong break in early February to be in town for Valentine's Day and fulfill her orders.According to her, Ecuadorian roses are the main flower used to create ramos buchónes because they're bigger and sturdier.Prices for bouquets start at around $50 but can go up to more than $400, depending on the number of flowers and customization required.A single bouquet can take a florist between one to three hours to create.The bouquets are arranged with tightly arranged roses with the majority of the leaves cut off; they're meant to be displayed as a bouquet rather than in a vase, according to Vega, who said she's still waiting to be gifted one.“Nothing big, but I want one,” Vega said. “I mean I'm making them for other people and I see how nice it looks, I want one.”Click here.https://www.tiktok.com/@sahanjournal/video/7332578321743580447?embed_source=71929438%2C121374463%2C121351166%2C71838019%2C121331973%2C120811592%2C120810756%3Bnull%3Bembed_name&refer=embed&referer_url=sahanjournal.com%2Fbusiness-work%2Fviral-ramo-buchon-bouquets-find-twin-cities-audience%2F&referer_video_id=7332578321743580447The bouquets are typically used as a grand romantic gesture. But can also be given to friends and family.Vega said Valentine's Day is always a popular day for flowers, but Mother's Day was equally busy for her because of having to plan out two days of orders as Latin American countries don't always celebrate the holiday on the same day as the United States.Chacon said many of her customers send her photos of bouquets they've seen on social media for inspiration, and that she's always willing to accommodate their wants and needs, but because the bouquets can get expensive she also offers budget-friendly options.These limit customizations but at the same time allow Chacon to express herself creatively, sometimes leading to the creation of a favorite bouquet for the florist.Chacon features different types of flowers in what she calls her “freestyle” bouquets. She also works with colors not commonly used, like orange. “They were very aesthetically pleasing to me, so they're my favorite ones to make,” Chacon said. “I put a lot of work into it.”Both florists are nearing the end of their Valentine's Day preorder period but say they have extra flowers available for last-minute orders.“Anything you have in mind, we'll work together with you to make it happen,” Chacon said. “Everything we do is with love.”

Last year more than 1,000 children with mental health issues or developmental disorders had extended stays in Twin Cities emergency rooms because they had nowhere else to go. Some were in an ER for months. A disproportionate number of the kids in this situation, which hospitals call “boarding”, are Black or Native American. And many are in foster care, according to a new story from Sahan Journal. The article begins with the story of a 14-year-old with autism who has repeatedly been stuck in the ER, most recently for 55 days. Her aunt and legal guardian, Jacqueline Hunter, joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer along with Amy Esler, a psychologist with M Health Fairview who oversees care for patients with autism at the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain.

Uber and Lyft drivers spoke in front of Minneapolis City Hall before a committee hearing about driver pay rates on Tuesday. Earlier this month, rideshare drivers held a one-day strike at the Minneapolis Saint Paul airport. This month another group of workers linked to the airport are organizing for higher wages and benefits. SEIU Local 26 represents the airport staff who provide services like cleaning cabins and pushing wheelchairs. Their contract is set to expire on Thursday. Sahan Journal reporter Alfonzo Galvan is following this story and he joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

The Pivot Publisher Series aims to equip hyperlocal BIPOC publishers and news leaders with tools, strategies and tactics to support their growth and continued success.Each month, we will gather industry experts, experienced publishers, news leaders and more to share their expertise, best practices and tools to shed light on a variety of topics including organizational design, how to hire top talent and more.The monthly webinar series kicked off with “Preparing for Transitions: Succession Planning," bringing together the experts and the experienced to share their journeys and tips for navigating the intricacies of succession planning.How can you exit responsibly and that's respectful to the work that you've done? What is philanthropy doing to support digital news pioneers? When is the ideal time to begin preparing?Moderator Evelyn Hsu, co-executive director at Maynard Institute, and panelists Mukhtar Ibrahim, founder of the Sahan Journal, Randall Yip, founder and editor of AsAmNews and Jane McDonnell, CEO of free range media and former executive director of the Online News Association shared their personal experience, tips for seamless, stress-free leadership transitions, and practical tools to ensure your news organization's long-term success.About The Pivot FundThe Pivot Fund is a new venture philanthropy organization dedicated to investing $500 million into independent BIPOC-led community news outlets through grantmaking, development support, and strategic consulting. For more information on The Pivot Fund, visit www.thepivotfund.org. 

Under the umbrella of the Minnesota Breastfeeding Coalition, there are groups devoted to providing resources to Hmong and Indigenous families. There could soon be a coalition to support Somali parents in breastfeeding. Shukri Jumale is the Midwest Fetal Care Center program manager at Children's Minnesota and treasurer of the Minnesota Breastfeeding Coalition. She was part of an effort that led Minnesota Muslim leaders in November to issue a fatwa, or religious interpretation, that encourages families to use donor breastmilk for babies when their parent's milk is not available. Jumale joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about her work. You can learn more in a recent article from Sahan Journal. Related story: Decree encourages Minnesota Muslim women to use donated breast milk for vulnerable kids Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

A group of Uber and Lyft drivers will begin a one-day strike on Thursday. Drivers will shut off their rideshare apps and won't take riders to or from the airport and the Twin Cities. Up to 2,000 independent drivers across the state are expected to go offline from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., ending the day with a rally.Sahan Journal reporter Alfonzo Galvan has been covering this story and joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer with more perspective on what's happening today and what's at stake. From Sahan Journal Ahead of planned strike, Lyft announces it will give Twin Cities drivers a minimum fare Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

Parents and students of a charter school in north Minneapolis have less than a week to find a new place to learn. JJ Legacy School is closing this Friday. Its board held an emergency meeting late last week that revealed the school's troubled financial situation. The Minnesota Department of Education overpaid the school after the number of students was overreported. According to reporting from the Sahan Journal, that meant that by the end of last month, the school had received — and spent — more than its budget for the whole school year. The school is not only out of money, it's 700,000 dollars in debt. Sahan Journal Education Reporter Becky Dernbach has been following all of this and she joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer.Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

More than 100,000 people around the country are part of a study that aims to look at child health from pregnancy through adolescence. The program looks at how environmental factors like chemicals, pollution, and stress affects children's minds and bodies. About 800 pregnant Asian Americans in the Twin Cities now have the opportunity to join the study. A recent story by Sahan Journal looks at efforts by a University of Minnesota research team to make sure Asian Americans are well represented in this research. They just won a $13.6 million grant to recruit participants. Ruby Nguyen leads the project. She's a professor of public health at the U. She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

This story comes to you from Sahan Journal. MPR News is a partner with Sahan Journal and will be sharing stories between SahanJournal.com and MPRNews.org.By Andrew Hazzard and Cynthia Tu | Sahan JournalA new federal grant will provide Minneapolis with $8 million to pay for ash tree removal on private properties in disadvantaged neighborhoods, a significant relief effort after millions of dollars in removal costs were assessed against homeowners' property taxes. The U.S. Forestry Service grant comes from funding in the Inflation Reduction Act. The city applied for the grant in coordination with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, which condemns ash trees on private property in response to the infestation of the invasive emerald ash borer beetle. The Minneapolis Park Board has condemned more than 18,000 ash trees since 2013.  Homeowners with condemned trees either paid directly for their removal, or the city paid and assessed the cost—or added the cost as a fee—onto the homeowner's property taxes. Property tax assessments on tree removals total more than $7.3 million, according to the Park Board. Neighborhoods targeted by the new federal funding, such as north Minneapolis, disproportionately paid for previous tree removal via property tax assessments, leading to increased monthly costs, Park Board data show. “We're really grateful to have these resources,” said Kelly Muellman, environmental manager with the Minneapolis Health Department. But those resources can't be used retroactively, meaning there's no relief in sight for thousands of homeowners who are currently paying off tree removals that were ordered by the city.Minneapolis' ash tree removal policy is aimed at addressing the green beetle that is killing ash trees across the Midwest.Several Minneapolis homeowners told Park Board officials at an October board meeting that they're frustrated by the policy, that the costs are impacting family budgets, and that homeowners who are people of color, senior, and low-income were particularly affected.Perhaps no one is more familiar with tree condemnations than Melissa Newman, a resident of the North Side's McKinley neighborhood. Seven trees on her property have been condemned due to Dutch Elm disease or emerald ash borer since she bought her house 17 years ago. The city's forced removal of affected trees and subsequent property tax assessments are  hardships, said Newman, adding that her monthly costs have increased between $150 to $200 as a result. “I inherited the tree trying to create the American dream of homeownership,” Newman told Sahan Journal.https://sahanjournal.github.io/ej-areas/The funding applies to U.S. Census tracts considered to be environmental justice areas by the federal government, which includes almost the entire North Side, parts of northeast Minneapolis, and a large swath of south Minneapolis, including the Phillips and Cedar-Riverside neighborhoods. The city originally applied for a $29 million grant from the U.S. Forestry Service. The $8 million it received will help hundreds of households, but could go fast. The city and Park Board are also pursuing a $500,000 grant from the state for the same purposes. It's unclear how far that money will stretch, or how many ash trees remain on private property citywide. Minneapolis officials say there are at least 12,000 trees remaining on private property in the environmental justice areas targeted by the grant, but also acknowledge that the Park Board doesn't have good estimates on the true number.The average tree removal in Minneapolis costs around $1,500. The grant also covers stump grinding, which isn't included in the current average cost of tree removal, and replacing trees. Minneapolis city tree program manager Sydney Schaaf said the city is still waiting for detailed instructions on how the grant can be used, but hope it will ease the burden to homeowners and help build back lost canopy. A flawed processHomeowners in the areas targeted by the grant are more likely than homeowners in wealthier neighborhoods to pay for mandated tree removals via property tax assessment. Homeowners in more affluent neighborhoods typically paid out of pocket to hire a contractor of their choice to remove a tree, according to Park Board data.   North Side residents disproportionately paid for tree removal via property tax assessments, Park Board data show. Around $2.8 million have been assessed in north Minneapolis in the last decade.North Minneapolis homeowners experienced a high rate of tree condemnation, too. When Minneapolis ash tree condemnations peaked in 2021, with 6,095 trees marked for removal citywide, roughly 42 percent of condemnations happened in North Side neighborhoods, according to Park Board data. More than half of the roughly 3,000 households citywide who paid for tree removal via property tax assessments in 2021 were in north Minneapolis. Approximately 16 percent of the 2,164 tree condemnations issued from the start of 2023 through October were in North Side neighborhoods, according to Park Board data.Click here.https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/supIX/7/In 2021, the Park Board condemned five trees on Newman's property in north Minneapolis. Her yard is fenced in, but one day there were green marks on her trees and a hanger on her doorknob telling her the ash trees had to go. She had 60 days to either cut the trees down on her own, or allow the Park Board to handle it by sending over the lowest bidding contractor. Two were small enough for a neighbor to remove, but three were removed by the city and assessed against her property taxes. One of those assessed trees straddled the property line, and Newman split the $800 charge with a neighbor. But two other trees were deemed “special” by the Park Board (for reasons Newman said were never satisfactorily explained to her), and the removal involved a crane, driving the combined removal cost to $2,700. All told, after an $80 flat fee the Park Board imposes on all assessed trees and a 3 percent interest charge on the assessment, removing the two trees cost about $3,100. Newman's yard used to be full of trees, and her dog would lie in the shade. But now, the grass dies easily in the summer heat, and Newman has to hack away at the tree stumps left behind. “It's completely open,” she said of her property. The Park Board does not target any particular area of the city for ash tree condemnation, said Philip Potyondy, sustainable forestry coordinator, with the Park Board. It's possible that ash trees are more common in some parts of the city, he said, adding that ash borer also tends to spread exponentially, and may have accelerated in the North Side in 2021 and 2022. “This has impacted people in every part of Minneapolis,” said Potyondy. Emerald ash borer is a persistent beetle, and it will infest and kill ash trees in time. But the infestation can be prevented with insecticide treatments implanted into a tree like an intravenous tube. Potyondy said the city's 12 staff tree inspectors only condemn ash trees that show signs of infestation. Those signs include woodpecker damage and thinning canopy at the top of the trees. They don't confirm the presence of disease through testing, but because the beetle is so pervasive, any ash tree in the region that has not been treated will essentially become infested at some point, Potyondy said. Newman said she would have been happy to spend around $200 every couple of years to treat her trees and prevent emerald ash borer infestation. The branches seemed fine and new leaves blossomed each spring. But the Park Board doesn't inform people that treating trees is an option. In 2010, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution advising against using insecticides to treat emerald ash borer, Park Board forestry director Ralph Sievert told the board. “We have been omitting that information when we're communicating with constituents,” Park Board Commissioner Billy Menz said of the treatment option.Community pushback The Park Board altered the assessment process after community pushback led by the Harrison Neighborhood Association and the nonprofit, Hope Community.Mitchel Hansen, outreach director with the North Side's Harrison Neighborhood Association, is leading the charge against private ash tree condemnation. He became interested in the issue after hearing from several neighbors about costly assessments, and feels that the process is flawed and contradicts Park Board equity goals. “I see this as being unfair. I see this as something we can easily solve,” Hansen said. Schaaf and Muellman, the city health department employees, said the Harrison Neighborhood Association's advocacy work inspired the city to apply for the federal grant.Last May, the Park Board temporarily halted the assessment process to make changes.The Park Board now requires tree removal companies to first examine the trees in order to get more competitive bids for removals that will be assessed against a homeowner's property taxes, Potyondy said. Previously, only special trees with difficult removal circumstances would get in-person inspections from companies bidding to remove them. The city also now offers all homeowners the choice of repaying the tree removal debt on their property taxes over five, 10, or 20 years, reducing the monthly cost with longer payment periods. Previously, the assessment was automatically set for a five-year period.There is now also an exemption for seniors and veterans who can demonstrate economic hardship to defer the payments until the property is sold.  The city made 885 assessments worth about $2 million before pausing its assessment process earlier this year. When the pause ended in October, the city began collecting payments from those homeowners, who are ineligible for the new federal funding.Click here to view the maphttps://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/supIX/7/Most condemned ash trees are not assessed against property taxes, according to Potyondy, and the majority of removals are paid by homeowners out of pocket.“This is an absolute priority of mine,” Bangoura said. ‘The ship has sailed for me' Schaaf, Minneapolis' tree program coordinator, said she understands homeowners' frustrations about the assessment process and the fact that the grant money can't help retroactively. “It's hard because a lot of these people that are having to have a tree removed already live in areas that have some of the lowest tree canopy in the city. A lot of them really love trees, and they really don't want to have to remove their tree,” Schaaf said. Amoke Kubat didn't want to get rid of her ash tree. She bought her home in the North Side's Cleveland neighborhood in January 2021. While she was unpacking, she noticed a man in her backyard eyeing her large ash tree. He told her it was infested and tagged it for removal. Suddenly, Kubat had to figure out how to remove it and pay the bill. The Park Board gave her a list of contractors to call. She got estimates, some as high as $10,000. The tree didn't come down until August 2021, and in the meantime, an ash tree in her front yard was condemned as well. The backyard tree was huge, Kubat said, measuring 32 inches in diameter, according to Park Board records. Kubat was assessed more than $6,000 to remove both trees; the process was stressful. Her yard isn't the same anymore. There's nowhere for the squirrels to go and the birds seem confused, she said. Following the policy for all condemned and assessed trees, her contractor was paid only to cut down the trees, leaving large stumps in her yard that sprout small trees, which will be expensive to remove.  “We loved the tree,” Kubat said. Kubat thinks the presence of ash trees should be noted during the inspection process of buying a home. She spoke with neighbors on the North Side and realized the issue was affecting many others. She's glad there's money to help now, but believes the process of identifying and removing affected trees is flawed. “The bottom line is the ship has sailed for me. It's on my bill,” Kubat said. ‘A slap in the face' One day early this past summer, a crew showed up to Willis White's house in the Jordan neighborhood to cut down a massive ash tree in his backyard. White, 54, was confused, and said he didn't know the tree would be removed that day. A data request on White's removal shows that letters about the tree were sent to the house starting in January 2022. White said he and his wife bought the home with their daughter originally, and she officially transferred the property to them last year. The letters to the house were addressed to White's daughter. They'd received a letter about the tree and had been shopping around for a contractor, White said, but hadn't hired anyone yet. He wishes someone from the Park Board would have knocked on the door or called to make sure they knew someone was coming to cut the tree for a hefty fee. According to a records request, White's tree was determined to be special, and the city obtained three removal bids ranging from $10,000 to $7,200. “It's really difficult,” White said of the removal cost and the circumstances. According to White: The removal took a toll on the yard. The contractor had to take down a chain link fence to bring in equipment, and didn't properly repair it. Workers had to shut off power to his house, and lowered an outdoor power cord to the ground, which was left when they finished and had to be rehung by White and his son. The remaining stump is large, and White hasn't looked into how much it will cost to remove. The Park Board cut some 40,000 ash trees in public parks and on streets, but never ground the stump on the boulevard in front of White's house. The stump sprouted dozens of tiny trees this year, creating an overgrown mess. White's tree is the seventh most expensive removal handled by the city since 2013, according to Park Board data. His cost — measured by the diameter of the tree's trunk — was $226 “per trunk inch,” much higher than the median price of $69 per trunk inch in 2022.Click here.https://sahanjournal.github.io/trunk-cost-distribution/Removal prices vary widely. White's 30-inch diameter tree was assessed at $6,800. Kubat's 32-inch tree cost $3,000; the smaller, 20-inch tree also condemned in her yard went for the same $3,000 price. Although Park Board data says White's tree was assessed for $6,800, the bill for his removal was more than $7,500 after fees and interest, according to a records request and a letter sent to White's home.  “There's no rhyme or reason why they price what they do,” said Newman, the McKinley resident who was assessed more than $3,100 for removals. Newman said it's not that she's unwilling to pay, but that there were no alternatives to cutting the offered and no answers given about why her trees were determined to need special removal techniques throughout the process, despite her regularly reaching out to Park Board staff. She doesn't want to see her neighbors get price gouged, and she's mad that no relief is coming to people who are currently paying off assessments. “It's such a slap in the face,” Newman said. Learn more about Sahan Journal's data analysis for this story.

Karen and Hmong parents in Minnesota say they are increasingly alarmed by the substance abuse they see in their communities' youth. Opioids are the largest problem, specifically the the deadly drug fentanyl.MPR News partnered with Sahan Journal to talk about this painful topic with at a special North Star Journey Live event in mid November hosted at the Washington Technology Magnet School in St. Paul. There, health leaders, community members and youth advocates explored the complex interplay of genetic factors and life experiences that contribute to substance abuse, addiction and mental health challenges in Minnesota's Hmong and Karen communities. They also addressed the long-lasting impacts of immigration experiences, highlighting the urgent need for improved mental health data within Minnesota's communities of color. Listen to this special North Star Journey Live discussion, moderated by MPR News host Angela Davis and Sahan Journal's Samantha HoangLong. Scenes from the event Guests: Say Klo Wah is a youth case manager at the Karen Organization of Minnesota.François Vang is a clinical social worker who currently works as a therapist at Nystrom and Associates. Dr. Dziwe Ntaba is an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Thanks to a Bush Foundation Fellowship in 2021, Dr. Ntaba also worked within the Minneapolis Health Department's Opioid Response Team.Abdirahman Mukhtar is a community leader, youth advocate and the founder of Daryeel Youth, a nonprofit organization that specifically targets substance abuse and addiction issues among East African youth in the Twin Cities.North Star Journey Live (formerly known as In Focus) is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

Karen and Hmong parents in Minnesota say they are increasingly alarmed by the substance abuse they see in their communities' youth. Opioids are the largest problem, specifically the the deadly drug fentanyl.MPR News partnered with Sahan Journal to talk about this painful topic with at a special North Star Journey Live event in mid November hosted at the Washington Technology Magnet School in St. Paul. There, health leaders, community members and youth advocates explored the complex interplay of genetic factors and life experiences that contribute to substance abuse, addiction and mental health challenges in Minnesota's Hmong and Karen communities. They also addressed the long-lasting impacts of immigration experiences, highlighting the urgent need for improved mental health data within Minnesota's communities of color. Listen to this special North Star Journey Live discussion, moderated by MPR News host Angela Davis and Sahan Journal's Samantha HoangLong. Scenes from the event Guests: Say Klo Wah is a youth case manager at the Karen Organization of Minnesota.François Vang is a clinical social worker who currently works as a therapist at Nystrom and Associates. Dr. Dziwe Ntaba is an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Thanks to a Bush Foundation Fellowship in 2021, Dr. Ntaba also worked within the Minneapolis Health Department's Opioid Response Team.Abdirahman Mukhtar is a community leader, youth advocate and the founder of Daryeel Youth, a nonprofit organization that specifically targets substance abuse and addiction issues among East African youth in the Twin Cities.North Star Journey Live (formerly known as In Focus) is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

We're entering an expensive time of year for energy use. Electricity bills soar in the winter with all the energy it takes to heat a home. That's even more true if you live in a mobile home — which can be drafty, inefficient and unequipped for a Minnesota winter. New grants are helping change that in at least two Minnesota cities. Andrew Hazzard is an environmental reporter for Sahan Journal and he's been covering the story. He joined MPR News guest host Nina Moini. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

The Minnesota Hockey community is mourning today after a former standout with the UMD men's hockey team died in a freak accident during a game overseas. We remember Adam Johnson.And we hear from Palestinian Minnesotans, who are waiting with a sense of dread for news from Gaza as the death toll continues to mount.The head of the Sahan Journal news organization announced today he is stepping down. We talk with Mukhtar Ibrahim about the decision and what comes next.And we catch up with Minneapolis musician Mike Kota, named one of First Avenue's best new bands of 2022. We hear a bit of her new EP out next month.

The head of Sahan Journal, a Minnesota news organization dedicated to immigrants and communities of color, is stepping down after five years of leading the operation.Mukhtar Ibrahim said he's planning to step down as publisher and CEO when the organization finds a replacement for him.Ibrahim, who was a reporter at MPR News, said the move is personal. In a letter to readers this morning, he said the organization is “stronger than ever, with a secure financial footing, dedicated staff, a healthy organizational culture and loyal readers.” He's grown it from a staff of four and budget of $608,000 in 2020 to its current staff of 20 and budget of $2.5 million.Ibrahim said he is planning to take a break from work to spend more time with his family. He and his wife have three young daughters and welcomed a baby boy this June.While on paternity leave, Ibrahim said he reflected on his and his parents' story, and how he wanted his children's to be different.“In my late teens, I left Kenya with a single suitcase and moved to Minnesota. The past 18 years in America have been a whirlwind of learning, work, family and risk-taking,” he said. “I guess I inherited that risk-taking spirit from my parents. They moved across countries and continents in search of stability for their children.“This summer, I found myself thinking about the story my girls would tell about their family. How would they remember the family experiences we've had together — and all the time apart?”Sahan Journal will begin the work of finding a replacement for Ibrahim in the coming weeks.Ibrahim joined Minnesota Now Monday at noon to talk more about the decision. Click on the audio player above to listen to the conversation.

A tense custody battle over two children in Kandiyohi County in west central Minnesota has left the boys stuck in limbo. Minnesota state law is supposed to prioritize relatives in foster care and adoption. But since 2020, the two children at the center of this story have lived in four foster homes in Minnesota — despite their aunt's fight to adopt them.Sara Tiano reported this story for The Imprint – that's a nonprofit news site covering child welfare – in collaboration with Sahan Journal.

On today’s show: – Hysteria after right wingers claim a Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign vehicle was hit by a protestor in Iowa. Turns out it never happened. – Two stories about education and academic freedom  The Sahan Journal reports Muslim parents protest LGBTQ books at DaVinci Academy, a charter school in Ham Lake. An update on…

This show is made possible by you!  To become a sustaining member go to LauraFlanders.org/donateFrom the sinking lands of California's Central Valley to the depleting aquifers nationwide, we're at a critical point: Americans are running out of water. In this episode of Meet the BIPOC Press, a monthly collaboration between The Laura Flanders Show and URL Media, we take a closer look at the US water crisis that is affecting many Americans, and putting communities of color especially at risk. How are over-extraction and climate change impacting our water supply? BIPOC media outlets are bringing these stories to the forefront, debunking myths about climate change and uplifting solutions to this urgent issue. Joining us for this conversation are Warigia Bowman, Professor at the University of Tulsa College of Law, and Andrew Hazzard, Climate Reporter at Sahan Journal, which is dedicated to reporting on communities of color in Minnesota. Co-host S. Mitra Kalita is co-founder of URL Media, a national network of Black and Brown community news outlets. Kalita is also the publisher of Epicenter-NYC, a newsletter based in Queens, New York. How do we turn the tide on this crisis, before our water sources run dry?“We should change the food and the crops we grow, we should change what we eat. We should change how we view the role of agriculture in our society . . . Indigenous people are not well represented in academia or in industry for that matter, and they have already worked through some of these solutions.” - Warigia Bowman“As a climate reporter, I think it's my responsibility not only to raise the fact that there are major issues facing our society due to global warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels, but also to highlight that there are people that are working on solutions . . .” - Andrew Hazzard“I think you cannot separate water from healthcare. You can't separate water from housing. You can't separate water from race and Indigenous communities . . . By centering people of color, instantly we're in solutions mode in terms of how we're presenting these issues.” - S. Mitra KalitaGuests:Warigia Bowman: Professor, College of Law, University of TulsaAndrew Hazzard:  Climate Reporter, Sahan JournalS. Mitra Kalita: Co-Founder, URL Media; CEO & Publisher, Epicenter-NYC Full Episode Notes are located HERE.  They include related episodes, articles, and more.Music In the Middle:   ‘Yéla Mama' by  Eat My Butterfly featuring Lass & Sibu Manaï,  from the Climate Soundtrack album, produced by DJ's for Climate Action. And additional music included- "In and Out" and "Steppin" by Podington Bear 

Minnesota's communities of color are growing. That's the good news from U.S. Census data released Thursday morning. The bad news? Minnesotans of color still face more poverty and unemployment than white Minnesotans. Sahan Journal reporter Joey Peters joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to break down new data from an annual survey of populations across the country. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

A proposed affordable housing development in the southwestern suburb of Shakopee will move forward, after all — even though, behind closed doors, city officials reportedly planned to kill the project. Sahan Journal reporter Katelyn Vue broke the story, and she's been following the dramatic fight over the proposed property in Shakopee.

The first day of school means new beginnings. Today, hundreds of elementary school students in St. Paul are going to class for the first time at the nation's first East African magnet school. A handful of schools have closed in St. Paul over the last several years as the district faces sharp enrollment declines. So this school's success was far from certain. Sahan Journal education reporter Becky Dernbach has been covering this story from the beginning — she talked with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about it.

Most schools in Minnesota start in just two weeks. But until Friday, students at JJ Legacy School didn't know where they'd be reporting to class.The school was evicted from its former home, Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in North Minneapolis, after a messy battle over building repairs. Becky Dernbach is a reporter with Sahan Journal who has been following the story and she joined guest host Emily Bright to get us up to speed.

As a single mother, a Muslim, and a Somali-American worker living in Minnesota, Khali Jama has always had to fight for the life she, her family, and her fellow workers deserve. And earlier this year, after bringing that fight to the Minnesota state legislature, Khali and her coworkers achieved a major victory. "On May 16," Lisa Kwon reports in PRISM, "Minnesota lawmakers passed the nation's strongest Amazon warehouse worker protection legislation with the Warehouse Worker Protection Act, which ensures that workers can take breaks during the workday and have access to relevant quota and performance standards and data on how fast they're working. The bill's passage marks a significant victory for migrant workers—especially Minnesota's Somali immigrant population, of which the state has the largest in the country. For Khali Jama, a former worker in Amazon's fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minnesota, the new bill offers reprieve and protections that she worked to mobilize. As a Somali and a Muslim, Jama said the Warehouse Worker Protection Act ensures some equity in Minnesota's facilities." In this episode of Working People, TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez talks with Jama about moving to the midwest as a child, about her path to working in healthcare and at Amazon, and about the incredible story of how Khali, her coworkers, and the team at the Awood Center, which organizes in Minnesota's East African communities, fought to pass the Warehouse Worker Protection Act.Click here to read the transcript: https://therealnews.com/how-immigrant-warehouse-workers-in-minnesota-took-on-amazon-and-wonAdditional links/info below...Khali's Twitter pageAwood Center website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIsabela Escalona, WorkDay Magazine, "High Injury Rates Push Minnesota's Amazon Workers to Organize for Safety"Lisa Kwon, PRISM, "Warehouse Worker Protection Act Grants Migrant Workers in Minnesota Landmark Safety Protections"Matt Furber, Sahan Journal, "Amazon's Shakopee Workers Rally for Better Pay, Criticize Company for Not Giving Muslim Employees Vacation on Eid"Abdirahman Muse, Emma Greenman, & Erin Murphy, The Nation, "Minnesota Enacts Landmark Protections for Amazon Warehouse Workers"Permanent links below...Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music (all songs sourced from the Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org)Jules Taylor, "Working People" Theme SongMusic / Post-Production: Jules TaylorHelp us continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer: Donate: https://therealnews.com/donate-podSign up for our newsletter: https://therealnews.com/newsletter-podLike us on Facebook: https://facebook.com/therealnewsFollow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/therealnews

Only a small share of M Health Fairview patients leave the hospital early, against their doctor's advice. But according to new reporting in Sahan Journal, that number is five times higher for people who use opioids or meth, and and 10 to 12 times higher for people of color with those addictions. Doctor Ryan Kelly is working to reverse that trend. He's a general medicine hospitalist, primary care physician and also treats opioid dependence at the Community and University Health Care Center. He spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about why people with drug addictions check themselves out of the hospital early, and what is being done about it.

"I've never been an organizer," Khali Jama says, "but I've always fought." As a single mother, a Muslim, and a Somali-American worker living in Minnesota, Jama has always had to fight for the life she, her family, and her fellow workers deserve. And earlier this year, after bringing that fight to the Minnesota state legislature, Khali and her coworkers achieved a major victory. "On May 16," Lisa Kwon reports in PRISM, "Minnesota lawmakers passed the nation's strongest Amazon warehouse worker protection legislation with the Warehouse Worker Protection Act, which ensures that workers can take breaks during the workday and have access to relevant quota and performance standards and data on how fast they're working. The bill's passage marks a significant victory for migrant workers — especially Minnesota's Somali immigrant population, of which the state has the largest in the country. For Khali Jama, a former worker in Amazon's fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minnesota, the new bill offers reprieve and protections that she worked to mobilize. As a Somali and a Muslim, Jama said the Warehouse Worker Protection Act ensures some equity in Minnesota's facilities." In this episode, we sit down and talk with Jama about moving to the midwest as a child, about her path to working in healthcare and at Amazon, and about the incredible story of how Khali, her coworkers, and the team at the Awood Center, which organizes in Minnesota's East African communities, fought to pass the Warehouse Worker Protection Act. Additional links/info below... Khali's Twitter page Awood Center website, Facebook page, and Twitter page Isabela Escalona, WorkDay Magazine, "High Injury Rates Push Minnesota's Amazon Workers to Organize for Safety" Lisa Kwon, PRISM, "Warehouse Worker Protection Act Grants Migrant Workers in Minnesota Landmark Safety Protections" Matt Furber, Sahan Journal, "Amazon's Shakopee Workers Rally for Better Pay, Criticize Company for Not Giving Muslim Employees Vacation on Eid" Abdirahman Muse, Emma Greenman, & Erin Murphy, The Nation, "Minnesota Enacts Landmark Protections for Amazon Warehouse Workers" Permanent links below... Working People Patreon page Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music (all songs sourced from the Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org) Jules Taylor, "Working People" Theme Song  

Uber and Lyft drivers in Minnesota continue to fight for higher wages. Minneapolis is now considering an ordinance that would create minimum payment levels for rideshare drivers in the city.  Alfonzo Galvan has been following the story. He covers work, labor, small business and entrepreneurship for Sahan Journal.Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

It's been six years since former president Donald Trump signed an executive order banning immigration from Muslim-majority countries. It's been two years since President Biden rolled back the ban. But many Minnesota refugee families are still waiting to be reunited. Sahan Journal reporter Hibah Ansari joined MPR News host Emily Bright to give a sense of the scale of the family reunification backlog.

Hundreds of Minnesota special ed teachers don't have formal teacher training. Because of that, they're out of compliance with federal guidelines and because of that, the state is at risk of losing millions of federal dollars if they don't make a plan by this Sunday.That's according to Sahan Journal reporter Becky Dernbach. She talked with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about her reporting, and where the state might go from here.

This year's Latino Lawyer Camp just wrapped up in St. Paul. The camp gets rising ninth graders up close and personal to the legal profession.MPR News host Emily Bright spoke with Jorge Saavedra, one of the attorneys behind the camp, and Soli Rangel, a graduate of this year's camp and a rising ninth grader at Minnetonka High School.You can read more about this year's camp in the Sahan Journal, an online news source covering BIPOC and refugee communities across Minnesota.Registration for next year isn't open yet, but you can follow any updates on Facebook and Instagram. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.   We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

You can thank trash for keeping the lights on in Minneapolis' north loop. An incinerator there called the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center, known colloquially as the HERC, has been burning trash to create steam since the late 1980s. But under a new Minnesota law, the HERC is no longer considered renewable energy, putting its future in flux. MPR News guest host Emily Bright spoke with Sahan Journal's environmental reporter, Andrew Hazzard, who has been following the story.

In a time when the information we consume is often curated or reinforced by what we like on social media or the news outlets we follow, Mukhtar Ibrahim is working to shift the narrative by giving immigrants and communities of color the kind of committed, responsive news coverage that we all deserve.  In this episode of I So Appreciate You!, co-hosts Nadege Souvenir and Melanie Hoffert explore the complexities of journalism and the importance of intentionally changing the dominant narrative with the publisher and CEO of the Sahan Journal. “The way you shape and frame a story really matters. And who tells the story matters. That's why I founded the Sahan Journal, so we won't have to have that tension or questioning of how we put together a story, because as long as we're following the basic journalistic skills and principles, everything will just move on.” - Mukhtar Ibrahim   Links Sahan Journal website Sahan Journal on Facebook Sahan Journal on Twitter Sahan Journal on Instagram Mukhtar Ibrahim on LinkedIn Mukhtar Ibrahim on Twitter Mukhtar Ibrahim on Instagram

Land acknowledgments have become common place over the past decades. They appear on the websites of universities, are read before corporate conferences and are displayed in museums. But many say words are not enough. So Little Canada's Indian Land Tenure Foundation has created a way for individuals and organizations to help tribal nations buy land. Cris Stainbrook is the president of the Indian Land Tenure Foundation — he talked with host Cathy Wurzer about the new initiative. You can read more about the story in the Sahan Journal– that's a nonprofit digital newsroom dedicated to reporting for immigrants and communities of color in Minnesota.

Minnesota Democratic leaders have a new majority in the House and Senate— and say education is a priority in 2023. What will that look like in practice when it comes to school funding? Host Cathy Wurzer talked with Becky Dernbach, an education reporter with the Sahan Journal.

Buying a house a part of the American Dream. Some people have a mortgage through a lender, others through a “contract for deed.” But this direct transaction between buyer and seller is risky. A new investigation from ProPublica and the Sahan Journal has found that local real estate investors are targeting Somali Muslim families to engage in these risky financial deals. Jessica Lussenhop is one of the reporters behind the investigation, and she joined host Cathy Wurzer to explain the issue. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.  Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.    We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.

Meet some of the people who bring you the news at Minnesota Public Radio. Behind the coverage at MPR News is a whole staff of newscasters, hosts, producers, reporters and photojournalists. They bring stories to life on the radio and on MPR's website and social media pages. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with four new faces in the MPR News newsroom about their paths into journalism, how they do their work and details behind some of their recent stories.  Guests:  Michelle Wiley is a senior reporter covering health at MPR News. She was previously a reporter and senior editor at KQED in San Francisco. Courtesy of Michelle Wiley MPR News health reporter Michelle Wiley. Kerem Yücel is a senior visual journalist at MPR News. He's been featured in Time magazine, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Washington Post, BBC.com, CNN.com and Agence France-Presse. Ben Hovland is a visual journalist for MPR News. His photo and video reporting has appeared in The Washington Post, Agence France-Presse, BBC and Sahan Journal. Jacob Aloi is an arts reporter for MPR News. He was previously involved in the performing arts, podcasting and community radio in the Twin Cities. Ben Hovland | MPR News MPR News photojournalist Ben Hovland poses for a selfie with host Angela Davis and senior visual journalist Kerem Yücel during a recording session in St. Paul on Oct. 5. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Meet some of the people who bring you the news at Minnesota Public Radio. Behind the coverage at MPR News is a whole staff of newscasters, hosts, producers, reporters and photojournalists. They bring stories to life on the radio and on MPR's website and social media pages. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with four new faces in the MPR News newsroom about their paths into journalism, how they do their work and details behind some of their recent stories.  Guests:  Michelle Wiley is a senior reporter covering health at MPR News. She was previously a reporter and senior editor at KQED in San Francisco. Courtesy of Michelle Wiley MPR News health reporter Michelle Wiley. Kerem Yücel is a senior visual journalist at MPR News. He's been featured in Time magazine, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Washington Post, BBC.com, CNN.com and Agence France-Presse. Ben Hovland is a visual journalist for MPR News. His photo and video reporting has appeared in The Washington Post, Agence France-Presse, BBC and Sahan Journal. Jacob Aloi is an arts reporter for MPR News. He was previously involved in the performing arts, podcasting and community radio in the Twin Cities. Ben Hovland | MPR News MPR News photojournalist Ben Hovland poses for a selfie with host Angela Davis and senior visual journalist Kerem Yücel during a recording session in St. Paul on Oct. 5. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or RSS. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Episode 2360 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about artist Teo Nguyen and his exhibit at the Minneapolis Institute of Art showing Vietnam at peace. The featured story comes from The Sahan Journal and is titled: … Continue reading → The post Episode 2360 – Teo Nguyen paints a peaceful Vietnam appeared first on .

We spoke with Noor Adwan about her article in the Sahan Journal on the Urban Bird Collective and their work to close the nature gap by spreading the love of birding to BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities

We spoke with Noor Adwan about her article in the Sahan Journal on the Urban Bird Collective and their work to close the nature gap by spreading the love of birding to BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities

Dan and Ellen talk with their colleague at Northeastern University, Dr. Meredith Clark. Dr. Clark is an associate professor in the School of Journalism & the Department of Communication Studies at Northeastern. Before arriving at Northeastern, she was a faculty fellow at Data & Society, an independent nonprofit research organization based in New York that examines some of the questions being raised by the massive increase in the use of data in all aspects of society. Dr. Clark's research is on the intersections of race, media, and power, and she's studied everything from newsroom hiring and reporting practices to social media communities. Her media diet is wide-ranging and eclectic. Our interview touches on many cultural icons, including poet Audre Lorde and Captain Olivia Benson, the fictional "Law & Order SVU" crime solver. In Quick Takes, Dan discusses Gannett's recent move to dismantle some of the chain's regional editorial pages and Ellen tips the hat to two of the 2022 recipients of the prestigious Freedom of the Press Award, Wendi C. Thomas, founding editor and publisher of MLK50: Justice Through Journalism, and Mukhtar Ibrahim, founding publisher and CEO of Sahan Journal.    

Educators in the Minneapolis and St. Paul teachers unions could strike as early as tomorrow. Reporter Becky Dernbach of Sahan Journal has been monitoring the evolving story and joined host Cathy Wurzer for a conversation about what's at stake.

Our local newspapers are being merged, purged, shrunk, shut down, and looted by Wall Street profiteers – yet there's good news. In the towns those media vultures are torching, a phoenix is rising! Hundreds of determined locals, often led by people of color, are finding new ways to pay for and revive top-quality, local journalism. For example, the Ferndale (CA) Enterprise moved to an old Victorian home, renting upstairs rooms to vacationers to subsidize the paper. Also, while aloof Wall Street owners have no connection to us or our towns, the scrappy new community papers are stressing their grassroots connection by moving into friendlier, more central, street-level spaces – such as public libraries and community centers – so that regular people can see them and have direct access to their reporters and editors. Then there's the editor of the Sahan Journal in Minneapolis, who moves his weekly editorial meeting to the offices of various grassroots groups so their members can help shape the paper's coverage. And in Marfa, Texas, the Big Bend Sentinel is literally serving the public, not only with a good weekly, but also with The Sentinel – a combo coffee shop, cozy bar, cafe, event space, and hangout for locals to meet and greet. In ways big and small, dedicated local journalists are experimenting with funding, structures, staffing, etc., to produce the news that democracy requires. Note to Wall Street vultures: These newspaper ventures aren't interested in “scaling-up” to maximize investor profits. As they know, it was corporate cost-cutting, consolidation, and “scaling” that got us into today's mess of journalistic collapse. Instead, by sharing ideas and resources, these local innovators help each other succeed. And, unlike the Wall Street model, their success is not measured simply by financial return, but also by how they do at keeping citizens informed and engaged. Now that's real journalism.

We discover the Sahan Journal and its fearless work regarding the food fraud scandal. LA district attorney George Gascon is facing push-back recall vote in LA. Johnny Heidt with guitar news.

Inés San Martín and John Allen join the What Works podcast to discuss the founding of Crux, a digital site that covers all things Catholic, and the "corporate resurrection" that took place three days after The Boston Globe shut it down. Crux quickly partnered with the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic service organization, and now is a hybrid business model combining nonprofit support, crowd-funding and advertising. Ellen shares an update on a high-impact investigative project by Sahan Journal, and Dan discusses the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, which has bipartisan support on Capitol Hill but is not a perfect solution to the local news crisis. 

Becky Dernbach, education reporter for the Sahan Journal spoke to several BIPOC teachers facing unique challenges during the pandemic. Jeff Garcia, a Special Education teacher for Middle School student with St Paul Public Schools also joins the conversation to share his view point on the challenges teaching in the pandemic.

Jaida Grey Eagle is a photojournalist working for the Sahan Journal in Minneapolis through Report For America. She is Oglala Lakota and was born in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, and raised in Minneapolis. Her photography has been published in a wide range of publications, and featured on a billboard on Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. She is also a co-producer of "Sisters Rising," a documentary film about six Native American women reclaiming person and tribal sovereignty in the face of sexual violence. Dan and Ellen offer quick takes on paywalls and media companies that target well-heeled readers, and on Evan Smith's announcement that he's stepping down from the Texas Tribune.

Andrew Hazzard of the Sahan Journal highlights the history of Olson Memorial Hwy, some of the safety concerns and the changes the Bring Back 6th group believes would turn this into a road that really serves the those in the neighborhood.

Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine – Weekly Radio ShowNative Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce -- a.k.a. Minnesota -- to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community. Native Lights – Jaida Grey Eagle Gifts for Photojournalism, Filmmaking, and BeadworkOn today's show, we talk with Jaida Grey Eagle (Oglala Lakota) a photojournalist, film producer, beadwork artist, and writer. Jaida earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Photography from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  We loved this conversation, hearing about how she got her start in photojournalism and landed her current job at Sahan Journal.  Jaida shares the story of becoming a co-producer of the Sister Rising documentary, a powerful film about six Native women reclaiming their sovereignty. And we get to hear some fun stories about what it's like to freelance for the New York Times and Vogue. Plus, Jaida explains her long love of beadwork art, inspired by her great-grandmother's quilts, and her family's legacy as Lakota artists.   We appreciate Jaida's fearless willingness to try new things and her enthusiastic encouragement for up-and-coming Native media makers!Learn more about Jaida's many creative pursuits on her website: https://www.jaidagreyeagle.com/ Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine is produced by Minnesota Native News and Ampers, Diverse Radio for Minnesota's Communities with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund. Online at https://minnesotanativenews.org/

Full episode notes are at https://Patreon.com/theLFShowBIPOC journalists reflect on what it is to be veterans of two of the most devastating wars in recent history: the coronavirus pandemic and the centuries-long war on Black bodies through systemic racism and police brutality. In this media roundtable—a collaboration between The Laura Flanders Show and URL Media—we take a different approach to Memorial Day. One that centers the work of BIPOC journalists from the front lines. How are they responding to the needs of their communities, and where do we go from here?  Music in the Middle features “Prosper” by Inez Barlatier feat. St. James Valsin and produced by the Guitars Over Guns Organization.Our monthly media roundtable is hosted by URL Media co-founders Sara Lomax-Reese and S. Mitra Kalita and features Garry Pierre-Pierre, founder and publisher of The Haitian Times, and Mukhtar Ibrahim, editor and executive director of Sahan Journal. We are coming to the finish line of our May Day to Memorial Day fund drive to raise $25,000. While mainstream media or money media keeps you in a bubble, we're committed to popping that bubble by continuing to bring you radical, intersectional media! Can we depend on you to chip in? Go to LauraFlanders.org/donate and join our team by making a donation today. Thanks

One year after the murder of George Floyd, Maria and Julio are joined by Mel Reeves, political organizer and community editor of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, and Hibah Ansari, immigration reporter at Sahan Journal, to reflect on policing in the United States. They break down what has been missing from mainstream media coverage and discuss the radical transformations needed on the local and national level. SAVE THE DATE: Our next virtual LIVE ITT show is tomorrow Wednesday, May 26th at 7pm ET! Maria and Julio will be joined by Georgia Fort, award winning independent journalist and Tarkor Zehn, journalist and audio producer to discuss police violence, racial justice and healing in Minneapolis during the week that marks one year since the police murder of George Floyd. For more info and to RSVP, click here.This episode is sponsored by Ground News - The world's first news comparison platform. Download Ground News for free: http://ground.news/thickITT Staff Picks:Read Mel Reeves’ latest in his blog, Fight The Power Journal, where he writes: “Internecine community violence (so-called Black on Black violence) and police violence spring from the same source, they are rooted in White Supremacy and the social/ political/ economic system: capitalism.”For the Sahan Journal, Hibah Ansari writes about the families that are still seeking justice for their loved ones who were killed by police in the Twin Cities area.The Star Tribune’s photo essay, “The Crossroads of Minneapolis,” documents the intersection between 38th and Chicago Avenue, where George Floyd has been memorialized.Photo credit: AP Photo/Morry Gash See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.