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271,000 Minnesota households pay more than 30% of their income in rent
Just one in four households that are eligible for rental assistance actually get it. When the state’s three largest housing agencies opened up their waiting lists for Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers last summer, they received more than 45,000 applications for just 7,500 spots. That was for a spot on the waiting list, not for […]
Bemidji activists to hold funeral for the Constitution ahead of State of the Union
Hours before President Donald Trump delivers his fourth State of the Union address Tuesday, a child will place a copy of the Constitution in a handmade coffin in Bemidji. Attendees, dressed in black, will read the Bill of Rights and portions of the Constitution before placing their hand-written fears into the coffin. “It’s nothing fancy,” […]
SEIU health care workers headed for strike vote with HealthPartners
Hundreds of nurses, lab technicians, dental hygienists and other health care workers are headed toward a strike vote this week after failing to reach an agreement about their health coverage with their employer HealthPartners. HealthPartners and the negotiating team for SEIU Healthcare Minnesota worked late into the night on Friday, with their previous contract expiring […]
Mayor Frey aims to rein in off-duty police work, creates task force
When former police officer Mohamed Noor clocked in for his 10-hour police shift on the July night he shot and killed Justine Ruszczyk in south Minneapolis, he had just come from a seven-hour shift moonlighting as a security guard. More than two years later, Mayor Jacob Frey plans to create a task force to examine […]
Minneapolis council member to lead housing authority
Minneapolis City Council Member Abdi Warsame got the job at the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority. The Sahan Journal reports Warsame was tapped to be the next CEO/Executive Director of MPHA, which serves some 26,000 people through managing the city’s public housing and administering the Housing Choice “Section 8” Voucher Program. It was announced Wednesday at […]
3,000 HealthPartners workers prepared to strike over their own health care
More than 1,800 nurses and other medical care workers at HealthPartners could vote to strike next week if they don’t reach a new contract agreement by Friday at midnight. The workers say they are standing firm against a company effort to cut employee health benefits. HealthPartners, which has 26,000 employees and more than $7 billion […]
Lewis stumps for blocking refugee resettlement in Bemidji
BEMIDJI — On the campaign trail for a U.S. Senate seat, Jason Lewis made a stop in Bemidji Thursday night to host a discussion many here say they wish they weren’t having at all: refugee resettlement. The topic has been a flash point since the Beltrami County Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 to not accept […]
Minnesotan wins national fellowship to teach Indigenous birthing practices
Dorene Day, an Ojibwe midwife, was one of 10 Indigenous people from across the country selected for a $50,000 fellowship, which she’ll use to continue her work teaching Indigenous birthing practices.
Minneapolis council member tries for top job at Housing Authority
City Council Member Abdi Warsame, Ward 6, is interviewing for the top job at the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority, according to a staff member in Warsame’s office. If offered the position, Warsame would not be able to keep his seat on the council. His current term doesn’t end until 2022, so he would need to […]
Minneapolis Council Members want to ban fur coat sales
Minneapolis City Council Members Alondra Cano and Cam Gordon announced today they plan to introduce an ordinance that would ban the sale and manufacture of new animal fur products. The proposed fur ban would threaten the business of one of the largest fur retailers in the United States, Ribnick Fur & Leather, which was founded […]
Beltrami County refugee vote hypocritical, commissioner says
When Beltrami County became the first local government in Minnesota to refuse to accept new refugees under President Donald Trump’s executive order, one county commissioner noted the irony and hypocrisy of the vote. Commissioner Tim Sumner, a member of the Red Lake Nation, told the Star Tribune, “A lot of people that migrated here are […]
The most in demand jobs in Minnesota don’t pay enough to live here
Of the 10 most in-demand jobs in Minnesota right now, only half pay the $15 an hour needed to meet the basic costs of living in the state. And that’s assuming you’re single, with no kids or anyone else to support, don’t have student debt, can find a cheaper-than-average home, and can get 40 hours […]