PRST STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID TWIN CITIES MN PERMIT NO. 6391
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THE VOICE OF BLACK MINNESOTA SINCE 1934
October 6 - 12, 2022
Vol. 89
Phone: 612-827-4021
No. 10
www.spokesman-recorder.com
Mpls keeps the homeless on the move
Officials claim safe shelter spaces available Photos courtesy of Jack Nobles By Cole Miska Contributing Writer
A
tent encampment of about 60 people at East 28th Street and Bloomington Avenue was the latest to be evicted in a series of forced relocations of
unhoused populations conducted by the City of Minneapolis this summer. A large force of Minneapolis Public Works employees with dozens of Minneapolis police and SWAT officers and at least 50 vehicles sectioned off several blocks in each direction of the camp in the early
morning of Sept. 30 and ordered residents to leave. In an interview prior to the eviction of the camp, one of the camp’s residents, Anthony (who declined to give a last name), said an eviction of the camp would be splitting up a community. Anthony moved into the
camp after moving back to Minneapolis, his hometown, from rehabilitation in Rochester. He found the camp through another resident he used to work with and said everyone in the camp is tight knit. “It’s tough being homeless.Then you find a place that’s
like home and you get kicked out,” Anthony said. Jack Nobles, who is a founder of the Sanctuary Supply Depot, and Christin Crabtree, a neighbor, witnessed the eviction. Both stated that residents were not given time to ■ See HOMELESS on page 5
Newark deputy SABOTAGING THE ELECTION PROCESS mayor nominated for Mpls police chief SECOND IN A SERIES By Mary Turck Contributing Writer
By Henry Pan Contributing Writer
Mayor Jacob Frey’s nominee for the next Minneapolis police chief pledged in a September 29 press conference to remake the city’s beleaguered police department into the “golden standard for policing” across the nation. Frey intends to nominate current Deputy Mayor of Newark Brian O’Hara for his experience in addressing a consent decree between the U.S. Department of Justice and the Newark Police
Brian O’Hara
Department, which reportedly rebuilt trust in Newark police but also was able, in Frey’s words, to “drive down crime in a serious way.” O’Hara became a Newark police officer in 2001, ultimately becoming captain. Little is known about what disciplinary actions he was subject to, as the City of Newark denied the MSR’s request for his disciplinary records on grounds that it would violate New Jersey law. In 2016, he was appointed public safety commissioner. ■ See CHIEF on page 5
This is the second of MSR’s “Elections Under Attack” series that looks at four threats to our elections growing out of the Big Lie that the former president won the 2020 election. Articles in the series look at each of these threats to democratic elections in the United States, with an emphasis on Minnesota. Election sabotage is not just something that could happen in November 2022 or in 2024: It is an ongoing crime that began with the 2020 election. This sabotage prominently included attempts to coerce state officials to “find” more votes, designation of illegal slates of electors, Congressional Republican votes against certification of election results, and the January 6 armed attack on the Capitol. Electoral sabotage continues with the Big Lie that the former president won the election and that there was widespread election fraud.
MGN of the We Choose Us campaign, said, “We have seen an increase in anti-democracy organizing that is happening across the state.” Election deniers pressure county boards to change the rules for vote counting and for absentee ballot returns, and to spend county time and money compiling masses of documents in response to informaYes, in Minnesota, too While other states have far tion requests. The absurdity of those worse problems with electoral sabotage, Minnesota is not claims is evident in Crow immune. Lilly Sasse, director Wing County, where elec-
The Big Liar and other proponents of the Big Lie ignore all evidence and now prepare to attack and undermine the coming elections. They cannot overturn the 2020 election, but they can foment distrust and disgust with the electoral process that is vital to democracy.
tion deniers insist that the 2020 election was fraudulent—despite Trump winning Crow Wing County by a margin of 30 percent. Crow Wing County Commissioner Steve Barrows told the Minnesota Reformer: “There are no facts backing up the fact that the Crow Wing County election in 2020 was rife with fraud. None. Zero.” Minnesota law requires hand-counting of ballots in a specific number of precincts ■ See ELECTIONS on page 5
NBA clubs promote finance app to bridge wealth gap By Charles Hallman Contributing Writer
ness with Stackwell, a Black-owned financial services technology company based in Boston. The partnership was announced late last month. The racial wealth gap is something Stackwell introduced a new finanthe Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx and three other NBA clubs are cial app in September that targets now addressing through a new part- Black Millennials, Generation Z’ers nership focused on financial well- and others, designed to both educate
Trevor Rozier-Byrd
Ryan Tanke Photos courtesy of Minnesota Timberwolves/Lynx
and grow their wealth in the financial market. Users can download it from the App Store and get started with a $1 monthly subscription fee and a commitment to invest a minimum of $10. The app also features financial literacy tools for its users. “Our insights have told us that one of the biggest contributing factors to the under-investment of Black Americans in the financial markets actually [is] the angst and anxiety,” said Stackwell Founder and CEO Trevor Rozier-Byrd in a recent MSR phone interview. “It was really important that we deliver the product to people in the community to help them streamline that decision and help them to gain access to a well-diversified portfolio that could give them exposure into the market that can help them grow and amass more wealth over time.” White Americans on average
have a median household wealth of over $135,000, while Black households have a median wealth of under $13,000, according to a WalletHub study. A 2018 PolicyLink
report surmised that racial equity in the U.S. would be achieved if the average incomes of Blacks and other people of color were increased by $18,000. According to the Minnesota Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Twin Cities Disparities by Race Report, the metro area’s median household income was $77,034 in 2018 but Black household median income was $36,047—over $47,000 less than White households. ■ See STACKWELL on page 5