Vol. 89
Inside this Edition...
Check out MSR’s weekly Summer Guide on page 8
THE VOICE OF BLACK MINNESOTA SINCE 1934
June 8 - 14, 2023
PRST STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID TWIN CITIES MN PERMIT NO. 6391
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No. 45
The case for juvenile justice reform
Phone: 612-827-4021
Death Notice
Norma Jean Williams
Sunrise, December 28, 1941—Sunset, June 6, 2023
N
orma Jean Williams was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and passed away on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, in Burnsville, MN. She was the daughter of the late publishers, Cecil Newman and Launa Newman.
By Abdi Mohamed Contributing Writer weeping reforms are set to be put in place regarding juvenile justice in Minnesota following Governor Tim Walz’s signing legislation last month that would reform how the system handles juveniles. Among these reforms is the end of juvenile solitary confinement, restricting the use of strip searches, the creation of the Office of Restorative Practices, and reducing the number of years a juvenile sentenced to life can petition Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty Submitted photo the parole board to review their sentence after 15 years niles was a violation of the 8th years to change Minnesota rather than 30 years. Amendment and deemed it state law to comply with the The precedent for these cruel and unusual punishment. high court’s ruling. reforms came in 2012, when Since the Supreme Court’s Doug Keillor is the director of the Supreme Court ruled that decision, several advocacy Juvenile Justice Advocates Interlife imprisonment without the groups and communities have national, a global organization possibility of parole for juve- worked together over the dedicated to protecting the
www.spokesman-recorder.com
Additional information about Norma Jean Williams’ passing is forthcoming.
rights of children. Keillor stated that the U.S. is far behind the rest of the world when it comes to these kinds of reforms that work to rehabilitate juveniles in the criminal justice system. “Within the context of the United States being the only country that allows this, Minnesota is one of the very last
states—meaning it’s one of the very last jurisdictions in the entire world—that has finally gotten rid of life sentences without the possibility of parole for children,” he said. Though Keillor’s organization is based in Mexico City and has an office in St. Paul, the juvenile justice reform bill was the first piece of leg-
islation in the U.S. that they helped pass despite their international focus. Perry Moriearty, a professor of criminal law and juvenile justice, has been working on these reforms in Minnesota for the past decade, helping craft bills year after year. She has now finally seen those efforts ■ See MORIARTY on page 5
Minneapolis sees drop in gun-related violence so far this year
illegal guns in 2022, setting a department record despite the shortage of officers. Police reports show that so far, 461 guns ccording to the Minneapolis Police Department, the have been confiscated in 2023, a 16 percent improvement month of May saw the lowest recorded number of gun- over last year’s record pace. However, not all the citywide crime data was favorable. shot victims over the past four years. “Violent crime is dropping and the fact that shootings are Not surprisingly, auto thefts, and to a lesser extent, propeven below pre-pandemic levels underscores that what we are erty vandalism were higher than in previous years. The doing is working,” said Mayor Jacob Frey in a press release. “It’s recorded number of auto thefts citywide through not easy to combat the gun violence epidemic we are seeing May was more than twice the number over the in Minneapolis and across the nation. But our officers and law same period last year. With nearly 4,000 stoenforcement partners have been doing incredible work to get len cars so far in 2023, that number far exa record number of guns off the street.” ceeds the previous three-year average of The citywide crime data report issued on June 5, reflects the 1,745. Not nearly as troubling as auto overall decrease in violent crime in Minneapolis this year, with thefts, so far this year the increase in 75 fewer gunshot-wound victims compared to last year, and property vandalism is up by almost 104 fewer gunshot-wound victims compared to the same time 33 percent. The increase in auto in 2021.The data reflects the continued drop in the number of thefts may be related to the Minneapolis residents who become victims of gun violence, failure of manufacturers to based on the report. install anti-theft devices in In addition, Minneapolis police officers confiscated 1,100 ■ See CRIME on page 5 MSR News Service
The future of work, education and AI
How artificial intelligence is changing the cultural landscape By Cole Miska Contributing Writer
Ella Baker Global Studies and that partners with schools to Comprised of three exHumanities Magnet School at- “reimagine education and cre- perts—Pulitzer Prize-winning tended the meeting. The event ate more inclusive, student- New York Times columnist n an open letter signed by was hosted by the nonprofit centered, and future-ready Thomas L. Friedman, U.S. State Department Senior Admore than 350 executives, World Savvy, an organization learning communities.” engineers and researchers working on artificial intelligence (AI), the Center for AI Safety released a statement this week warning of the technology’s dire consequences to humanity and disruption of global markets—even extinction. Last month, a panel on the future of work and schools was held at The Machine Shop in Northeast Minneapolis that touched on AI and its longterm impact on the economy and different job sectors. Several hundred people including educators, business people, and a group of Sundis Mohamud, a 7th grader at Ella Baker Global Studies and Humanities Magnet School middle-school students from Photo by Thomas Ryan
visor Hamse Warfa, and World Savvy CEO Dana Mortenson— the panel was moderated by William Guadelli, dean of the College of Education at Lehigh University. In addition to AI, the discussion covered several work- and education-related topics, including globalization and what educators can do to best prepare students for the future. Friedman called the current state of AI a “Promethean moment,” referring to the Greek myth in which Prometheus steals the fire from the gods on Mt. Olympus and gives it to humanity to build civilization. He also likened it to the invention of the printing press, but noted that the printing press took centuries to scale and that there could be unintentional damage done by the
much faster speed at which AI technology is advancing. Friedman said the three things that will be most important for students and workers to successfully utilize AI will be self-motivation, access to technologies, and personal character. Warfa added that he believed empathy and an inclusive society would also be needed to fully utilize coming technological advancement. He hopes that the education system will be built to see and hear every student, regardless of background, and believes empathy will be required not only for the future of work but the future of building democracies and communities. Despite the risks, however, AI technology such as ChatGPT ■ See AI PANEL on page 5