Minnesota Voices
MN VOICES | Syd Beane: "You learn organizing by doing organizing"
Growing up at the height of the Civil Rights Movement inspired Syd Beane, 68, to become a community organizer/community developer and fight for Native Americans. For nearly 40 years he traversed the country advocating for Indians and others invisible to those in power. In 1993, Beane moved to Minnesota, ending an exile imposed on the Dakota 150 years ago.MORE »
MN VOICES | Anne Long at Plymouth Christian Youth Center
Anne Long has worked for the Plymouth Christian Youth Center in North Minneapolis since 1973, including the past decade as executive director. She lives seven blocks from the Center and has been a part of many initiatives over the years to improve the north side. The Center is a $3.7 million operation, including a contract alternative high school. The Center also owns and operates the Capri Theater, one of the latest efforts to improve educational opportunities for youth and revitalize the community. Long sat down and talked to Daily Planet reporter Scott Russell about her life, the Center and North Minneapolis. MORE »
MINNESOTA VOICES | Dr. Ghafar Lakanwal
Dr. Ghafar Lakanwal is a native of Afghanistan, an ex-political asylee, a Muslim immigrant, a U.S. citizen, a victim of racism, and someone who fights against racism. Each facet of Lakanwal’s identity has impacted his life in a unique way, some facets more than others. MORE »
MINNESOTA VOICES | Ramón León connects business and justice
Growing up working in a family-run furniture business in Mexico, Ramón León learned from his parents that social justice is paramount to running a good business. “If you have 10 employees, you are not just impacting 10 lives, you are impacting 10 families,” his parent told him. That lesson has been his guide as a Twin Cities business and community leader over the past couple of decades.MORE »
MN VOICES | Jack Reuler and Mixed Blood Theater
In the converted old firehouse that the Mixed Blood Theater calls home, audiences can see diverse ensembles collaborating for a common purpose: To perform high quality, socially conscious theater. But much of Mixed Blood's programming happens offstage. They also hold performances in schools, churches, offices, and juvenile detention centers. It's all part of founder Jack Reuler's vision that theater can effect powerful change when it is part of a collaborative, grassroots effort. Reuler's activism earned him a recent nomination for the Facing Race Ambassador award, which honors those "who excel in creating opportunities for people of all races to understand the impact of racism."MORE »
Ken Porwoll: St. Paul barber with “a consistent and caring presence” honored by McKnight Foundation
Ken Porwoll is 89 years old. Every week for the past 25 years he has gone downtown to cut hair for clients at Listening House, a day and evening shelter and community center that provides hospitality, practical assistance and counsel to people who are homeless, disadvantaged, or lonely. It is located in downtown St. Paul.MORE »
John Poupart: Work on strengthening American Indian communities honored by McKnight Foundation
“Our oral history defines who we are. Our language comes from the Creator as a gift to us as a people, and we are the original people of the Western Hemisphere.MORE »
MN VOICES | "We need to end child prostitution": Mayo Clinic's James A. Levine, author of "The Blue Notebook"
Four years ago, James A.MORE »
NEWS DAY | Lutherans come to MN
MN VOICES | Artist, activist Ricardo Levins Morales
