Is Everyone Irish on Saint Patrick’s Day? You Decide…
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Saint Paul’s eyes are smiling. Corina Bernstein captured Saint Paul’s annual Saint Patrick’s Day parade in full effect. Continue Reading
Tune In and Celebrate International Women’s Day on KFAI Radio
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Instead of regularly scheduled programming on KFAI radio today, listeners will hear from a global community of women sharing their stories. This is the 26th year KFAI has broadcast an entire day of shows produced by, for and about women living here in the Twin Cities. Planning for International Women’s Day is a process because KFAI does programming mainly by committee. International Women’s day planning has been in the works since November of 2014 with about a dozen or so people involved. KFAI program Fresh Fruit co-host Quinn Villagomez is one of those members. She said they received more than 34 applications this year after sending out requests for programming to women, self-identifying women and youth interested in creating a radio program. Continue Reading
St. Paul March Planned to Honor the Historic Selma March
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The public is invited to participate in a march to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the historic and bloody Selma marches of 1965, catalytic events that led to the passage of the U.S. Voting Rights Act.Cheryl Chatman, Executive Vice President and Dean of Diversity at Concordia University-St. Paul, one of the organizers, said that many local religious, academic, and civil rights institutions have come together to plan the march. “We feel it is critically important to remember this major turning point in the U.S. Civil Rights struggle—and to underscore the Civil Rights work that still needs to be done,” she said.People interested in joining the march are asked to arrive at the Minnesota State Capitol at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 8, for a brief introductory program. The half-mile route will cross the Cedar Street Bridge over I-94, recalling the Selma marchers who crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge en route to protest laws and practices that denied black people the right to vote. The St. Continue Reading
Governor’s Appointment Draws Praise and Applause from Local Somali Community
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It’s not everyday that a Governor’s appointment gets special attention, reception or special interest from local and international media. But then again, it’s not everyday that the governor appoints a minimum wage worker to oversee an agency that has such direct impact on the lives of thousands of people everyday. Ibrahim Mohamed, a cart driver for Air Serv is now part of the Metropolitan Airports Commission. His appointment drew more than fifty people, including Governor Dayton, members of the Metropolitan Airports Commission and community leaders on a chilly Tuesday evening at the Brian Coyle Center in the Cedar Riverside Neighborhood. He is the first Somali-American to hold that post and was appointed by Governor Dayton in Febraury. Continue Reading
Bitter Cold Does Little to Dampen the Spirit of a Winter May Day Parade
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Below zero temperatures and the bitter wind chills did little to dampen spirits of those who enjoyed the first annual Lantern Festival put on by Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre last Saturday. Five giant animals representing constellations in the night sky led hundreds of people on a procession across Marquette plaza. Community created lanterns were handed out so folks could join in as music by the Brass Messengers filled the air. This community event was a collaboration between the Downtown Council and HOBT after the cancellation of last years Hollidazzle parade.Catherine Jordan, from Heart of the Beast said the festival was a little like a winter May Day Parade.“Mpls Lantern Fest not only brings people together, but it allows us to embrace the heart of winter while ushering in the warmth and illumination of spring,” she said, “We’re thrilled to have this opportunity to shine light on our great downtown.”Despite the weather, hundreds of people turned out to, “Light the Winter Night”. All photos were taken by © Anna Min of Min Enterprises Photography, LLC
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Lighting up the Night for Lantern Festival
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Minneapolis residents got ready for the first annual Lantern Festival, set to take place Saturday night. Nicollet mall will be filled with lanterns of all shapes, sizes, colors and animals. For the last month, community workshops have been held from Powderhorn Park to North Minneapolis in anticipation. Here are some photos taken by Anna Min and Allison Herrera to give you an idea of what you’ll be seeing.Click here for more information about Saturday’s events.
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KFAI Celebrates Black History Month
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KFAI radio station is determined to champion the diverse voices of its community, its listeners and its producers. That was certainly the case at an event at T’s Place on Lake Street. Musicians, emcees and performers topped off a daylong of programming dedicated to issues and the lives of African Americans living here in Minnesota. This exclusive day of programming is in its fourth year. The entire day of programming can be found here.Meanwhile, enjoy these awesome photos brought to The Daily Planet by photographer Rajib Bahar. Continue Reading
Activists Take Morrill Hall
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Authorities arrested 13 University of Minnesota students and community members on Monday night after a sit-in at Morrill Hall that lasted nearly seven hours.
Is the Minneapolis Park Board guided by lessons from the past — or haunted by its history?
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It doesn’t take long these days for any discussion among the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board about transportation projects to turn to the past.The past, as in when freeway builders wanted to build an elevated, multilane Hwy. 55 over Minnehaha Park; or when another plan would have had that same roadway burrow beneath Minnehaha Creek — just a few hundred feet from the falls.The past, when the state highway department demanded and received pieces of various parks — including Loring Park and The Parade — to build I-94, I-35W and Hwy. 12; or when the board gave in to political pressure to sell a large piece of Wirth Park to Prudential Insurance (for a building now owned by Target).The past, when the Park Board could have stopped irreversible losses to the parks system — if they had just been more resistant to political pressure.That’s the view of some on the board, at least. That if not for a change in policy and strategy started nearly 50 years ago, an elevated freeway — among other short-sighted projects — might today pass over one of the state’s most-visited attractions. That it was only after a more-assertive approach was taken, board members say, that a message was sent: If you wanted Minneapolis parkland for non-park uses, you better be ready for a fight.Protective – or overprotective? Continue Reading