Twin Cities Daily Planet (https://www.tcdailyplanet.net/author/hindsight/page/8/)
So what, exactly, did John Kline vote for when he and his regressive colleagues passed HR 2642, the House version of the Farm Bill? It is already known that he voted against the Food Stamp (“SNAP”) program. But what else did he vote for (or against)? Continue Reading
Over the weekend hundreds of Minnesotans converged on North Minneapolis to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s march on Washington for jobs and justice. While progress has been made, we are still working toward many of the rights marchers originally fought for, education equity access to jobs, and economic opportunity. Continue Reading
Despite a rough start, most Minnesota corn fields are full and green, contributing to what the USDA predicts will be a “…record corn crop of 13.76 billion bushels in 2013…” Continue Reading
In April, the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced its intention to close 17 multifamily housing hubs nationwide. These closings would be part of a larger plan to consolidate staff to five main offices (Atlanta, Chicago, Fort Worth, New York, and San Francisco) and 5 satellite offices (Boston, Denver, Detroit, Kansas City, and Jacksonville). As a result of this consolidation, Minneapolis’ Multifamily Housing Hub will be closed. Continue Reading
If you have been a part of education in the United States at all, you are no doubt familiar with the “achievement gap,” the disparity in educational achievement attained between white and minority students. This is generally demonstrated with test scores and graduation rates, and pushes to even out these numbers have been endlessly debated and implemented, to mixed success. Continue Reading
When you buy meat at the grocery store, wouldn’t it be nice to know where it came from? The USDA thinks so, on May 23, they released a final ruling on Country-of-Origin-Labeling (COOL). In the new rule, which will go into effect within the next five months, establishes new guidelines for labeling meat products. However, COOL has drawn much resistance from both domestic and international organizations. Continue Reading
If you like eating strawberries in February, you realize that most of Minnesota’s fresh food comes from other places, including across national borders. 50% of fruits and 20% of vegetables consumed in the U.S. are imported from other countries. It may also be of interest to you that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on July 26th that they would be stepping up their safety inspections on most imported foods, much of this due to recent outbreaks. Continue Reading
Why would the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) at the University of Minnesota (U of M) consider partnering with an organization that promotes high teacher turnover, advocates that teachers need little to no training to teach in neighborhoods marginalized by disinvestment and state violence, and encourages its recruits to become administrators and educational policy makers after just two years of teaching? This question was on many of our minds when Dean Quam announced that CEHD was considering a partnership with Teach for America (TFA) during finals week this spring. Continue Reading
Federal involvement in educational policy began in 1965, under President Johnson, with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). PBS, in 2005, published a good historical snapshot of the federal government’s involvement in national education policy up to that time: Continue Reading
The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) has filed a lawsuit against the Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Edward DeMarco. The NLIHC arguesthat DeMacro has failed to uphold Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s obligation to make contributions to the National Housing Trust Fund (NHTF). When the NHTF was created in 2008—to help finance affordable housing—contributions from Fannie and Freddie were the dedicated source of funding. However, these obligations were suspended by DeMarco after Fannie and Freddie were placed under conservatorship in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Continue Reading