The Black Owned Business Series – The Avenue Eatery

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The Black Owned Business Series Vol. 1 – The Avenue Eatery from SwayHeavy Productions on Vimeo. In an effort to encourage group economics and entrepreneurship within the black community, SwayHeavy has partnered with 4seen Magazine to create the “Black Owned Business Series”. In volume one of this series we visit one of the staple black owned businesses of north Minneapolis, The Avenue Eatery. Join us for a quick conversation with Sammy, as well as a peek into the inner goings of this thriving black business. Continue Reading

Adom African Market

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Tucked away in a little strip mall on the border of Richfield and Minneapolis is a small African market with a large ‘Obama 2012’ poster in the front window. Adom African Market stocks food for the local community of West Africans who traveled 6,000 miles to make new lives in the Twin Cities, but who still want a taste of home. Continue Reading

Clergy tell Bloomington to charge them, too, in #BlackLivesMatter protest

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Charge us, too. That’s what a growing list of clergy is telling Bloomington City Attorney Sandra Johnson and Mall of America administrators. Johnson says she expect to charge organizers of a Black Lives Matter protest at the Mall on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. The clergy are upset that the city would single out three or four organizers when so many people participated. They are also upset that mall administrators assumed that the peaceful protest could turn violent and brought in a large security and police presence, something the mall did not do for a cancer memorial event that drew about 7,000 people. Continue Reading

Top priorities for next MPS superintendent?

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Minneapolis school superintendent Bernadeia Johnson resigned in December, and will be replaced at the end of January by an interim superintendent while a search is conducted for a permanent replacement. We have asked three leading community voices on education to offer their views on what the top priorities should be for the next superintendent. (This is just an example of the kind of conversation about important community issues that we plan to host on the Daily Planet.) Continue Reading

Who are heroes and to whom? An Indigenous perspective on Columbus

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Last month, October 13, 2014, it was my pleasure to participate in a celebration at the Minneapolis American Indian Center. The occasion was the resolution passed by the Minneapolis City Council to have as a co-name, “Indigenous Peoples Day,” for what white U.S. society has celebrated as Columbus Day. Why do I rejoice at this name change? Columbus may have been a hero to U.S. Euro-Americans, particularly to Italian-Americans, however, Columbus is not a hero to not only the Indigenous Peoples of the U.S., but also to the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. Columbus used dogs trained to disembowel Native peoples when they fled. Continue Reading

IGGERS DIGEST | Katar River: flavors and aromas of Ethiopia

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It’s easy to miss the Katar River restaurant, hidden away in a little industrial strip behind the Lake & Hiawatha shopping center in south Minneapolis. And even if you saw the big sign outside, you probably wouldn’t know that this is specifically an Ethiopian restaurant, and a very good one. The basic menu is pretty much the same as most of the other Ethiopian restaurants in town – you get a big platter draped with thin sheets of spongy pancake-like injera bread, topped with your choice of one or more meat or vegetable dishes. Most entrees are in the $10.95-$12.95 range, and easily big enough for two. The meats are mostly stews of lamb, beef or chicken, ranging from mild to spicy, while the vegetable options include slow-cooked preparations of cabbage, carrots, lentils, split peas, beets, green beans and collard greens. Continue Reading

BEHIND THE STORY | Public art as a tool for racial equity

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From her first day on the job, Mayor Betsy Hodges has made racial equity the guiding principal of her administration. A hopeful message, that commitment to racial equity held with it a promise of finally leveraging the disparity gaps that plague nearly every facet of our city. Given that brave commitment, Hodge’s intention to cut funding for public arts in next year’s budget is all the more baffling. Instead of embracing the power of art to address the disparities that make our city unequal, Hodges intends to cut public funding altogether for next year. As Betsy Hodges notes in a statement, the funding designated for this year hasn’t been used yet. Continue Reading

Lynnell Mickelsen: Why all the conspiracy theories and pearl-clutching in this year’s school board race?

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This has been the hottest school board race I’ve seen in 25 years of living in Minneapolis, with lots of conspiracy theories and pearl-clutching. Many of my neighbors and friends see the furious posts on Facebook, with all the hysterical warnings about the imminent destruction of public education as we know it, and are honestly confused. They ask me what the hell is going on in this race. So here’s what I tell them. We put the school board race at the bottom of the ballot and often treat it like a homecoming king and queen contest. Continue Reading

The Roustabouts Live on Studio Five

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The Minneapolis Chapter of the Roustabouts performed “Set Sail” & “Black ‘em Out” on KFAI’s “Live From Studio 5!” on November 19, 2014. Hosted by Dew Glass, Doug The Thug and Cher Dial. Check out our radio show every Wednesday night at 10pm. “Live From Studio 5!” is on KFAI Radio at either 90.3 or 106.7 on the FM dial or live on the Internet at kfai.org. Continue Reading