Crafters give new life to discarded library cards!

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Residents of Northeast Minneapolis are extraordinarily proud that the American Craft Council has chosen to establish its permanent home in the neighborhood, at the old Grainbelt Brewery at 1224 Marshall. This week Northeast shares the treasure with the nation and beyond as the ACC hosts its major Midwest show featuring more than 200 of the country’s finest contemporary jewelry, clothing, furniture and home decor artists. The Show is April 19-21 at St. Paul River Center. Continue Reading

Cedar Rapids commemoration planned on five year anniversary of Postville Raid

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Around 10:00 on a clear May morning in 2008, two black helicopters circled over Postville, Iowa, a torn of two square miles and fewer than 3,000 residents. Then a line of S.U.V.’s drove past Postville’s main street and its worn brick storefronts. More than 10 white buses with darkened windows and the words “Homeland Security” on their sides were on their way to the other side of town. Postville’s four-man police force had no forewarning of what was about to happen. Neither did the mayor. Maggie Jones, “Postville, Iowa, Is Up for Grabs,” New York Times, July 15, 2012 Continue Reading

Women on the homefront: Classic WWII posters on display at Minneapolis Central Library

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It was a poster from the Kittleson Collection on exhibit in the Minneapolis Central Library Hosmer Collection that spurred my reflections. The World War II-era posters depicts a loving mom and daughter, their gentle exchange as they plant their Victory Garden, the little girl‘s optimism as they work together to support the War effort. Peaceful, full of life and hope. Continue Reading

Rays of hope from Sunshine Week 2013

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It’s eight years now since the first Sunshine Week, celebrated this week, March 10-March16. Sunshine Week is a national initiative to promote discussion about the importance of freedom of information and open government. The week was chosen to coincide with the birthday of James Madison (more about the Mr. Madison later). At the national level the prime mover behind Sunshine Week was the American Society of News Editors, later joined by The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Continue Reading

Food policy: Making a place at the table for information

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In recent months readers of Poking Around have quietly endured my efforts to grasp the anomaly of hunger in a world of plenty – the struggle to connect the dots between world hunger and overproduction, to get a grip on the politics that tolerate hungry families in our community, to comprehend what it means to embrace the right to food as a human right. Because my predisposition is to view every issue through the prism of open government, my mind wants to create a holistic approach to thinking about hunger in lay terms. Flailing in an unfamiliar world of ambiguity and complexity, my only tool is a structured approach to gathering and organizing information till it makes sense. Continue Reading

The Times Morgue File back on the shelves at Minneapolis Central Library

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Historians, scholars, intellectually curious Minneapolitans take note. In the spirit of openness the James K. Hosmer Hosmer Collection at the Minneapolis Central Library, has announced that The Times Morgue, the lynchpin historical record of the city, has not been dead, but only sleeping. The Times Morgue file which the Library acquired from the Star Tribune Company many years ago, is now accessible to the public again. Continue Reading

International Women’s Day 2013 focuses on violence against women

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While each deserves to tell its own unique story, the several efforts to honor the lives and work of women during the month of March can be difficult to untangle. On Friday, March 8, 2013, groups around the globe will celebrate International Women’s Day. The theme for IWD 2013 is “A promise is a promise: Time for action to end violence against women.” As Minnesota legislators, along with countless legislative bodies throughout the nation and the world grapple with the issue, it a good time to revisit the history of IWD itself. Continue Reading