Behind the camera at the MOA XMAS protest 2014

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Photographer Anna Min, of Min Enterprises Photography LLC shares her footage and talks about shooting the Mall of America Black Lives Matter Protest last Christmas season. Video edited by Sheila Regan. Anna Min, of Min Enterprises Photography, LLC., went to the Mall of America for the pre-Christmas Black Lives Matter rally at MOA as a documentarian. Though trapped in the rotunda Starbucks with her fiancee and partner, Tina Cho for most of the main gathering, Anna still managed to capture the incredible footage that you’ll see here. You can hear Anna relay thoughts throughout the video. Continue Reading

Books and so much more: Celebrate first-ever Independent Bookstore Day, May 2nd

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Saturday, May 2nd is Beer Pong Day, Bladder Cancer Awareness Day, National Play Your Ukulele Day and World Naked Gardening Day. It’s also the first-ever National Independent Bookstore Day – and it’s party time in the stacks as Twin Cities booksellers go all out to celebrate, with everything from F. Scott Fitzgerald Bingo (noon at Common Good Books, Saint Paul), dancing around a Maypole (1:30 PM, Birchbark Books, Minneapolis), and The Easiest Scavenger Hunt Ever (all day, Red Balloon Books, St. Paul). If you’re a night owl, stop in at Boneshaker Books – the volunteer-run south Minneapolis shop will be open ‘round the clock on May 2 to celebrate. Early risers can visit Moon Palace Books’ pop-up tent at the Midtown Farmer’s Market (open at 8 AM). Continue Reading

A corner store classic

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There are certain urban designs that cannot be improved upon. One of them is the neighborhood store with its doorway opening onto the corner. I recently discovered that one of the best examples was repeated a dozen times throughout the Minneapolis neighborhoods that developed in the 1920s. All feature the same decorative brickwork, including a white arch over the entry, which faces the corner at a 45 degree angle. Continue Reading

Perfect pies at Comstock family’s 2014 pie baking contest

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The 23 pies lined up in two straight rows on the front table at Claddagh Coffee & Café on West Seventh Street, St. Paul, had names as alluring as the pies themselves:

Strawberry Butter Cream, Caramel Chocolate Supreme, Reese’s Cup, Root Beer Float, Cherry Berry, Almond Joy Coconut, Salty Jack O’Lantern, Sweet Potato Eggnog, a green grape concoction called Minnesota Pie (According to the New York Times) and one named Black Pie Day—an apple pie made with cinnamon red hots and a mix of red, green and blue food coloring that gave the pastry and its filling the same color as the pie’s moniker. This article is reposted from TCDP media partner Park Bugle. Check out the links below for other recent Park Bugle stories:

Foundation director announces bid for school board seat
Ice palace ‘expert’ will present at Lion’s Club meeting

Left: The pie contest moved out of the family home this year and into Claddagh Coffee & Café, where more than 50 people gathered for the Nov. 28 event. Continue Reading

Michelle Gross: Police-community relations, body cams and the cooptation of the community agenda

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These are interesting times.For nearly 25 years, I’ve been trying to get people to pay attention to and act on the very serious issue of police brutality, 14 of those years as part of Communities United Against Police Brutality. Mostly it’s been an uphill battle. White folks largely have responded with disbelief and the idea that the victims “must have done something to deserve it.” People of color have been much more aware of the issue but often resigned to the idea that little could be done to effectively take it on.This is a Community Voices submission and is moderated but not edited. The opinions expressed by Community Voices contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the TC Daily Planet.Now, thanks to the widespread use of video cameras and the courageous people of Ferguson, MO and elsewhere, the reality of police brutality is finally coming home in ways that are undeniable to anyone with a TV set. As cities explode in widespread unrest, public officials on all levels are forced to at least act as if they are interested in addressing the issue.Now, along comes Obama. Continue Reading

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Double Dutch draws St. Paul youth like moths to a flame

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Like moths to a flame, Double Dutch is the perfect sport for attracting kids and keeping them moving and motivated throughout the summer. Parents, friends, community members and double dutch enthusiasts packed into the Jimmy Lee Rec Center for the Third Annual Jump Jam Double Dutch Challenge on Aug. 16. Event-goers enjoyed a family resource fair and watched this year’s lineup of Double Dutch teams square off against each other. The event capped off a ten-week fitness program centered around Double Dutch that is sponsored through a partnership between Saint Paul YWCA, Health Partners and the City of Saint Paul. Continue Reading

Rondo Days celebrates 30 years in St. Paul

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You couldn’t have asked for better weather for the Rondo Days Grand Parade and Festival in Saint Paul, Saturday, July 20. The temperature was comfortably warm and the skies clear, as young and old gathered to celebrate the 30 Year Anniversary of the Rondo Days Festival. The Rondo Days Festival gives a nod to the community’s historic past, serving as a reunion of sorts for its former residents, while at the same time embracing and celebrating the new neighborhood. The old Rondo community, which was home to Saint Paul’s largest African-American neighborhood, is fondly remembered today as a self-sustaining haven that allowed African-Americans the opportunity to dream and flourish beyond society’s harsh racial landscape. The Rondo community served as an economic, social, and cultural foundation for its residents, a foundation that was uprooted by the construction of I-94 in the mid-1960s. Continue Reading