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  32. <title>L.A. Times journalists receive $1.2 million settlement from attack by Minnesota troopers</title>
  33. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/l-a-times-journalists-receive-1-2-million-settlement-from-attack-by-minnesota-troopers/</link>
  34. <dc:creator><![CDATA[MinnPost staff]]></dc:creator>
  35. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 18:40:13 +0000</pubDate>
  36. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  37. <category><![CDATA[The Glean]]></category>
  38. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158511</guid>
  39.  
  40. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="632" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MinnesotaStatePatrol053120_940.png?fit=940%2C632&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Minnesota State Patrol officers standing between protesters and the capitol building at a George Floyd rally on May 31, 2020." decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  41. <p>Plus: Advocates pitch the removal of I-94 through the Cities; St. Paul Saints catch heat for new pig mascot nickname; finding Richard Bong’s WWII Lockheed P-38 Lightning; and more.</p>
  42. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/l-a-times-journalists-receive-1-2-million-settlement-from-attack-by-minnesota-troopers/">L.A. Times journalists receive $1.2 million settlement from attack by Minnesota troopers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  43. ]]></description>
  44. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="632" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MinnesotaStatePatrol053120_940.png?fit=940%2C632&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Minnesota State Patrol officers standing between protesters and the capitol building at a George Floyd rally on May 31, 2020." decoding="async" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  45. <p><a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-03-27/los-angeles-times-reporters-attacked-by-minnesota-police-settle-lawsuit" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hannah Wiley at the Los Angeles Times is reporting</a> <strong>Carolyn Cole and Molly Hennessy-Fiske, who were cornered and attacked by the Minnesota State Patrol</strong> as they covered protests over George Floyd’s murder, will soon <strong>settle a lawsuit with the state for $1.2 million</strong>.</p>
  46.  
  47.  
  48.  
  49. <p><a href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/03/27/replacing-interstate-94-twin-cities-boulevard-minneapolis-stpaul" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kyle Stokes at Axios writes</a> advocates have released <strong>a new report that pitches the total removal of the Interstate 94 freeway</strong> between Minneapolis and St. Paul.</p>
  50.  
  51.  
  52.  
  53. <p><a href="https://www.kare11.com/article/news/local/heavy-police-presence-in-excelsior-after-pursuit/89-8bf3e935-b560-4422-832c-0b87f252d390" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">David Griswold and Lydia Morrell at KARE 11 are reporting</a> the <strong>South Lake Minnetonka Police Department took one woman into custody Tuesday night following a chase</strong> and vehicle crash in Chanhassen.</p>
  54.  
  55.  
  56.  
  57. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/st-paul-saints-ozempig-mascot/600354441/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Eder Campuzano at the Star Tribune is reporting</a> the <strong>St. Paul Saints</strong> are taking some heat for naming their latest pig mascot <strong>Ozempig</strong>.</p>
  58.  
  59.  
  60.  
  61. <p><a href="https://sahanjournal.com/policing-justice/hennepin-county-sheriff-dawanna-witt-first-year-police-staffing-fentanyl/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Katrina Pross at Sahan Journal checks in</a> with <strong>Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt</strong> after one year in office.</p>
  62.  
  63.  
  64.  
  65. <p><a href="https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/minnesota-based-company-hopeful-in-bringing-new-rideshare-option-to-metro/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pafoua Yang at KSTP talks</a> with <strong>Murid Amini about starting a rideshare company called MOOV</strong> in hopes of filling in the gap if Uber and Lyft leave town.</p>
  66.  
  67.  
  68.  
  69. <p><a href="https://racketmn.com/barkhad-abdi-moved-back-to-minneapolis-but-he-never-left-hollywood" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jay Boller catches up with</a> <strong>Academy Award-nominated actor Barkhad Abdi</strong> on moving back to Minneapolis while being one of Hollywood’s most-visible Somali actors.</p>
  70.  
  71.  
  72.  
  73. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/expedition-planned-to-find-the-wreckage-of-wwii-ace-pilots-famous-plane/600354362/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Christa Lawler at the Star Tribune reports</a> an expedition is being planned to <strong>find Wisconsin WWII ace Richard I. Bong</strong>’<strong>s Lockheed P-38 Lightning named “Marge,”</strong> which crashed in a jungle near the north coast of what is now Papua New Guinea in March 1944.</p>
  74.  
  75.  
  76.  
  77. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/lowertown-sounds-2024-lineup-mears-park-st-paul-free-rising-costs-new-standards-flamin-ohs/600354365/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Also in the Strib, Chris Riemenschneider has</a> the <strong>Lowertown Sounds concert series</strong> 2024 lineup, including the <strong>New Standards, Flamin’ Oh’s, Salsa del Soul</strong> and more.</p>
  78. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/l-a-times-journalists-receive-1-2-million-settlement-from-attack-by-minnesota-troopers/">L.A. Times journalists receive $1.2 million settlement from attack by Minnesota troopers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  79. ]]></content:encoded>
  80. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158511</post-id> </item>
  81. <item>
  82. <title>Inside Minneapolis&#8217; efforts to recruit new  police officers</title>
  83. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/public-safety/2024/03/inside-minneapolis-efforts-to-recruit-new-police-officers/</link>
  84. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Mohamed Ibrahim]]></dc:creator>
  85. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 15:49:42 +0000</pubDate>
  86. <category><![CDATA[Metro]]></category>
  87. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  88. <category><![CDATA[Public Safety]]></category>
  89. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158407</guid>
  90.  
  91. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="600" height="345" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?fit=600%2C345&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Earlier this month, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced the “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign that will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?resize=190%2C109&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?resize=400%2C230&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?fit=600%2C345&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  92. <p>The “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments. </p>
  93. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/public-safety/2024/03/inside-minneapolis-efforts-to-recruit-new-police-officers/">Inside Minneapolis&#8217; efforts to recruit new  police officers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  94. ]]></description>
  95. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="600" height="345" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?fit=600%2C345&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Earlier this month, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced the “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign that will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?resize=190%2C109&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?resize=400%2C230&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign600.png?fit=600%2C345&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure><div class="wp-block-image">
  96. <figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img decoding="async" width="640" height="235" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=640%2C235&#038;ssl=1" alt="Earlier this month, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced the “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign that will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments." class="wp-image-2158411" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=640%2C235&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=190%2C70&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=768%2C282&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=400%2C147&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?resize=706%2C259&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ImagineYourselfCampaign940-640x235.png?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Earlier this month, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced the “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign that will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments. <span class="image-credit"><span class="credit-label-wrapper">Credit:</span> City of Minneapolis</span></figcaption></figure></div>
  97.  
  98.  
  99. <p>From hiring bonuses and other incentives to targeted recruitment campaigns, bolstering the ranks of police officers after massive decreases in recent years remains a priority for many departments.&nbsp;</p>
  100.  
  101.  
  102.  
  103. <p>The Minneapolis Police Department, like departments nationwide, has been plagued by staffing woes since 2020, which saw the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 at the hands of then-MPD officer Derek Chauvin. To combat the issue, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey earlier this month announced a multi-year campaign aimed at recruiting and retaining more public safety staff. While the goal of the campaign is to hire more officers as a way to remedy staffing concerns, another solution may lie in using alternative non-police responses for lower priority calls for service.</p>
  104.  
  105.  
  106.  
  107. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Persistent staffing woes</strong></h3>
  108.  
  109.  
  110.  
  111. <p>As of March 9, MPD has 560 sworn officers, including 22 officers on continuous leave of two weeks or more, according to data obtained from the city.</p>
  112.  
  113.  
  114.  
  115. <p>A wave of retirements, resignations and disability leaves caused the number of sworn officers to continually decrease since Floyd’s murder and the ensuing unrest, steadily declining over the nearly four year period from a force of just over 900 officers in May 2020. Meanwhile, the portion of officers on leave simultaneously began to spike, peaking in December 2020 at 152 officers on leave out of 818, or about 19% of their sworn force, according to city data.</p>
  116.  
  117.  
  118.  
  119. <p><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/public-safety/2022/10/police-staffing-shortages-persist-across-twin-cities-metro/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Persistent challenges to recruit new hires in recent years </a>is a problem not just in Minneapolis, but in departments in the Twin Cities metro, statewide and across the country. MPD Chief Brian O’Hara, who spoke on a panel alongside Newark, New Jersey Mayor Ras Baraka and several scholars highlighted those struggles.&nbsp;</p>
  120.  
  121.  
  122.  
  123. <p>“When I say that the department is 40% smaller than it was at the start of 2020, that’s overall. Our investigations unit has shrunk by almost 50%,” O’Hara said during the panel, which was convened in November. “We might soon be in a situation where we’re just not going to investigate property crimes anymore. We might have to do that. And the community that will suffer the most is north Minneapolis.”</p>
  124.  
  125.  
  126.  
  127. <p>In a statement to MinnPost, Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association spokeswoman Leslie Rosedahl declined to comment on MPD and the city’s recruitment and retention efforts. But she said smaller departments across the state are struggling to recruit and retain officers due to more competitive pay at metro area departments.&nbsp;</p>
  128.  
  129.  
  130.  
  131. <p>The statement also tied staffing efforts to waning support for law enforcement as a profession – an oft-cited reason in recent years for hiring troubles after the perception of policing changed for many members of the public following Floyd’s murder.&nbsp;</p>
  132.  
  133.  
  134.  
  135. <p>“Having elected officials that support law enforcement and first responders also plays an outsized role in recruitment and retention,” she said.&nbsp;</p>
  136.  
  137.  
  138.  
  139. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Attempts at fixes</strong></h3>
  140.  
  141.  
  142.  
  143. <p>Earlier this month, Frey announced the “Imagine Yourself” marketing campaign that will target preferred candidates for jobs within the police and 911 operating departments. The campaign was developed by the city and a contracted third-party firm in September in an effort to reach people ages 18 to 44 within a 300-mile radius of Minneapolis via social media ads, job boards, emails, billboards and flyers.</p>
  144.  
  145.  
  146.  
  147. <p>“We’re committed to trying every available option for recruiting and retention because ultimately that’s what this city needs,” Frey said during the news conference announcing the campaign. “This campaign is really about people’s lives, it’s about filling a very critical safety need in our city – part of that safety need is police officers and 911 dispatchers.”</p>
  148.  
  149.  
  150.  
  151. <p>The campaign comes almost two years after the mayor dedicated $7 million in American Rescue Plan dollars toward strategies for recruitment, hiring and retention.&nbsp;</p>
  152.  
  153.  
  154.  
  155. <p>A day after the campaign was announced, the Minneapolis City Council approved a directive, authored by Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley, that asks the mayor to provide an update on the implementation of recommendations from <a href="https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/RCAV2/26161/Minneapolis-Staffing-Operations-and-PNC-Assessment-FINAL.pdf?utm_content=&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_name=&amp;utm_source=govdelivery&amp;utm_term=" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a 2022 report</a> aimed at improving MPD and emergency services staffing issues. Among the recommendations provided by the report was for the city to look at implementing alternative responses to police for calls such as mental health crises as a way to efficiently free up officers for patrols or higher priority calls.&nbsp;</p>
  156.  
  157.  
  158.  
  159. <p>Michelle Gross, president of Communities United Against Police Brutality, echoed the report’s recommendation, saying while programs like the <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/public-safety/2024/02/minneapolis-behavioral-crisis-response-program-a-success-say-city-leaders/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Behavioral Crisis Response teams</a> now exist, the city can do more. Gross said by bolstering the use of alternative responses and diverting certain calls away from police officers, the city could potentially solve its staffing issues and further implement its long-stated goal of public safety beyond policing.</p>
  160.  
  161.  
  162.  
  163. <p>“Part of public safety is doing things like addressing community conflicts, mental health issues and public health issues like substance use disorder,” Gross said. “These things can be handled by non-law enforcement folks, and in fact, there are better outcomes when they are handled by those folks.”</p>
  164.  
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  166.  
  167. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  168. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  169. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="225" height="274" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Ibrahim225.png?resize=225%2C274&#038;ssl=1" alt="Mohamed Ibrahim" class="wp-image-2100521" style="width:114px" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  170.  
  171.  
  172.  
  173. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  174. <p style="font-size:20px"><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/mohamed-ibrahim/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Mohamed Ibrahim</strong></a><br><br>Mohamed Ibrahim is MinnPost’s environment and public safety reporter. He can be reached at <a href="mailto:mibrahim@minnpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mibrahim@minnpost.com</a>.</p>
  175. </div>
  176. </div>
  177. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/public-safety/2024/03/inside-minneapolis-efforts-to-recruit-new-police-officers/">Inside Minneapolis&#8217; efforts to recruit new  police officers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  178. ]]></content:encoded>
  179. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158407</post-id> </item>
  180. <item>
  181. <title>Filling a gap in mental health care for Minnesota’s migrant workers</title>
  182. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/greater-minnesota/2024/03/filling-a-gap-in-mental-health-care-for-minnesotas-migrant-workers/</link>
  183. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ava Kian]]></dc:creator>
  184. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 15:42:54 +0000</pubDate>
  185. <category><![CDATA[Greater Minnesota]]></category>
  186. <category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
  187. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  188. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158428</guid>
  189.  
  190. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="667" height="435" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?fit=667%2C435&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="An image from the first &quot;Bienvenido&quot; program installment conducted in Worthington." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?w=667&amp;ssl=1 667w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=190%2C124&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=640%2C417&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=130%2C85&amp;ssl=1 130w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=400%2C261&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?fit=667%2C435&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  191. <p>‘Bienvenido’ program aims to provide support for rural Latino workers who are isolated and far from home.</p>
  192. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/greater-minnesota/2024/03/filling-a-gap-in-mental-health-care-for-minnesotas-migrant-workers/">Filling a gap in mental health care for Minnesota’s migrant workers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  193. ]]></description>
  194. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="667" height="435" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?fit=667%2C435&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="An image from the first &quot;Bienvenido&quot; program installment conducted in Worthington." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?w=667&amp;ssl=1 667w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=190%2C124&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=640%2C417&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=130%2C85&amp;ssl=1 130w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?resize=400%2C261&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorthington667.jpg?fit=667%2C435&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  195. <p>Growing up in southern Texas as a third-generation Mexican American, Gilberto Perez Jr. was familiar with some of the challenges immigrants face.&nbsp;</p>
  196.  
  197.  
  198.  
  199. <p>That fueled his efforts as a social worker in Indiana, where he’s worked with community mental health centers to fill the gap in services for people who need mental health help. In the early 2000s, through a community health assessment, he found that many people (86% of the respondents) felt lethargic and depressed several times a week. It also became clear that people didn’t know where to find help.&nbsp;</p>
  200.  
  201.  
  202.  
  203. <p>“The conversations in the community were stimulating and stirring within the folks of saying, ‘Oh, I think I might need some help. Where do I get it?’” he said.&nbsp;</p>
  204.  
  205.  
  206.  
  207. <p>In 2007, he created the “Bienvenido” curriculum and program, initially designed around that original health assessment. Perez Jr. said the state recognized that the program – Bienvendio means “welcome” in Spanish — encouraged people to seek help at health centers.&nbsp;</p>
  208.  
  209.  
  210.  
  211. <p>His program first received a contract to train others across Indiana. Then in 2008, the National Network to Eliminate Behavioral Health Disparities (NNED) and the National Latino Behavioral Health Association nominated the program as one of 16 “community defined evidence projects” — efforts that use cultural and or community guides to improve the availability, quality and outcomes of behavioral health care.&nbsp;</p>
  212.  
  213.  
  214.  
  215. <p>Following that, the Substance Abuse and Mental Administration Services and the NNED worked together to train 20 people in leading the program from 10 states, Perez Jr. said.&nbsp;</p>
  216.  
  217.  
  218.  
  219. <p>Since the program started, Perez Jr. said around 450 people have gone through the training and now can facilitate the program in their communities. Minnesota is also a part of the effort.&nbsp;</p>
  220.  
  221.  
  222.  
  223. <p>Some people in Minnesota have already been trained through a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to the University of Nebraska-Omaha designed to train leaders in Midwestern states, specifically those with migrant farm workers.&nbsp;</p>
  224.  
  225.  
  226.  
  227. <p>Each state has unique needs among its migrant workers and the program gives facilitators&nbsp; flexibility to make it their own based on a community’s needs, Perez. Jr. said.&nbsp;</p>
  228.  
  229.  
  230.  
  231. <p>“We&#8217;re offering opportunities for ventilation for sharing stories about migration, and then offering education on things related to anger management, family dynamics, mental health, their strengths and their weaknesses,” he said.&nbsp;</p>
  232.  
  233.  
  234.  
  235. <p>The program makes space for people to talk about their migration experience and adjustment to a new life. It also allows for people to build relationships with each other and become more involved in their local communities, which helps spur a sense of belonging, Perez Jr. said.&nbsp;</p>
  236.  
  237.  
  238.  
  239. <p>Minnesota’s iteration of Bienvenido is meant to reach migrant Latino workers who are in high stress jobs with minimal support structures in place.</p>
  240.  
  241.  
  242.  
  243. <p>There has been one full installment of the program. Around 15-20 people attended, said Silvia Alvarez de Davila, a University of Minnesota Extension professor in the Department of Family, Health and Wellbeing. Each installment is around nine sessions and makes space for participants to build connections with the community and learn skills to help manage stress, among other emotions.&nbsp;</p>
  244.  
  245.  
  246.  
  247. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Temporary agricultural workers</strong></h3>
  248.  
  249.  
  250.  
  251. <p>Alvarez de Davila said participants are usually workers in agricultural settings, such as meat processing and packing plants. Many of the participants have come to Minnesota through the H-2B visa program, which allows companies to temporarily hire foreign workers.&nbsp;</p>
  252.  
  253.  
  254.  
  255. <p>In 2023, 245 of the state&#8217;s 388 H-2B workers in production operations (specifically under manufacturing) were employed by meat-processing company HyLife, which is located in Windom, according to U.S. Department of Labor data.</p>
  256.  
  257.  
  258.  
  259. <p>Some of the participants, however, are undocumented — reluctant to seek care while<s> </s>staying under the radar from federal programs out of fear, Alvarez de Davila said.&nbsp;</p>
  260.  
  261.  
  262.  
  263. <p>With the help of facilitators in those communities who are familiar with Latino customs and culture, organizations like University of Minnesota Extension are able to connect with those workers who might otherwise not trust such programs.&nbsp;</p>
  264.  
  265.  
  266.  
  267. <p>“We know that mental health is one of the main issues for immigrant families, particularly for those that are uninsured and undocumented,” Alvarez de Davila said. “The idea is to support them with resources and activities for them to stay well when they are away from their families, while they are working hard.”</p>
  268.  
  269.  
  270.  
  271. <p>She added: “They do have these harsh jobs, and also schedules, so they don’t connect with the community. They don’t have time for recreation.”&nbsp;</p>
  272.  
  273.  
  274.  
  275. <p>Those types of situations can bring out intense emotions that can be challenging, especially for people who don’t have support systems in place, said Aubree Derksen, who works with University of Minnesota Extension and is a trained facilitator for the program.&nbsp;</p>
  276.  
  277.  
  278.  
  279. <p>“In preschool or in a classroom you&#8217;re labeling body parts and emotions, but then we get to grownups and we forget that. And there&#8217;s some cultural stigma associated with mental health in the Latinx community,” Derksen said. “Just being able to say, ‘Man, I&#8217;m angry. Now, what do I do with that, and how do I do that in a way that’s healthy?’”&nbsp;</p>
  280.  
  281.  
  282.  
  283. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Not an easy sell</strong></h3>
  284.  
  285.  
  286.  
  287. <p>Alvarez de Davila said that many migrant workers don&#8217;t talk about their emotions because they don’t have safe spaces to do so. They also tend to not have medical insurance, so there isn&#8217;t a formal way for them to talk about their mental health — and their supervisors and employers generally don’t offer insurance, either, she said.&nbsp;</p>
  288.  
  289.  
  290.  
  291. <p>The first round of the program took place in Worthington, a city of about 14,000 residents in southwestern Minnesota. Many of the participants were employees of the JBS pork processing plant, and Alvarez de Davila said that everyone who started in the program stayed with it.&nbsp;</p>
  292.  
  293.  
  294.  
  295. <p>“They are in a really hard environment,” she said. “It&#8217;s really hard for them because they are tired at the end of the day. But they really wanted to come.”&nbsp;</p>
  296.  
  297.  
  298.  
  299. <p>It’s not an easy sell. Alvarez de Davila has noticed that it takes time for people to feel comfortable talking about their feelings and the difficulties they have faced.&nbsp;</p>
  300.  
  301.  
  302.  
  303. <p>“There was one lady that actually the very first day she was very pessimistic and she didn&#8217;t participate at all. She didn’t want to talk,” Alvarez de Davila said. “But at the end, she said after this class that she was able to share and to open up her feelings and talk about what she feels and how she now has some ways to share her emotions.”&nbsp;</p>
  304.  
  305.  
  306. <div class="wp-block-image">
  307. <figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img decoding="async" width="640" height="440" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?resize=640%2C440&#038;ssl=1" alt="Bienvenido workbook" class="wp-image-2158372" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?resize=640%2C440&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?resize=190%2C131&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?resize=400%2C275&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?resize=706%2C486&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740.png?w=740&amp;ssl=1 740w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/BienvenidoWorkbook740-640x440.png?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">In 2007, Gilberto Perez Jr. created the “Bienvenido” curriculum and program. <span class="image-credit"><span class="credit-label-wrapper">Credit:</span> Courtesy of Gilberto Perez Jr.</span></figcaption></figure></div>
  308.  
  309.  
  310. <p>While the program isn&#8217;t focused on the migration experience, Alvarez de Davila said it certainly comes up for many participants. “Most of them share about how they feel being different, or how they ended up here,” she said. “It’s a safe space where they share stories. When you share, you probably feel like you are not alone.”</p>
  311.  
  312.  
  313.  
  314. <p>Others sometimes share the stress of sending money to their families back home.&nbsp;</p>
  315.  
  316.  
  317.  
  318. <p>“Most of them, if not all of them — that’s the reason for why they are here,” Alvarez de Davila said. “That’s why you see families that are separated. That’s the main motivator, to send money back because of the lack of opportunities.”&nbsp;</p>
  319.  
  320.  
  321.  
  322. <p>She said that, so far, one of the challenges facilitators have faced is convincing employers to work with them on such a program. That’s why it’s important for facilitators to have connections with their communities and the migrant workers.&nbsp;</p>
  323.  
  324.  
  325.  
  326. <p>“Employers don&#8217;t like it because they think that these workers are going to complain, are going to talk about the harsh environment they work (in),” she said. “When we are trying to offer the program it is difficult. Then we needed to kind of explain … the benefit because, in the end, the employers win because they have their workforce in good shape working and not being absent or getting sick.”&nbsp;</p>
  327.  
  328.  
  329.  
  330. <p>Because of the difficulties convincing employers, it’s important for facilitators to have connections with their communities and the migrant workers. Derksen is located in the University of Minnesota Extension’s Rochester office and is learning how nearby communities could benefit from Bienvenido.&nbsp;</p>
  331.  
  332.  
  333.  
  334. <p>Perez Jr. said the program has helped to open gates to more mental health services for communities in many states besides Indiana and Minnesota, including New Mexico, Oregon, Kansas, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.&nbsp;</p>
  335.  
  336.  
  337.  
  338. <p>“They&#8217;re able to have immigrants who are better informed about where the resources are at, they know how to access services, and when they need help, they know where to go,” Perez Jr. said.&nbsp;</p>
  339.  
  340.  
  341.  
  342. <p><strong>Expanding the program</strong></p>
  343.  
  344.  
  345.  
  346. <p>University of Minnesota Extension, one of two organizations that run Bienvenido programs in the state, is in conversation with companies in both Waseca and Owatonna about the program coming to their employees.&nbsp;</p>
  347.  
  348.  
  349.  
  350. <p>One of the Waseca companies employs workers from Guatemala who come for six months and then return together. The next group of workers for the Waseca company will be arriving in April, she said.</p>
  351.  
  352.  
  353.  
  354. <p>Derksen said the program could potentially be rolled out among farm workers. She’s talked with people at the Minnesota Farmers Union and the Minnesota Farm Bureau and said their initial reactions to the idea seemed promising.</p>
  355.  
  356.  
  357.  
  358. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-2 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  359. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  360. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="300" height="299" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/AvaKian300.png?resize=300%2C299&#038;ssl=1" alt="Ava Kian" class="wp-image-2085238" style="width:114px" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  361.  
  362.  
  363.  
  364. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  365. <p style="font-size:20px"><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/ava-kian/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Ava Kian</strong></a><br><br>Ava Kian is MinnPost&#8217;s Greater Minnesota reporter. Follow her on Twitter <a href="https://www.twitter.com/kian_ava" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">@kian_ava</a> or email her at <a href="mailto:akian@minnpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">akian@minnpost.com</a>.</p>
  366. </div>
  367. </div>
  368. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/greater-minnesota/2024/03/filling-a-gap-in-mental-health-care-for-minnesotas-migrant-workers/">Filling a gap in mental health care for Minnesota’s migrant workers</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  369. ]]></content:encoded>
  370. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158428</post-id> </item>
  371. <item>
  372. <title>MinnPost publishes 2023 donor list</title>
  373. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/inside-minnpost/2024/03/minnpost-publishes-2023-donor-list/</link>
  374. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Alicia Pedersen]]></dc:creator>
  375. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 14:56:59 +0000</pubDate>
  376. <category><![CDATA[Inside MinnPost]]></category>
  377. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  378. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158394</guid>
  379.  
  380. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="600" height="450" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?fit=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=190%2C143&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?fit=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  381. <p>We want to take a moment to thank all of the generous folks who donated to MinnPost over the last year. </p>
  382. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/inside-minnpost/2024/03/minnpost-publishes-2023-donor-list/">MinnPost publishes 2023 donor list</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  383. ]]></description>
  384. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="600" height="450" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?fit=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=190%2C143&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MinnPostLogo600x450.png?fit=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  385. <p>Technically spring is here, and yet our Minnesotan weather has gone back to snow and slush. While we wait for the spring weather to return, we want to take a moment to thank all of the generous folks who donated to MinnPost over the last year.&nbsp;</p>
  386.  
  387.  
  388.  
  389. <p><strong><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/2023-minnpost-individual-donor-list/">We’re excited to share that we recently published our list of 2023 donors</a> in recognition of the nearly 4,900 generous members who stood behind our nonprofit newsroom. </strong>Member support is absolutely critical to advancing MinnPost’s mission — contributions from individuals makes up over half of our annual revenue.</p>
  390.  
  391.  
  392.  
  393. <p>In addition to recognizing our donors for their support, MinnPost is committed to transparency, including disclosing who supports our work financially. We encourage all supporters to be listed by name.</p>
  394.  
  395.  
  396.  
  397. <p>If you donated in 2023, take a look, find your name, and feel good knowing that you played a crucial role in making MinnPost’s in-depth, independent journalism possible. If you see any errors in how you are listed, please contact us at <a href="mailto:members@minnpost.com">members@minnpost.com</a> and we’ll be happy to resolve the issue.</p>
  398.  
  399.  
  400.  
  401. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-3 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  402. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  403. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="225" height="313" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/PedersenIllo225.png?resize=225%2C313&#038;ssl=1" alt="Alicia Pedersen" class="wp-image-2119216" style="width:114px" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  404.  
  405.  
  406.  
  407. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  408. <p style="font-size:20px"><strong><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/alicia-pedersen/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Alicia Pedersen</a></strong><br><br>Alicia is MinnPost’s Membership Manager. She’s been at MinnPost since 2023.</p>
  409. </div>
  410. </div>
  411. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/inside-minnpost/2024/03/minnpost-publishes-2023-donor-list/">MinnPost publishes 2023 donor list</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  412. ]]></content:encoded>
  413. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158394</post-id> </item>
  414. <item>
  415. <title>Speech analysis: Walz celebrates Owatonna school, defends trifecta via listicle and pitches Democrats for 2024</title>
  416. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/speech-analysis-walz-celebrates-owatonna-school-defends-trifecta-via-listicle-and-pitches-democrats-for-2024/</link>
  417. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Peter Callaghan]]></dc:creator>
  418. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 14:44:13 +0000</pubDate>
  419. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  420. <category><![CDATA[State Government]]></category>
  421. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158390</guid>
  422.  
  423. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="627" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Gov. Tim Walz delivering his State of the State Address from Owatonna High School." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=190%2C127&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=640%2C427&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=400%2C267&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=706%2C471&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  424. <p>The substance of the governor’s annual State of the State address was predictable, as were the reactions to it.</p>
  425. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/speech-analysis-walz-celebrates-owatonna-school-defends-trifecta-via-listicle-and-pitches-democrats-for-2024/">Speech analysis: Walz celebrates Owatonna school, defends trifecta via listicle and pitches Democrats for 2024</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  426. ]]></description>
  427. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="627" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Gov. Tim Walz delivering his State of the State Address from Owatonna High School." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=190%2C127&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=640%2C427&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=400%2C267&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?resize=706%2C471&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Walz2024SOTS940.png?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  428. <p>What does Owatonna High School have to do with the state of the state of Minnesota?</p>
  429.  
  430.  
  431.  
  432. <p>Gov. Tim Walz can explain. Just give him a few minutes.</p>
  433.  
  434.  
  435.  
  436. <p>In his annual state of the state speech Tuesday, the second term DFL governor traveled to the southern Minnesota city and its new high school and drew a direct line between the building and the accomplishments of the DFL trifecta last year.</p>
  437.  
  438.  
  439.  
  440. <p>The new school came about only after years of discussion and debate among the residents. Should they make do with a century-old historic building or build something new.</p>
  441.  
  442.  
  443.  
  444. <p>“People in the community had been talking about replacing it for decades,” Walz said from the new school’s auditorium. “But it wasn’t until a few years ago that leaders in the public and private sectors came together and decided it was time to stop talking and time to start building. That small window of opportunity — that brief moment when the stars aligned — produced a community institution that you’re in today that will stand for decades and serve tens of thousands of kids.”</p>
  445.  
  446.  
  447.  
  448. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>And that relates to the state of the state, how?</strong></h3>
  449.  
  450.  
  451.  
  452. <p>To Walz, the DFL trifecta delivered by voters in 2022 was another window of opportunity that replaced years of talk and gridlock with five months of activity.</p>
  453.  
  454.  
  455.  
  456. <p>“But every once in a while, you get an opportunity to make a whole lot of progress in a short amount of time. It happened here in Owatonna in 2019. And, after half a century of waiting, it happened again in St. Paul in 2023,” Walz said, referring to a series of reforms dubbed the “Minnesota Miracle” that happened in the early ‘70s. “I couldn’t be more proud of the work that we’ve done together in our window of opportunity to improve education inside the walls of this school, and in every school across the state.”</p>
  457.  
  458.  
  459.  
  460. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>The state of the state as a listicle?</strong></h3>
  461.  
  462.  
  463.  
  464. <p>In the news business, a news story that combines an article with a list is sometimes dubbed a listicle. It is a way to present a lot of information in an easily digestible form. That’s what Walz did to detail all that he is proud of:</p>
  465.  
  466.  
  467.  
  468. <ul>
  469. <li>Increases in school funding</li>
  470.  
  471.  
  472.  
  473. <li>Increased teachers pay and recruitment</li>
  474.  
  475.  
  476.  
  477. <li>Universal school lunch and breakfast</li>
  478.  
  479.  
  480.  
  481. <li>New reading curriculum based on the science of reading</li>
  482.  
  483.  
  484.  
  485. <li>Increased support for special and technical education</li>
  486.  
  487.  
  488.  
  489. <li>$1 billion in housing infrastructure</li>
  490.  
  491.  
  492.  
  493. <li>Free college tuition for lower-income families</li>
  494.  
  495.  
  496.  
  497. <li>Paid family and medical leave</li>
  498.  
  499.  
  500.  
  501. <li>Outlawing LGBT conversion therapy.</li>
  502.  
  503.  
  504.  
  505. <li>Green energy investments</li>
  506.  
  507.  
  508.  
  509. <li>Reductions in state taxes on social security income</li>
  510.  
  511.  
  512.  
  513. <li>$300 million in public safety grants</li>
  514.  
  515.  
  516.  
  517. <li>A more generous child tax credit and investments in child care</li>
  518. </ul>
  519.  
  520.  
  521.  
  522. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>A legislative agenda? Now?</strong></h3>
  523.  
  524.  
  525.  
  526. <p>Coming as it did at the midpoint of the 2024 legislative session and after the first major cutoff for legislation, now would be an awkward time for presenting new proposals. Walz instead restated what he has already laid out for this session: minimum new spending, a bonding bill to pay for construction and implementing the programs created and expanded last year.</p>
  527.  
  528.  
  529.  
  530. <p>“Part of that work includes following up on all of the good work that this incredible Legislature did,” he said. “Things like building a new state agency focused on children, youth, and families to be more efficient in implementing programs. We need to stand up paid family and medical leave.” He said the state needs to get its adult use cannabis program set up and implement the criminal sentence expungement that is part of that law.&nbsp;</p>
  531.  
  532.  
  533.  
  534. <p>On a bonding measure that would borrow nearly a billion dollars, Walz said, “These things might not be that flashy, but these are the initiatives that make an enormous difference in real people’s lives across our state. There’s no reason we can’t get them done this session. And there’s no reason both parties can’t be part of getting it done this session.”</p>
  535.  
  536.  
  537.  
  538. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Was it a campaign speech?</strong></h3>
  539.  
  540.  
  541.  
  542. <p>While it is hard to separate anything an elected official says from elections, Walz’s connection to this November was at least a bit more subtle than President Biden’s state of the union. But connections he did make.</p>
  543.  
  544.  
  545.  
  546. <p>First, he touched on the messages he has been delivering in his role as chairman of the National Democratic Governors Association. He criticized the agenda of GOP governors — though unlike last year without direct reference to Florida Gov. Rick Desantis now that he’s not going to be the presidential nominee. He paints the Minnesota DFL’s agenda as a model.</p>
  547.  
  548.  
  549.  
  550. <p>He said some politicians from other states “roll their eyes when we talk about the importance of working collectively to educate and feed our children.”&nbsp;</p>
  551.  
  552.  
  553.  
  554. <p>“But instead of working to solve those problems, they’re spending their time and energy and their political capital picking fights with beer companies and librarians.</p>
  555.  
  556.  
  557.  
  558. <p>“Look, speaking on behalf of Minnesotans, we are happy to have people move here. We are happy to have private-sector investment dollars here and we’re happy to have brilliant young people move here from other states,” Walz said. “But what we’re not going to take is radical ideas that make it more difficult for people to live the life that they’re choosing to live.”</p>
  559.  
  560.  
  561.  
  562. <p>He then talked about abortion rights as well as the recent Alabama Supreme Court decision that struck down the state’s in vitro fertilization laws, using he and First Lady Gwen Walz’s story about IVF as an illustration.&nbsp;</p>
  563.  
  564.  
  565.  
  566. <p>“What those judges did was a direct attack on our family. It was a direct attack on children. Gwen and I will not forget it nor will forgive it. And neither will thousands across this state,” he said.</p>
  567.  
  568.  
  569.  
  570. <p>Walz used the school auditorium setting to speak about gun safety.</p>
  571.  
  572.  
  573.  
  574. <p>“When you come into high school, you should be worried about pop quizzes and prom dates — not mass shootings,” he said before citing extreme risk protection orders and strengthened background checks that passed last year. “And make no mistake about it, this keeps guns out of the wrong hands and saves lives.”</p>
  575.  
  576.  
  577.  
  578. <p>He endorsed bills this session that would strengthen laws on safe storage of firearms, mandatory reporting of lost or stolen guns and increasing penalties for straw purchases of guns for those prohibited from owning them.</p>
  579.  
  580.  
  581.  
  582. <p>Walz isn’t on the ballot this fall. His president is, though. And the entire House is as well. This year, he’s not the candidate but the pitch man.</p>
  583.  
  584.  
  585.  
  586. <p>“Look: If Minnesotans want to look at our record of accomplishment and keep sending us back to St. Paul, well, I wouldn’t mind that one bit,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of work yet to do but this window of opportunity is still open. We need to keep working to get the progress done.”&nbsp;</p>
  587.  
  588.  
  589.  
  590. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">&nbsp;<strong>And the state of the state is …</strong></h3>
  591.  
  592.  
  593.  
  594. <p>“Tonight, I’m proud to report that the state of our state is strong, Minnesota. And one of the main reasons is because the kids of our state are better equipped to thrive. If you ever doubted that, I would ask everyone, just come on down to Owatonna. Walk through these halls. And join me in dreaming about the futures that will be built right here.”</p>
  595.  
  596.  
  597.  
  598. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>And the reviews? DFL, yay; GOP, boo</strong></h3>
  599.  
  600.  
  601.  
  602. <p>It is a tradition, or perhaps a cliché, that the leaders of the two parties react to the speech in ways that rarely surprise. Both have a role to play.</p>
  603.  
  604.  
  605.  
  606. <p>&#8220;The realities of single-party Democrat control don&#8217;t match the rosy rhetoric we heard tonight from Governor Walz. Life is still unaffordable for too many families who are struggling with inflation and the billions in tax increases passed by Democrats last session,”said House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth.</p>
  607.  
  608.  
  609.  
  610. <p>“We have serious challenges ahead,” said Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson. “While Walz and Democrats keep bringing up the past, we’re looking to the future and the contrast could not be clearer. Without balance restored to state government, we are on a crash course to even more partisanship, challenging deficits, and a bureaucratic state government bloated with inefficiencies, fraud, and wasteful spending.”</p>
  611.  
  612.  
  613.  
  614. <p>Legislative DFLers, however, loved it, especially his praise of …. legislative DFLers.</p>
  615.  
  616.  
  617.  
  618. <p>“Tonight, Governor Walz laid out how much progress we’ve made in the past 15 months to improve the lives of Minnesotans. More importantly, he outlined a strong vision for the work ahead,” said Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy.</p>
  619.  
  620.  
  621.  
  622. <p>And House Speaker Melissa Hortman? “We made historic progress together in last year’s state budget, and as that budget continues to be implemented, it will ensure Minnesotans have more opportunities and tools to build better lives for themselves and their families.”</p>
  623.  
  624.  
  625.  
  626. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-4 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  627. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  628. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/imagecache/author_photo/images/author/PeterCallaghan225.png?w=1400&#038;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-124351" style="width:114px;height:auto" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  629.  
  630.  
  631.  
  632. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  633. <p style="font-size:20px"><strong><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/peter-callaghan/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Peter Callaghan</a></strong><br><br>Peter Callaghan covers state government for MinnPost.&nbsp;Follow him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/callaghanpeter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">@CallaghanPeter</a>&nbsp;or email him at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:pcallaghan@minnpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pcallaghan@minnpost.com</a>.</p>
  634. </div>
  635. </div>
  636. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/speech-analysis-walz-celebrates-owatonna-school-defends-trifecta-via-listicle-and-pitches-democrats-for-2024/">Speech analysis: Walz celebrates Owatonna school, defends trifecta via listicle and pitches Democrats for 2024</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  637. ]]></content:encoded>
  638. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158390</post-id> </item>
  639. <item>
  640. <title>Our universities cannot forget their antisemitic pasts</title>
  641. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2024/03/our-universities-cannot-forget-their-antisemitic-pasts/</link>
  642. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Joseph A. Edelheit]]></dc:creator>
  643. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 14:22:07 +0000</pubDate>
  644. <category><![CDATA[Community Voices]]></category>
  645. <category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
  646. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158314</guid>
  647.  
  648. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="637" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?fit=940%2C637&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="White nationalists carrying torches on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 11, 2017." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=190%2C129&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=640%2C434&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=768%2C520&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=400%2C271&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=706%2C478&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?fit=940%2C637&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  649. <p>Minnesota’s two public university systems must create and sustain courses on antisemitism in America.</p>
  650. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2024/03/our-universities-cannot-forget-their-antisemitic-pasts/">Our universities cannot forget their antisemitic pasts</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  651. ]]></description>
  652. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="637" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?fit=940%2C637&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="White nationalists carrying torches on the grounds of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 11, 2017." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=190%2C129&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=640%2C434&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=768%2C520&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=400%2C271&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?resize=706%2C478&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NeoNaziCharlottesville940.png?fit=940%2C637&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  653. <p>Minnesota’s universities seem to have forgotten philosopher George Santayana’s maxim: <strong>“</strong>Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”</p>
  654.  
  655.  
  656.  
  657. <p>Twenty-two years ago, St. Cloud State University settled a federal class-action lawsuit (Zmora v. State of Minnesota) that brought national attention to the campus and stained its reputation with antisemitism. SCSU was required to create a new position and hire a professor to develop Jewish studies and a communal awareness program about antisemitism; I was that professor.</p>
  658.  
  659.  
  660.  
  661. <p>Six years later, the Jewish studies program produced the unique community and university collaboration of “To Be Certain of the Dawn<em>,</em>”<em> </em>a<em> </em>Holocaust memorial program of choral and symphonic music that had been commissioned by the Basilica of Saint Mary as a gift to the Jewish community in 2005.</p>
  662.  
  663.  
  664.  
  665. <p>It was performed on both campuses by the SCSU Music Department with Saint John’s University and College of Saint Benedict faculty and students and the St. Cloud Cantabile children’s choir. Then 260 faculty, students and staff from the three universities went to Europe in the summer of 2008 and performed the piece in the Nazi concentration camp Natzweiler-Struthof in France. The SCSU archives has a 17-minute documentary, “Holocaust and Transcendence,” which illuminates what a university can do to repudiate antisemitism.</p>
  666.  
  667.  
  668.  
  669. <p>And the course “Antisemitism in America” was developed and offered by a university challenged to prevent the past from being repeated. Students taking the course fulfilled a graduation requirement of Liberal Education-Goal 7-Human Diversity. The course explored history, sociology, literature, religious studies and contemporary events to illuminate the “oldest hatred” in Western culture.</p>
  670.  
  671.  
  672.  
  673. <p>Then one year ago, SCSU announced that, due to debt and low enrollment, several programs would be canceled and that some tenured faculty positions would be terminated. Among the programs eliminated was Jewish studies.</p>
  674.  
  675.  
  676.  
  677. <p>State legislators are having public meetings to develop the new State Holocaust Education program, but SCSU — which educates 45% of Minnesota’s teachers — has eliminated Jewish studies. When Minnesota mandates Holocaust education in its public schools, what university will teach “Antisemitism in America” to prepare the teachers?</p>
  678.  
  679.  
  680.  
  681. <p>The University of Minnesota faces an investigation by the U.S. Department of Education of antisemitism on the Twin Cities campus following demonstrations after the Hamas massacre of Oct. 7, 2023, in Israel. </p>
  682.  
  683.  
  684.  
  685. <p>Currently, there are also public hearings about the revocation of the name of the school’s Nicholson Hall. A <a href="https://mndaily.com/276084/opinion/opinion-nicholson-hall-needs-to-be-renamed/">recent Op-Ed</a> in The Minnesota Daily argues that the name of the building, which houses the university’s Center for Jewish Studies, should be changed as it is named after a man “who aligned himself with notorious antisemites.” It added: “Edward E. Nicholson is a reminder of the University’s darkest chapters.” Ironically, there is currently no course at the Twin Cities campus that teaches about the antisemitism for which Nicholson’s name might be removed.</p>
  686.  
  687.  
  688.  
  689. <p>Students are missing a vital intellectual challenge in civic responsibility. Three sample questions on antisemitism teach history as well as personal ethics: What is the connection between Henry Ford, “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” and antisemitism in the U.S. before World War II? What is the origin of the slang term “<em>to jew</em> someone down” and why is it so offensive? Why were white supremacists in Charlottesville screaming “Jews will not replace us?”</p>
  690.  
  691.  
  692.  
  693. <p>Maybe Santayana’s warning should be amended for our time:<strong> </strong>Those who cannot teach about our past are condemned to repeat it. A writer proclaimed in 1946 that “Minneapolis is the capitol (sic) of anti-Semitism in the United States&#8221; — a phrase that should be part of every Minnesota citizen’s basic literacy about the hatred of Jews.</p>
  694.  
  695.  
  696.  
  697. <p>Minnesota’s two public university systems must create and sustain courses on antisemitism in America.</p>
  698.  
  699.  
  700.  
  701. <p>Elie Wiesel, a survivor of Auschwitz, taught the world during his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986, saying, “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides.”</p>
  702.  
  703.  
  704.  
  705. <p>The urgent need to teach “Antisemitism in America” in Minnesota’s universities requires that we take sides and end the silence about the absence of this course.</p>
  706.  
  707.  
  708.  
  709. <p><em>Joseph A. Edelheit is an emeritus professor of religious and Jewish studies at St. Cloud State University and was the senior rabbi at Temple Israel from 1992-2001.</em></p>
  710. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2024/03/our-universities-cannot-forget-their-antisemitic-pasts/">Our universities cannot forget their antisemitic pasts</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  711. ]]></content:encoded>
  712. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158314</post-id> </item>
  713. <item>
  714. <title>Minnesota Senate approves settlement with former DFL chief of staff</title>
  715. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/minnesota-senate-approves-settlement-with-former-dfl-chief-of-staff/</link>
  716. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Jazzmine Jackson]]></dc:creator>
  717. <pubDate>Wed, 27 Mar 2024 10:24:00 +0000</pubDate>
  718. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  719. <category><![CDATA[The Glean]]></category>
  720. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158312</guid>
  721.  
  722. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="740" height="492" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/MNSenateFloor740.png?fit=740%2C492&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Floor of the Minnesota Senate" decoding="async" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  723. <p>Plus: MPD's overtime payments skyrocketing amidst officer shortage; the #DuluthCheerioChallenge and lager inspired by Kathy Cargill; and more.</p>
  724. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/minnesota-senate-approves-settlement-with-former-dfl-chief-of-staff/">Minnesota Senate approves settlement with former DFL chief of staff</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  725. ]]></description>
  726. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="740" height="492" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/MNSenateFloor740.png?fit=740%2C492&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Floor of the Minnesota Senate" decoding="async" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  727. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-senate-approves-settlement-with-former-dfl-chief-of-staff/600354234/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Briana Bierschbach at the Star Tribune reports</a> a state Senate committee has <strong>approved a $110,000 settlement with the former Senate DFL caucus chief of staff who alleged discrimination after her termination last year.</strong> &#8220;DFL Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy denied any wrongdoing by the Senate in Melin&#8217;s termination, but said they chose to settle to avoid a protracted legal battle.&#8221;</p>
  728.  
  729.  
  730.  
  731. <p><a href="https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/minneapolis-police-overtime-climbs-to-21-million-in-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">KSTP&#8217;s Jay Kolls reports</a> the Minneapolis Police Department&#8217;s <strong>overtime payments quadrupled over the last four years.</strong> &#8220;According to Minneapolis police data, overtime reached $21.1 million in 2023. In 2019, MPD overtime was $5.2 million, a figure that has steadily increased each year since then.&#8221;</p>
  732.  
  733.  
  734.  
  735. <p>Duluth residents are<strong> making light of Kathy Cargill&#8217;s interesting choice of words</strong> in a recent Wall Street Journal story. The billionaire used the phrase &#8220;don&#8217;t pee in your Cheerios&#8221; which has<strong> prompted residents to encourage both cereal and monetary donations to local food shelves</strong>, <a href="https://www.northernnewsnow.com/2024/03/26/kathy-cargills-comments-inspire-duluth-cheerio-challenge/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">via Northern News Now</a>. </p>
  736.  
  737.  
  738.  
  739. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/duluth-responds-to-cargills-diss-by-serving-cheerios-with-its-beer/600354181/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Meanwhile, Star Tribune reports</a> Fitger&#8217;s Bar has <strong>released a lager called the Park Point People&#8217;s Pint </strong>that is served with Cheerios on the side.</p>
  740.  
  741.  
  742.  
  743. <p><a href="https://www.fox9.com/news/mn-lawmaker-cites-cow-trampling-while-questioning-firearm-storage-bill" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Via Fox9</a>: The unique argument from a state lawmaker from Maple Grove is catching people&#8217;s attention. During a hearing on a<strong> firearm storage bill</strong>, Rep. Warren Limmer (R) <strong>expressed concerns over what farmers will do if they&#8217;re suddenly attacked by an animal&#8230; say a cow. </strong></p>
  744.  
  745.  
  746.  
  747. <blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
  748. <p>&#8220;Take for example, a cow that has just recently had a calf. You even walk too close to a cow, and it will take you down and trample you into dust.&#8221;</p>
  749. <cite>Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove</cite></blockquote>
  750.  
  751.  
  752.  
  753. <p><a href="https://www.postbulletin.com/news/local/spring-valley-woman-charged-in-february-hit-and-run-involving-an-amish-buggy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">John Molseed with Post Bulletin reports</a> a Spring Valley woman has been <strong>charged in connection to a fatal buggy crash</strong> in February. </p>
  754. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/minnesota-senate-approves-settlement-with-former-dfl-chief-of-staff/">Minnesota Senate approves settlement with former DFL chief of staff</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  755. ]]></content:encoded>
  756. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158312</post-id> </item>
  757. <item>
  758. <title>MyPillow evicted from Shakopee warehouse over unpaid rent</title>
  759. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/mypillow-evicted-from-shakopee-warehouse-over-unpaid-rent/</link>
  760. <dc:creator><![CDATA[MinnPost staff]]></dc:creator>
  761. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Mar 2024 18:40:54 +0000</pubDate>
  762. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  763. <category><![CDATA[The Glean]]></category>
  764. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158275</guid>
  765.  
  766. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="627" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/MikeLindellMaraLago940.jpg?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell" decoding="async" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  767. <p>Plus: Faith leaders and Republicans want a religious exemption for gender identity in the state Human Rights Act; basic economy price war between Delta and Sun Country; $6 billion settlement over allegedly defective earplugs made by a 3M moves forward; and more.</p>
  768. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/mypillow-evicted-from-shakopee-warehouse-over-unpaid-rent/">MyPillow evicted from Shakopee warehouse over unpaid rent</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  769. ]]></description>
  770. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="627" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/MikeLindellMaraLago940.jpg?fit=940%2C627&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell" decoding="async" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  771. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/judge-evicting-mike-lindells-mypillow-from-a-shakopee-warehouse-for-unpaid-rent/600354172/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Briana Bierschbach and Brooks Johnson at the Star Tribune are reporting</a> <strong>a landlord for one of MyPillow&#8217;s manufacturing facilities has asked a judge to evict the Minnesota-based pillow giant from the premises</strong>, saying the company has failed to pay more than $200,000 in rent over the past two months.</p>
  772.  
  773.  
  774.  
  775. <p><a href="https://www.mprnews.org/story/2024/03/26/st-cloud-homeless-shelter-moves-ahead-despite-business-opposition" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kirsti Marohn at MPR News reports</a> <strong>a proposal to build a homeless shelter with small, indoor units in St. Cloud is moving forward</strong> after a contentious public hearing Monday night.</p>
  776.  
  777.  
  778.  
  779. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/faith-leaders-gop-say-gender-identity-protections-impinge-on-their-religious-freedom/600353976/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rochelle Olson at the Star Tribune reports</a> on Monday <strong>Minnesota House Republicans and faith community members unsuccessfully sought a religious exemption for gender identity</strong> in the state Human Rights Act.</p>
  780.  
  781.  
  782.  
  783. <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/man-stole-from-mpd-evidence-cars-charges/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Via WCCO News:</a> 21-year-old Dakoda Peplinski faces charges after he allegedly <strong>rifled through two dozen cars in the Minneapolis Police Department’s forensic garage</strong> and stole evidence.</p>
  784.  
  785.  
  786.  
  787. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/3m-aearo-combat-arms-settlement-6-billion-deal-moves-forward/600354127/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Brooks Johnson at the Star Tribune is reporting</a> <strong>enough veterans and military service members have agreed to a $6 billion settlement</strong> over allegedly defective earplugs made by a 3M subsidiary for the deal to move forward.</p>
  788.  
  789.  
  790.  
  791. <p><a href="https://thriftytraveler.com/news/airlines/delta-minneapolis-price-war/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kyle Potter at the Thrifty Traveler explains</a> the <strong>“basic economy” price war waging between Delta Air Lines and Sun Country Airlines</strong> at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.</p>
  792.  
  793.  
  794.  
  795. <p><a href="https://www.startribune.com/baltimore-bridge-collapse-minnesota-35w/600354133/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Eder Campuzano at the Star Tribune is tracking</a> the local response to the <strong>Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore</strong> and how it’s recalling the 2007 <strong>Interstate 35W collapse in Minneapolis</strong>.</p>
  796.  
  797.  
  798.  
  799. <p><a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/wisconsin-amazon-driver-employment-freelance-supreme-court-ruling/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Via the Associated Press:</a> The <strong>Wisconsin Supreme Court</strong> on Tuesday let stand a lower court ruling that declared <strong>some delivery drivers for Amazon were employees</strong> as the state argued, <strong>not independent contractors as the online retail giant contended.</strong></p>
  800. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2024/03/mypillow-evicted-from-shakopee-warehouse-over-unpaid-rent/">MyPillow evicted from Shakopee warehouse over unpaid rent</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  801. ]]></content:encoded>
  802. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158275</post-id> </item>
  803. <item>
  804. <title>‘This isn’t about justice’: Cobb family blasts calls to take trooper murder case from Moriarty’s office</title>
  805. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2024/03/this-isnt-about-justice-cobb-family-blasts-calls-to-take-trooper-murder-case-from-moriartys-office/</link>
  806. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Mohamed Ibrahim]]></dc:creator>
  807. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Mar 2024 15:35:56 +0000</pubDate>
  808. <category><![CDATA[Metro]]></category>
  809. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  810. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158220</guid>
  811.  
  812. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="654" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?fit=940%2C654&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Nyra Fields-Miller, Ricky Cobb’s mother, and other family members shown during a January Press Conference." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=190%2C132&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=640%2C445&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=768%2C534&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=400%2C278&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=706%2C491&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?fit=940%2C654&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  813. <p>The family asked Gov. Tim Walz not to reassign the case and to allow Moriarty to prosecute the case like any other murder.</p>
  814. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2024/03/this-isnt-about-justice-cobb-family-blasts-calls-to-take-trooper-murder-case-from-moriartys-office/">‘This isn’t about justice’: Cobb family blasts calls to take trooper murder case from Moriarty’s office</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  815. ]]></description>
  816. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="654" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?fit=940%2C654&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="Nyra Fields-Miller, Ricky Cobb’s mother, and other family members shown during a January Press Conference." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=190%2C132&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=640%2C445&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=768%2C534&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=400%2C278&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?resize=706%2C491&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/NyraFieldsMillerCobbFamily940.png?fit=940%2C654&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  817. <p>The family of Ricky Cobb II, the 33-year-old Black man fatally shot by a Minnesota state trooper during a traffic stop last year, spoke out on Monday against calls from elected officials and police unions to take the case from Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.</p>
  818.  
  819.  
  820.  
  821. <p>In a statement from the attorneys representing Cobb’s family, they accused officials of politicizing the case to influence an active prosecution. The family asked Gov. Tim Walz not to reassign the case and to allow Moriarty to prosecute the case like any other murder. </p>
  822.  
  823.  
  824.  
  825. <p>“Reassigning this case would create a clear conflict of interests and removing it from the County Attorney should not be an option,” said the attorneys representing the family in a statement. “Mr. Cobb’s family has suffered enough. They don’t deserve this too.”</p>
  826.  
  827.  
  828.  
  829. <p>The charges came months after a lengthy investigation into the killing, which occurred in July on Interstate 94 when three troopers tried to pull Cobb II out of his vehicle. Cobb II appeared to attempt to pull off when trooper Ryan Londregan shot into the moving vehicle. Moriarty’s office charged Londregan with second degree unintentional murder, second degree manslaughter and first degree assault in January.&nbsp;</p>
  830.  
  831.  
  832.  
  833. <p>Earlier this month, court filings from Londregan’s defense claimed that Moriarty had hired a use of force expert to help the office determine whether to bring charges against the trooper. According to the filing, Jeffrey Noble, a national use of force expert, said during a meeting with the prosecution that Londregan had acted lawfully to save his partner.&nbsp;</p>
  834.  
  835.  
  836.  
  837. <p>The filings claim Moriarty’s office lied by omission by not divulging the expert’s finding and bringing charges anyway three months after the meeting with Noble that had occurred in October. That prompted groups like the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association (MPPOA) to accuse Moriarty – who ran and won her seat on a platform partly based on police accountability – of “lying by omission” and enacting an anti-police agenda.&nbsp;</p>
  838.  
  839.  
  840.  
  841. <p>“This is what happens in a political prosecution. Trooper Ryan is a hero who saved his partner’s life,” MPPOA executive director Brian Peters said in a statement. “Anyone who cares about the rule of law needs to care about this case – it’s an unjust prosecution.”</p>
  842.  
  843.  
  844.  
  845. <p>That was quickly followed by calls from Minnesota House Republicans in the state Legislature for Moriarty to resign and drop the charges against Londregan.&nbsp;</p>
  846.  
  847.  
  848.  
  849. <p>In response, Hennepin County Attorney’s Office spokesman Nick Kimball released a statement calling the claims that the use of force expert had come to any conclusions on Londregan’s conduct were false. Kimball said the expert had come in for a preliminary meeting to help the prosecution determine where there may be gaps in the office’s investigation, and that the hypotheticals discussed in that meeting were taken out of context by the defense.&nbsp;</p>
  850.  
  851.  
  852.  
  853. <p>The full discussion in that meeting was provided in discovery to the defense, who then selectively quoted from the document despite the expert acknowledging he did not have significant information related to the prosecution’s investigation nor did he know how to interpret the use of force legal standard in Minnesota, Kimball said in the statement.&nbsp;</p>
  854.  
  855.  
  856.  
  857. <p>“Once again the defense is abusing the legal process to initiate inaccurate pretrial publicity in this case,” the statement reads.&nbsp;</p>
  858.  
  859.  
  860.  
  861. <p>In the past week, the four Republican members of Minnesota’s congressional delegation – U.S. Reps. Michelle Fischbach, Tom Emmer, Brad Finstad and Pete Stauber – wrote a letter to Walz asking that he take the case from Moriarty’s office, and suggesting that an investigation into the matter could be conducted by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee. The letter goes on to claim the charges brought by Moriarty’s office are political in nature and further illustrates the “denigration” of law enforcement as a profession.</p>
  862.  
  863.  
  864.  
  865. <p>“The split second that officers have to make life-and-death decisions has often been clouded by the fear of political persecution, like what is happening to Trooper Londregan right now,” the letter reads. “Enough is enough. The uncertainty that this frivolous case puts in officers’ minds could cost them their lives.”</p>
  866.  
  867.  
  868.  
  869. <p>Reps. Angie Craig and Dean Phillips, both Democrats, also came out in favor of having the case taken away from Moriarty’s office.&nbsp;</p>
  870.  
  871.  
  872.  
  873. <p class="has-light-gray-background-color has-background"><strong>Related:</strong> <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/dc-memo/2024/03/d-c-memo-congress-wades-into-the-trooper-londregan-case/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">D.C. Memo: Congress wades into the Trooper Londregan case</a></p>
  874.  
  875.  
  876.  
  877. <p>Walz has mused publicly about whether to reassign the case from Moriarty’s office, which he has the legal authority to do and has done once before last year with the high-profile murder case of <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/17-year-old-boy-who-allegedly-shot-zaria-mckeever-to-be-tried-as-adult/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zaria McKeever</a>.&nbsp;</p>
  878.  
  879.  
  880.  
  881. <p>University of St. Thomas School of Law Professor Rachel Moran, who founded the school’s Criminal and Juvenile Defense Clinic, said having the governor speculate about local prosecutors’ decisions adds an additional unfair pressure to a case that already has high stakes. Should Walz reassign the case it would be a very anti-democratic decision, she said. </p>
  882.  
  883.  
  884.  
  885. <p>“The people of Hennepin County elected Mary Moriarty. Some of the things she is doing are the things that she said she would do – it’s not as if she&#8217;s pulling a bait and switch on the voters,” Moran said. “It&#8217;s really problematic when the governor overrules the decision of the local voters and says, ‘I&#8217;m essentially not trusting your judgment on this.’”</p>
  886.  
  887.  
  888.  
  889. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-5 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  890. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  891. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="225" height="274" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Ibrahim225.png?resize=225%2C274&#038;ssl=1" alt="Mohamed Ibrahim" class="wp-image-2100521" style="width:114px" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  892.  
  893.  
  894.  
  895. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  896. <p style="font-size:20px"><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/mohamed-ibrahim/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Mohamed Ibrahim</strong></a><br><br>Mohamed Ibrahim is MinnPost’s environment and public safety reporter. He can be reached at <a href="mailto:mibrahim@minnpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mibrahim@minnpost.com</a>.</p>
  897. </div>
  898. </div>
  899. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2024/03/this-isnt-about-justice-cobb-family-blasts-calls-to-take-trooper-murder-case-from-moriartys-office/">‘This isn’t about justice’: Cobb family blasts calls to take trooper murder case from Moriarty’s office</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  900. ]]></content:encoded>
  901. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">2158220</post-id> </item>
  902. <item>
  903. <title>Proposed ‘modifications’ to Minnesota marijuana law range from licensing to expanded medical home grow</title>
  904. <link>https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/proposed-modifications-to-minnesota-marijuana-law-range-from-licensing-to-expanded-medical-home-grow/</link>
  905. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Peter Callaghan]]></dc:creator>
  906. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Mar 2024 15:31:13 +0000</pubDate>
  907. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  908. <category><![CDATA[State Government]]></category>
  909. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.minnpost.com/?p=2158191</guid>
  910.  
  911. <description><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="576" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?fit=940%2C576&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="State Sen. Lindsey Port listening as state Rep. Zack Stephenson speaking during a hearing of the Cannabis Conference Committee last May." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=190%2C116&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=640%2C392&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=768%2C471&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=400%2C245&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=706%2C433&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?fit=940%2C576&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  912. <p>The thorniest issue may be how to adjust how so-called social equity licenses are distributed by replacing a points system with a "vetted lottery."</p>
  913. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/proposed-modifications-to-minnesota-marijuana-law-range-from-licensing-to-expanded-medical-home-grow/">Proposed ‘modifications’ to Minnesota marijuana law range from licensing to expanded medical home grow</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
  914. ]]></description>
  915. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<figure><img width="940" height="576" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?fit=940%2C576&amp;ssl=1" class="attachment-rss-image-size size-rss-image-size wp-post-image" alt="State Sen. Lindsey Port listening as state Rep. Zack Stephenson speaking during a hearing of the Cannabis Conference Committee last May." decoding="async" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?w=940&amp;ssl=1 940w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=190%2C116&amp;ssl=1 190w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=640%2C392&amp;ssl=1 640w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=768%2C471&amp;ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=400%2C245&amp;ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?resize=706%2C433&amp;ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/StephensonPort0523_940.png?fit=940%2C576&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w" sizes="(max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw / 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw / 12)), 100vw" /></figure>
  916. <p>The lead sponsors of 2023’s recreational cannabis law are sensitive to suggestions that the sweeping law needs “fixing.” Such a word might be interpreted as endorsing Republican talking points that the bill — along with much of the work of the 2023 session — was rushed and that mistakes were made.</p>
  917.  
  918.  
  919.  
  920. <p>Instead, top sponsors of <a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/342/full#stat.342.19.2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">House File 100</a> say changes they are both proposing, as well others filed by other lawmakers, are expected and routine. The law will be “modified,” not fixed.</p>
  921.  
  922.  
  923.  
  924. <p>“As I said many times last year, it won’t be the last time the Legislature hears a cannabis bill,” said Sen. Lindsey Port, the Burnsville DFLer who was the lead sponsor in the Senate. “Prohibition of alcohol ended nearly 100 years ago and we still have a liquor bill nearly every year.”</p>
  925.  
  926.  
  927.  
  928. <p>That said, what is being proposed to change the law at the midpoint between legalization and retail sales? Both Port and Rep. Zack Stephenson, DFL-Coon Rapids, have said they expect to have an omnibus cannabis bill that will contain all changes in one package.</p>
  929.  
  930.  
  931.  
  932. <p>The Office of Cannabis Management’s 100-page proposal — <a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?f=SF4782&amp;b=senate&amp;y=2024&amp;ssn=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Senate File 4782</a>/House File 4757 — is the stage setter. Even though these bills show Port and Stephenson as sponsors, they put their name on top as a courtesy to the Office of Cannabis Management. Their own work will likely be affixed to the OCM bill.&nbsp;</p>
  933.  
  934.  
  935.  
  936. <p>The long list of changes would adjust how so-called social equity licenses are distributed, change the ownership ratios for such license holders, bring the hemp-derived market regulation under the Office of Cannabis Management sooner and put numerical caps on each type of license rather than let OCM decide how many the market requires. Many of the changes were suggested as ways to get to the same end point as HF 100 but with less risk of litigation.</p>
  937.  
  938.  
  939.  
  940. <p class="has-light-gray-background-color has-background"><strong>RELATED: <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/proposed-changes-to-minnesotas-cannabis-law-have-one-eye-on-the-future-market-and-one-eye-on-the-courts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">How proposed changes to Minnesota’s cannabis law have one eye on the future market and one eye on the courts&nbsp;</a></strong></p>
  941.  
  942.  
  943.  
  944. <p>Primary among the OCM proposals is a plan to replace a points-driven system for distributing licenses to enter the new market with what the agency called a “vetted lottery.” Only applicants who meet the social equity criteria and demonstrate that they have the knowledge and wherewithal to run a business would be entered into the first lottery. Later in the process, other applicants would enter a different lottery for remaining licenses.</p>
  945.  
  946.  
  947. <div class="wp-block-image">
  948. <figure class="alignleft size-full"><img decoding="async" width="225" height="263" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/CharleneBriner225.jpg?resize=225%2C263&#038;ssl=1" alt="Charlene Briner" class="wp-image-2123051" data-recalc-dims="1"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Charlene Briner</figcaption></figure></div>
  949.  
  950.  
  951. <p>All of these factors would be considered in the “vetted lottery,”&nbsp; interim OCM director Charlene Briner said. The lottery would eliminate potential subjective judgments by staff that could expose the law to litigation. Briner said the current law based on the accumulation of points would likely benefit the “well-capitalized and politically savvy” and expose the state to lawsuits that could delay the roll out of retail sales next spring.</p>
  952.  
  953.  
  954.  
  955. <p>But what Briner sees as a way of enhancing opportunities for people and communities — defined in the law as social equity applicants — was viewed as hostile to those same applicants during testimony last week.</p>
  956.  
  957.  
  958.  
  959. <p>“The proposed lottery system is a cause for alarm from our members who have worked the last 10 months to prepare for a merit-based scoring system,” said John Bartee, president of Cannabis Retailers and Manufacturers Association of Minnesota. Big companies, he said, might be able to put in more applications, or what he called “more tickets to play,” to increase their odds of winning.</p>
  960.  
  961.  
  962.  
  963. <p>Many testifiers said it harmed social equity applicants by introducing chance into license awards and might give big companies the opportunity to “flood the zone” with dozens of applicants to increase their odds.</p>
  964.  
  965.  
  966.  
  967. <p>Others worried that changing the ownership ratios — something OCM saw as a way to help underfunded social equity applicants get investors — would expose those same applicants to financial predators. Current law says social equity applicants must provide 100% of the investment needed. The OCM proposal drops that to 65% as a way of helping those applicants find capital when traditional bank borrowing isn’t an option for cannabis.</p>
  968.  
  969.  
  970.  
  971. <p>Calandra Revering, founder of Minnesota Association of Black Cannabis Professionals, said the lottery and change in ownership percentages “has created a path for multi-state operators to come in and expand their footprint in Minnesota.” She said other states have seen big businesses partner with social equity applicants to win licenses, only to move them out of the business.</p>
  972.  
  973.  
  974.  
  975. <p>“As one of my colleagues who has opened cannabis operations in other states told me, this is called Rent a Minority” and it is on its way to Minnesota thanks to OCM’s proposal, she said.</p>
  976.  
  977.  
  978.  
  979. <p>Social equity is a pillar of the law, meant to assure that people and communities harmed by the war on drugs can now benefit from legalization. Race is not mentioned in the current law, but having been from neighborhoods, communities or even families that faced higher levels of arrests and prosecution would give applicants more points. Being a veteran who faced a less-than-honorable discharge due to marijuana use is another way to get points.&nbsp;</p>
  980.  
  981.  
  982.  
  983. <p>But points would also be awarded for having other tasks completed, such as a business plan, demonstrating knowledge of the cannabis business, being a veteran, having financing and having a security plan in place. While OCM is to determine how many points might be scored for each of these, at least 20% must go toward meeting social equity goals. License applicants — cultivators, manufacturers, retailers and combination businesses that could both grow and sell products — who accumulated the most points would win licenses. In the event of ties, a random drawing could be used.</p>
  984.  
  985.  
  986.  
  987. <p>Port said Friday she expects her bill to make seven Senate committee stops before returning to the Senate Commerce Committee for final action. Stephenson <a href="https://www.house.mn.gov/comm/docs/lc2bhOBNE0iFIVuvxRXNIA.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">posted a draft</a> of his proposed bill Monday and will hold a hearing Wednesday in his commerce committee. It makes a few changes to the OCM bill, including some of the provisions detailed below. But for now, it retains most of the major provisions including the lottery plan.</p>
  988.  
  989.  
  990.  
  991. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Other bills filed:</strong></h3>
  992.  
  993.  
  994.  
  995. <ul>
  996. <li><strong>Home grow for medical cannabis patients:</strong> Rep. Jessica Hanson, DFL-Burnsville, introduced <a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF3766&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF3766</a> that would allow patients enrolled in the medical cannabis registry program to grow up to 16 cannabis plants without a license, double what non-patients can grow for personal use. It also would allow caregivers to grow cannabis for the patients though still undecided is whether a caregiver is restricted to just one patient or could grow cannabis for up to six patients. The Senate version, SF4734, is sponsored by Sen. Clare Oumou Verbeten, DFL-St. Paul.</li>
  997.  
  998.  
  999.  
  1000. <li><strong>Patient protection: </strong><a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF3760&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF3760</a> , also by Hanson,&nbsp; would protect medical cannabis patients from sanctions from schools, landlords or occupational licensing boards for being on the registry and using medical cannabis products.</li>
  1001.  
  1002.  
  1003.  
  1004. <li><strong>Medical cannabis-tribal sales: </strong>Hanson’s <a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF4195&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF4195</a> would set up a pilot project to allow the state’s two medical cannabis providers to sell to tribal governments and Tribal cannabis businesses. Hanson said last week she does not expect this measure to pass this session.</li>
  1005.  
  1006.  
  1007.  
  1008. <li><strong>Medical cannabis health conditions: </strong>Rep. Kaohly Vang Her, DFL-St. Paul, introduced <a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF4789&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF4789</a> that would expand the health conditions eligible for medical cannabis. Current law empowers the commissioner of the Department of Health to decide <a href="https://www.health.state.mn.us/people/cannabis/patients/conditions.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">which conditions are covered</a>, but Her’s bill would allow a patient’s doctor to determine if cannabis would be helpful.</li>
  1009.  
  1010.  
  1011.  
  1012. <li><strong>Menthol flavors: </strong><a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF4251&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF4251</a> also by Her, would prohibit the Office of Cannabis Management from approving cannabis flower, cannabis products, and hemp-derived consumer products that contain menthol or other flavorings.</li>
  1013.  
  1014.  
  1015.  
  1016. <li><strong>Counterfeit packaging: </strong><a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF4377&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF4377</a> by Stephenson would ban the sale of empty packaging that looks like approved products and gives the state attorney general the authority to enforce the ban. This is in response to reports of counterfeit packaging entering the state that would violate bans of packages that appeal to children if they contained hemp or marijuana products.</li>
  1017.  
  1018.  
  1019.  
  1020. <li><strong>Low-potency hemp products: </strong><a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?Billnumber=HF4629&amp;ls_year=93&amp;session_year=2023&amp;session_number=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF4629</a> by Rep. Nolan West, R-Blaine, would create a process to allow the sale of some lower-potency hemp products that were made illegal by HF100.</li>
  1021.  
  1022.  
  1023.  
  1024. <li><strong>Illegal drug tax repeal: </strong>SF 3670 by Sen. Oumou Verbeten with Hanson in the House would repeal an existing tax on illegal drugs. Current law requires illegal drug dealers to purchase tax stamps and affix them to illegally sold drugs. Such stamps<a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/on-the-repeal-list-minnesotas-tax-on-illegal-drugs-that-brings-in-zero-dollars-in-revenue/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> are rarely purchased</a> and enforcement, while rare, usually comes as an add-on charge to criminal drug charges.</li>
  1025.  
  1026.  
  1027.  
  1028. <li><strong>Underage possession: </strong>House and Senate bills with bipartisan sponsorship would reinstate misdemeanor criminal penalties for underage people found in possession of marijuana. The criminal penalties <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2023/07/minnesota-marijuana-law-intentionally-took-away-criminal-penalties-for-underage-use-is-that-a-good-thing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">were removed in HF 100</a> though a remnant law assigns petty misdemeanor penalties for any crime without a specific penalty. The bills are <a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?f=HF4635&amp;b=house&amp;y=2024&amp;ssn=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF 4635</a> and SF 3925 but Port said she opposes adding the penalty, preferring to go after the illegal sale to minors that is contained in HF100</li>
  1029.  
  1030.  
  1031.  
  1032. <li><strong>DNR lands restriction: </strong>Cannabis would not be allowed on any state Department of Natural Resources land under a bill by Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin (<a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?f=SF4538&amp;b=senate&amp;y=2024&amp;ssn=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SF 4538</a>).</li>
  1033.  
  1034.  
  1035.  
  1036. <li><strong>Cannabis advertising: </strong>SF 5054 and <a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?f=HF5101&amp;b=house&amp;y=2024&amp;ssn=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HF 5101</a> by Sen. Carla Nelson, R-Rochester, and Rep. Kristin Robbins, R-Maple Grove, would ban cannabis ads that make any health claims about the products. The current law prohibits only “unverified” health claims.</li>
  1037.  
  1038.  
  1039.  
  1040. <li><strong>Health labeling: </strong><a href="https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?f=SF5079&amp;b=senate&amp;y=2024&amp;ssn=0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SF 5079 </a>&nbsp;and HF 5103 by Nelson and Robbins would require health labeling on all cannabis products that warn of “risks to mental health, risks to the developing brain, contraindications during pregnancy and breastfeeding, addiction potential, medication interactions, interactions with preexisting medical conditions, and other health risks supported by science.”</li>
  1041. </ul>
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  1045. <div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-layout-6 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
  1046. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:15%"><div class="wp-block-image">
  1047. <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://i0.wp.com/www.minnpost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/imagecache/author_photo/images/author/PeterCallaghan225.png?w=1400&#038;ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-124351" style="width:114px;height:auto" data-recalc-dims="1"/></figure></div></div>
  1048.  
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  1051. <div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow" style="flex-basis:66.66%">
  1052. <p style="font-size:20px"><strong><a href="https://www.minnpost.com/author/peter-callaghan/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Peter Callaghan</a></strong><br><br>Peter Callaghan covers state government for MinnPost.&nbsp;Follow him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/callaghanpeter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">@CallaghanPeter</a>&nbsp;or email him at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:pcallaghan@minnpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pcallaghan@minnpost.com</a>.</p>
  1053. </div>
  1054. </div>
  1055. <p>The post <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2024/03/proposed-modifications-to-minnesota-marijuana-law-range-from-licensing-to-expanded-medical-home-grow/">Proposed ‘modifications’ to Minnesota marijuana law range from licensing to expanded medical home grow</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.minnpost.com">MinnPost</a>.</p>
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