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Neighborhood and Community Relations along with the Minneapolis Advisory Committee on People with Disabilities is hosting a celebration of Disability Pride Month and the 35th anniversary of the ADA.
Signed into law July 26, 1990, the ADA is a critical civil rights law for people with disabilities. The law bans discrimination in all aspects of public life. This includes discrimination in City programs, services, and buildings. This anniversary celebration honors the importance of this law and the local leaders who have improved countless lives in and around the city. The City recognizes the important role the ADA plays in making life more accessible for people in Minneapolis.
July is also Disability Pride Month, which recognizes all the unique contributions and talents of those with disabilities who make life more vibrant, engaging, and powerful.
ADA and Disability Pride Month Celebration
Wednesday, July 30
5:30-8pm
Public Service Building Room 100
The celebration will include:
- Disability pride flag recognition
- Story sharing
- Panel discussion
Event accessibility:
- An ASL interpreter and CART services will be available
- Please help make this a scent-free event by not wearing fragrances
- Service animal relief area is in Government Center Plaza across 4th Ave.
Parking:
- Street meters will be hooded and available to those with disability parking permits on 4th Ave. between 5th and 6th St.
- A disability transfer zone is available on the building side of this street.
- The nearest parking ramp is the Haaf Ramp at 424 S. 4th St.
- Parking vouchers will be available upon request
Register and learn more about the program: www.minneapolismn.gov/ada35
Lounge and learn with the laid-back Carlson’s Lloveable Llamas at the library! Option to linger longer with library-led activities offering limitless llama-themed fun for all!
Llamas at the library
Saturday July 19th, 1-3:30pm
Arvonne Frasier Library: 1222 4th St. SE
Poster for llamas at the library event.
Summary: Council received a report on how other cities have addressed food insecurity through municipal grocery stores.
Background: Food insecurity is an extremely serious issue in Ward 2 and around the city. Nearly a quarter of University of Minnesota students experience food insecurity, which is completely unacceptable. I consistently hear from my constituents that access to fresh and affordable produce is a top concern. My office has worked with students from the Carlson School of Management for over a year exploring various possible solutions to food insecurity amongst students.
Last November, I brought forward a directive that Council unanimously approved to research various models that other cities have used to create municipal grocery stores. At first, I received some comments that municipal grocery stores were a pie-in-the-sky idea. Now, less than a year later, there is an ongoing national conversation about municipal grocery stores. We’re hearing community leaders raise the issue across the river in St. Paul. More recently, municipal grocery stores have become a topic in the ongoing New York City mayoral race, which has prompted other cities to explore the idea too. It’s also dovetailed with the conversations that cities around the country are having about ways to create more resilient and self-reliant systems to meet residents’ basic needs under an increasingly hostile Trump administration that’s cutting funding for many of the public health services that our communities rely on. Working class people across the country are looking for local government to step up and help make sure that everyone can afford basic needs like groceries.
This week, Council received the research report and a presentation from the research staff who completed it. The report is a fascinating deep-dive into cities around the country that have tried to implement municipal grocery, as well as explorations of other municipal retail like liquor stores and cannabis dispensaries. It also overviews the wide variety of models that different cities have used to create municipal grocery stores. There are examples of completely publicly owned models, public-private mixed models, nonprofits, and a whole variety of financial tools and administrative models to fund and sustain these grocery projects.
The private grocery market is failing to meet residents’ basic needs and we don’t have to just accept that. Local governments should take the initiative to use the tools we have to serve the public good. The City of Minneapolis has stepped up to help to address our ongoing housing crisis, establishing a temporary navigation center, providing subsidies to private housing developers, and other financial tools. The City can and should also step up to help alleviate food insecurity that’s impacting thousands of our residents. I look forward to working with my colleagues, staff, and community partners to solve the food insecurity in our city.
Key votes: No votes taken.
Summary: Council and the public learned from the media that Sergeant Mark Hanneman, who shot and killed Amir Locke, currently leads use of force training for MPD.
Background: This week, MPR broke the news that Sergeant Mark Hanneman is currently leading Use of Force Training for MPD. Sergeant Hanneman shot and killed Amir Locke, a 22-year-old Black man, nine seconds after entering the apartment where Locke was asleep. Sergeant Hanneman was carrying out a no-knock warrant, which many people in the public believed to be banned because Mayor Frey had said he banned them the previous year as a supposed police reform. Amir Locke being killed by an MPD officer was why the public learned that no-knock warrants were still being used by MPD.
Like many members of the community, I was deeply disturbed to learn about Hanneman’s role training other officers in how to use force. Officers who have broken public trust should not be in leadership positions. Hanneman’s promotion sends a message that killing Black residents doesn’t hinder career advancement in MPD. It flies in the face of the supposed “culture change” that is supposed to be occurring within MPD to end the pattern of racial discrimination and excessive force.
Community groups have urged Mayor Frey to implement restrictions on which officers can become trainers for years. Despite promises of culture change, Mayor Frey has promoted problematic officers to positions of power. The federal consent decree, which was recently dismissed by the Trump administration, had a provision that would have prohibited officers with questionable past conduct from certain leadership positions. Given this context, it is an incredibly tone-deaf choice by Chief O’Hara and Mayor Frey to appoint Hanneman to lead use of force training. For many residents, it immediately brings to mind MPD’s decision to have Derek Chauvin be a field training officer, despite his extremely problematic history.
The Minnesota Department of Human Rights and the settlement agreement independent monitor both raised concerns about the appointment of Hanneman. Since Hanneman’s position has become public knowledge, there has been significant outcry by local civil rights leaders. Yet Mayor Frey and Chief O’Hara have only doubled down on the appointment and defended Hanneman as the best person for the job. This speaks volumes about the lack of seriousness current leadership has around rebuilding public trust.
I am going to continue to work closely with my colleagues and the community to do what we can to hold the Mayor’s administration accountable to their hollow promises of change.
Key votes: No votes taken.
Summary: Council learned that the Truth and Reconciliation efforts that the City committed to in 2020 has been limited to an HR program internal to City employees.
Background: In 2020 following the murder of George Floyd and the global uprising against racism that followed, the City Council and Mayor resolved to establish a truth and reconciliation process to address racial inequity and harms that have been committed for decades.
The City established a Truth and Reconciliation Work Group that met for several months and then published recommendations in June of 2021. It has been four years and Mayor Frey’s administration has still not implemented the recommendations. In 2023, I and Council Member Chavez allocated funds within the Department of Race Equity Inclusion and Belonging (REIB) to ensure adequate resources to do the programming. Council also requested a formal report by the Mayor on the Truth and Reconciliation work that had been done so far, and the specific plans to do it. REIB gave this presentation in the fall of 2023. The timeline outlined never came into fruition, leaving many residents questioning if this work will ever begin.
This week, Council received an update from REIB in which we learned that the City’s Truth and Reconciliation process has shifted from its original public commitments and is now being implemented solely as an HR project internal to the city enterprise. This is disappointing and not aligned with the vision that was established five years ago. It also reinforces many community members' belief that the City does not want to take accountability and ownership of the systemic harm they have caused to communities of color. I look forward to working with my colleagues to find our way back to a process that’s driven by residents and serves the whole community, not just City employees.
Key votes: No votes taken.
Good news - Public Works has reported that they haven’t seen increased theft despite record high copper prices, yet. It’s unclear if this is tied to the new state law, new protective measures (e.g., aluminum wire), or something else.
Below is the most recent streetlight repair update for the week of July 7 – July 13.
- No new theft
- Work Completed
- Lake Harriet – in progress
- Next Steps
Severe weather can happen quickly. Make sure you’re prepared by staying connected to alerts and knowing what to do when warnings are issued.
Stay ready by:
Remember, if you hear outdoor warning sirens:
- Take shelter immediately
- Sirens may mean tornadoes, severe winds, or large hail
- Stay inside and stay informed. If sirens stop, it does not mean it is safe yet.
Contact Ward 2
Visit: minneapolismn.gov/ward2
Email: ward2@minneapolismn.gov
Phone: 612-673-2202
City Hall
350 S. Fifth St., Room 370
Minneapolis, MN 55415
For reasonable accommodations or alternative format please contact 311. People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use a relay service to call 311 at 612-673-3000. TTY users call 612-263-6850. Para ayuda, llame al 311. Rau kev pab, hu 311. Hadii aad caawimaad u baahantahay, wac 311. |
