Are you ready to cast yourvote Nov. 3, 2009?

As many of you may know,the City of Minneapolis will notbe having a primary this year, orin the future. Why?

Well, in 2006 the voters ofMinneapolis approved to endMinneapolis City primaries andinstead opted for Rank ChoiceVoting (RCV). TheMinneapolis City Councilplaced a question on the ballotin 2006 asking us (voters) ifMinneapolis should switch to

Tri-Construction has been acommunity-based venture from itsinception in 2001.

Proof of this has been the workthe company has done inMinneapolis. The smallconstruction company has beeninvolved with construction on theCapri Theater, The Spirell Bar,Zion Baptist Church and the

Garden of Gethsemane Church. "Most people think there are

three of us based on our name andour logo," explained Lester Royalchief operating officer and vicepresident of Tri-Construction.Actually the 'Tri' in our namestands for three things community,construction and development.Community is our foundation andour philosophy is about peoplestriving together and equippingpeople with jobs and a living."

Royal and business partner CalvinLittlejohn, the company'spresident, met workingconstruction jobs 15 years ago andstarted the company. Littlejohn isa graduate of Roosevelt HighSchool and Royal taught atSummit Academy training thosewith little or no skills to get intothe business.

According to Royal the twocame up together in the

Following his nationally-televised address to the U.S.Congress Wednesday night,President Barack Obamareached out to ethnic media andother individuals andinstitutions to seek support forhis health care reform agenda.In an email communication, thePresident said, “I just finishedlaying out my plan for healthreform at a joint session ofCongress. Now, I’m writingdirectly to you because whathappens next is critical — and Ineed your help.

“Change this big will nothappen because I ask for it. Itcan only come when the nationdemands it. Congress knowswhere I stand. Now they need tohear from you,” he said.

The President askedsupporters to add their voices tothe decision at hand by askingtheir elected representatives tosupport his plan for healthreform. The President’s emailmessage included a link to aform voters could use tocommunicate via email or fax totheir representatives inCongress. The email wereceived included pre-addressedelectronic mail for ourrepresentatives, Sens. Amy

Klobuchar and Al Franken, and5th Congressional District’sRepresentative Keith Ellison.The form said: “Add yourvoice: Ask your representativesto support my plan for realhealth reform in 2009.”

President Obama continued,“The heart of my plan is simple:bring stability and security toAmericans who already havehealth insurance, guaranteeaffordable coverage for thosewho don’t, and rein in the costof health care.

“Tonight, I offered aspecific plan for how to make ithappen. I incorporated the bestideas from Democrats andRepublicans to create a planthat’s bold, practical, andrepresents the broad consensusof the American people’” hesaid.

“We’ve come closer to realhealth reform in the last fewmonths than we have in the last60 years. But those who profitfrom the status quo — and thosewho put partisan advantageabove all else — will fight usevery inch of the way,” he said.

“We do not seek that fight,but we will not shrink from it.The stakes are too high to letscare tactics cloud the debate,or to allow partisan bickering toblock the path. Your voice, rightnow, is essential,” PresidentObama said.

“Ours is not the firstgeneration to understand thedire need for health reform. AndI am not the first president totake up this cause, but I amdetermined to be the last,”President Obama said.

“We applaud PresidentObama for tackling muchneeded health care reform. Thishas been a long time coming,”said Dorii Gbolo, CEO at Open

Cities Health Center. “He hasstrongly advocated for thepublic option in the reformpackage. Critics are attackinghim saying that this is‘socialized medicine’ when thepublic option simply offers onemore slice to the health careplan. My concern is that thePresident may not keep thepublic option as part of thereform package. We need a

public plan to help make healthinsurance more affordable. It’sthat simple.”

North Minneapolishealthcare executive StellaWhitney-West said she watchedPresident Obama’s speech“cheering the whole time. I wasso proud. He delivered themessage that needed to be

A few months ago, I made apublic appearance at a Brother'sKeepers basketball tournament.While there, I struck up aconversation with a youngwoman who lives in the district;I've known her for a while. As

acquaintances do, we spoke ofwork and family, she asked meabout my children, and I askedher about her son. To mysurprise, tears welled in hereyes as she said, "I actuallyhave two children." Takenaback, I told her I didn't

SSeepptteemmbbeerr 1144 - SSeepptteemmbbeerr 2200,, 22000099 •• MMNN MMeettrroo VVooll.. 3355 NNoo.. 3377 •• TThhee JJoouurrnnaall FFoorr CCoommmmuunniittyy NNeewwss,, BBuussiinneessss && TThhee AArrttss •• wwwwww..iinnssiigghhttnneewwss..ccoomm

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Environmental scan projectassesses infant mortality incommunities of color

Tri-ConstructionCommunity, construction and development

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

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Health Newsfor a Healthy Heart

8PAGE

5PAGE

Tye Greenis up and comingfilmmaker

4PAGE

Deneane RichburgConcert on iceawakens students’

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African Americanwomen anddepression

Obama Addresses Congress Seeking to build on momentum generated by his health care address to Congress,President Obama ratcheted up his callThursday for the passage of reformlegislation this year.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/photogalleryThe President addresses a joint session of Congress on Health Care.

Health Care ReformPresident Obama asks Americans to make change happen

Summit Academy OIC Thursdayheld a Green-Collar Training openhouse. Community partners,contractors, and state and localofficials learned about the premierWeatherization Techniciantraining happening at Summit.The event featured discussions onthe growing demand for properlytrained WeatherizationTechnicians and how Summit ishelping to meet that demand withprograms serving new entrantsinto the field and for and seasonedworkers. The open house includeda tour of Summit’s training

Green Collar Training Open House

Suluki FardanL-R: Gary Courtney, Carpentry Department Manager; EarlRogers, Employment Specialist/Recruiter; and Alex Tittle,

Education Director2GREEN TURN TO

NNoo MMiinnnneeaappoolliiss PPrriimmaarryy EElleeccttiioonn

Rank Choice Voting

Elliot Stewart-FranzenCalvin Littlejohn (L) and Lester Royal

3STAIRSTEP TURN TO

9OBAMA TURN TO

By Natonia JohnsonSD58 Chair

By Stacey Taylor

Is the St. Paul Urban League(SPUL) still in business? Who isthe CEO and who are the staff?What services are being offered?What's really going on? Thesequestions make you wonder:when was the last time you heardANYTHING about SPUL?

As a recent staff member, Iwould like to share someobservations and concerns basedon my experience, without

bringing in to question anyone'sintegrity. It is not my intent toonly point the finger, but tostimulate discussion andgenerate action. People are veryupset out here about what theythink is going on!

Some may feel disgust withmy remarks, but the silence onthis subject is disrespectful tothose before us who saw the needto create this indispensable

4URBAN TURN TO

Community questions St. Paul Urban Leagueleadership, direction

By Bobby Joe Champion

Correction:Insightacknowledges themisprint of Dr.Curry's name in lastweek's diabetesarticle by BrandiPhillips. The nameshould read Dr.Endea J. Curry.

By Robert McClain

By Al McFarlane andBobbie Ford

Bobby Rush marched with MartinLuther King, Jr. in the Chicagocampaigns, but his call to activismformed when he was 11, when hispreacher father sent him on aclandestine mission into the heart ofthe enemy camp to “bring backnews.”

“I was with Martin LutherKing’s movement and marches inChicago. In 1963 Martin LutherKing came to Chicago for the fisttime. My son was seven-years-old atthe time. We drove to see him at 47thand Halsted where he was speakingthat night. It was me, Little Milton,The Howling Wolf, and MarvinGaye. He was a young man justgetting noticed in the music industryat that time.”

“I got there early to park my car.And when I parked my car, the whitepeople ran us away. I didn’t havetime to get away in the car. Theychased us on foot. I looked back tosee they had turned my car over andburned it up. I went to the policestation and reported the crime, theincident. The police said: ‘Niggers,you ain’t got no business being overhere! Get out of our station!’

“I remember in 1951 or 52, I wasplaying in Chicago at a place calledApex. Muddy Waters was playing onWednesday and I was playing onThursday and Friday. We had a markon the floor. We stood on this markedspot. There was a curtain between usand the audience. They wanted tohear our music, but they didn’t wantto see our faces. These are the kindsof things that I remember.”

A tear collected in theentertainer’s right eye as he wasseeing what he experienced insouthern Illinois. “In 1965 I went toPeoria, IL. My drummer and I werein an accident on the highway. Wewere in this station wagon. Tentrucks hit me in from the rear. All tentrucks blew up. All ten driversburned up. My drummer and I werepinned in the crumpled stationwagon. We clawed our way into asnow bank in the sub-zero freezingcold. When the sheriff’s’ departmentcame at about 4 am or 5 am in themorning, they shined a light on us.We called out for help. Someonesaid, ‘is anybody else out there?’TheSherriff’s department said, ‘Naw,just two niggers already dead or

almost dead. Leave ‘em there.’“I have been through a lot of

changes. It’s a hurting situation. So Igot involved with the march and themovement. I would take my tour busand get people out to the votingpolls,” Bobby Rush said.

“I am not where I should be orwhere I want to be. But I am thankfulbecause I have come so far. We, as apeople, have come a long way, butstill, not far enough. I have a songcalled “How long? How Long?”

If anybody is confused about what Iam talking about, All I am talking about is my 40 acresand a mule.Martin Luther King died waiting forjustice. So did my mother and dad, andgrandma.The truth of the matter is, since theyall died waiting,

What about me and you. Howlong? “I have so many things I cancry about, but I have so many thingsI can shout about. God has deliveredme. God has been good to me andgiven me some knowledge,” he said.“I remember coming to my daddy’schurch as a boy. Out of the 10children, I was kind of the leader ofmy family. At the age of 11, myfather told me to go to work at thecotton gin. He said they won’t payyou but $3 a week. ‘You go andwork and bring me the news.’

“I didn’t ask my daddy anything,I understood him. My job was to goto the center of commerce and getthe information that my daddyneeded to give our people. As a race,we didn’t know anything about thestock market, Dow Jones and thelike. But the white people would sitaround the table and talk about theprice of commodities, when theywould sell, how they would sell, andwhat they would sell. The price ofcotton would be up or down. Theywould say, ‘we can’t sell cottonbecause the niggers still got cotton inthe field, so let’s keep the pricedown.’

“I had a rag and a handful ofsand in my pocket. I would thumpsand onto the table or onto the whitemen’s shoes so I would have areason to wipe it off…so I could hearthe news. So when I got home mydaddy would say, ‘what’s the news?’I would say you shouldn’t sell beans,but you can sell the peanuts now.You should sell this or wait about aweek before you sell that. And my

daddy would get the entirecommunity into the church. His wasthe biggest Black church in the area.He would tell the people what to doand what not to do, based on myinformation. He pastored Free WillBaptist Church. He was pastor of onechurch for 45 years and pastor ofanother for 40 years. His name wasEmmett Ellis, Sr. I am Emmett Ellis,Jr. I changed my name to BobbyRush only because of the respect Ihave for my Daddy and his work inthe Ministry.”

“I did look at a variety of namesfor about a year and a half before Inamed myself Bobby Rush. I firstnamed myself Eisenhower becauseit sounded big. I thought aboutnaming myself after PresidentTruman. When I finally settled onthis name Bobby Rush, nobodycalled me Bobby. Nobody called meMr. Rush. They all said BobbyRush…it just rolls off the lips soeasily.”

Bobby Rush has great respect forthe Black Press. “What you sayabout me is what people perceivedme to be. I don’t claim to be anythingother than and upright man seekingto do unto others as I want them to dounto me. My wish is to carry forthmy music, demonstrating thegoodness of it, educating peopleabout what I am really about –helping others. It’s not about me. It’sall about helping others.”

We asked about his familylineage. How much did he know?Was it important?

“It is important,” he said. “Ondad’s side we go back to mygranddad, from there to Africa. Onmy mother’s side, we go twogenerations back to Indian andwhite.

“My great grandmother wasborn in Mississippi. I understand thatmy great grandmother was a maid tothis white man named Van Spivey.Van Spivey also was married. Hehad six kids by his white wife andfive by my great grandmother, hismaid in his house, and his woman,too.

“I understand that one of the sixkids, when he got 18- or 19-years-old, stole his five half-brothers andsisters, including my grandma, fromhis daddy and mama, and carriedthem to Eudora, AK and droppedthem in a barn where they raisedthemselves.

“We were told as a family, don’tever go back to Mississippi becauseour great granddaddy want to do

harm to us. We found out a hundredyears later that he was not trying todo harm, but was trying to set thingsright. He had equally divided theestate between the 11 children givingland to each. But of course, the fivefrom our side were no longer in thepicture,” said Bobby Rush.

“My mother had blue eyes andblond hair. My daddy drove up oneday and said, ‘I got to go to Homer,LA to get some hay.’That was about4-5 miles in a wagon. I was a littleboy with my brother in the back of abuckboard wagon. My father hadgone into the store and my motherwas sitting with us in the wagonwhen three guys rode up onhorseback and said to my mother,‘Mattie, what you doing with thisnigger?’She said, ‘I’m a nigger, too.’“Because you couldn’t tell whethershe was white or Black, they said,‘Aw naw.’ She said, ‘If you don’tbelieve me, ask Mr. Baer.’She had togo inside the store and get the storeowner to come outside. He saidMattie is one of Van’s kids. I didn’tknow who Van was, though he wasmy great granddaddy. But he musthave been some big shot because thewhite men stumbled back andcleared out hastily, as if they knewthey were messing with the wrongpeople.

“When my daddy, my mother’shusband, came out, my mother nevertold him what happened. He neverknow about the incident,” saidBobby Rush.

“One day my brother and I werein the front yard at home shootingmarbles. The ice man came. Welived in this big house, a plantationstyle house that our boss had givenus. Apparently, whites should havebeen living there because it was anice house. He came to the house,look at us, and yelled out, ‘You wantsome ice?’ then he yelled louder,‘You want some ice?’ My mothercame to the door and the icemanapologized for his rude manner: ‘I’msorry, ma’am. I thought niggers livedhere’, he said looking at us.

“It’s said that my mama had toplay these roles to navigate in thatsociety. When people turned mydaddy down, my mama could go andget anything she wanted.

“Alot has changed. But the morethings have changed, the more theyremain the same. Honestly, I don’tsee much change. I see a change indirection: they not coming at us fromthis direction, they coming at us fromthat direction.

“Yet, I am hopeful that we willemerge anew as one people,” he said.“I never thought there would be aBlack president. But now that he isthe president, I just believe that I cando anything.!”

Bobby Rush’s solo tour givesclub owners a chance to hire him onan economical basis, he said. “Jukejoint can’t do big band any more. SoI’m putting myself and my name

before the market and giving peoplea chance to see me who might notsee me otherwise.”

But the message is the same. Italk about love and making love. Italk about being loved. I talk aboutmoney and about being broke. I talkabout the cat, the dog, the house anda woman. What else is there to talkabout?”

facilities and actualweatherization applications doneby Summit students includinginsulation of foundations, floors,walls and attic; subfloorinsulation, bypass sealing andwindow retrofitting and

replacement. The program waswell received and instrumental indemonstrating the high qualitytraining curriculum being anddone at Summit. It also was agreat way for attendees to networkand form new partnerships in thebuilding of Minnesota’s greenfuture.

Page 2 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

Blues master Bobby Rush marched with Martin Luther King, Jr. in Chicago

Photos: Beaty Four EntertainmentBobby Rush

Green From 1

By Al McFarlane andB.P.Ford, The EditorsPart 2 of 2

remember that she had anotherchild.

Quietly, she told me she hadrecently lost her daughter, whoafter being born prematurely,had passed away this pastspring. As you might imagine, Istruggled with what to say thatmight offer her some sort ofcomfort, because clearly eventhough her loss occurredmonths ago, her grief waspalpable and her emotions stillraw.

Toward the end of ourconversation, she said, "Ialways say I have two children.Even though we only had herfor a few hours, we couldn'thave loved her more or miss hermore deeply. She is just asmuch a part of our lives as myson is, and I never want toforget her." Those words andher quiet pain left me struggling

with my own composure.The loss of an infant -

whether in pregnancy orinfancy - is as devastating toparents as any other loss of achild. Those of us who areparents know what it's like toawait the arrival of a new baby.We plan for the pregnancy andlook forward to holding themclose. We prepare a room,collect baby clothes andsupplies, maybe register at thebaby department of a store;perhaps a family memberthrows a baby shower. We fallin love with a small someonewe haven't even seen yet. Thebaby is our dream child, and inour minds we see him or hergrowing, playing, talking and

entering kindergarten.Eagerly anticipating this

new arrival, we're devastatedwhen something goes wrong,and turns one of the mostjoyous times in our lives intoheartache. The loss isoverwhelming - for the parents,extended family and for thesiblings who have been lookingforward to a new brother orsister. Most piercing is theanguish felt by the mother, whofeels only emptiness in armsthat ache to hold her lost childclose.

The shock felt by theparents is often compounded bythe joy of other new parents,who happily show off their newarrival to relatives and friends.

Another complication theyexperience is that others maynot acknowledge the immensityof their loss. The lost child isnot nearly as real to others as itis to the grieving family. Theyhaven't shared the parents'hopes and dreams, and theyoften just don't know what tosay. They're tempted to lookpast the grief to makethemselves more comfortable.

This woman's story and herquiet courage in sharing it, hasstayed with me for weeks. Ithink one reason it moved me sodeeply is because I know herstory is not unique. Far toomany families - more in ourcommunity than any other inMinneapolis - have experienced

the loss of a child due to infantmortality, defined as the deathof a child prior to their firstbirthday. According to January2009 data from the MinnesotaDepartment of Health, infantmortality rates among AfricanAmerican and American Indianbabies are more than double therate among white infants.

As troubling as that statisticis, it's more troubling to me thatstatistics and data can obscurethe human faces behind thedata. If we only look atnumbers, we lose the personalconnection that will compel usto act with urgency. We needalways to look past the statisticsto find the human stories behindthem. Because if we fail to look

past the statistics, then we risklooking past the grief. When welook past the grief, we may lookpast the compelling reasons thestatus quo must change. And bymissing the opportunity to makelasting change, we riskdiminishing our community andlosing some of our humanity.

Stairstep Foundation, withsupport from the MinnesotaDepartment of Health and theUniversity of Minnesota isconducting an environmentalscan to assess infant mortalityin communities of color, todetermine the extent of theproblem, the perception of the

http://insightnews.com Insight News • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Page 3

8STAIRSTEP TURN TO

INSIGHT NEWS

www.insightnews.com

Insight News is publishedweekly, every Monday byMcFarlane Media Interests.

Editor-In-ChiefAl McFarlaneCFOAdrianne Hamilton-ButlerPublisherBatala-Ra McFarlaneAssociate Editor &Associate PublisherB.P. FordVice President of Sales & MarketingSelene WhiteDirector of Content &ProductionPatricia WeaverSr. Content & ProductionCoordinatorElliot Stewart-FranzenWeb Design & ContentAssociateBen WilliamsDistribution/FacilitiesManagerJamal MohamedReceptionistLue B. LampleyContributing WritersBrenda ColstonJulie DesmondMarcia HumphreyMehgaan JonesAlaina L. LewisRashida McKenzieBrandi D. PhillipsRyan T. ScottPhotographySuluki FardanTobechi TobechukwuContact Us:Insight News, Inc.Marcus Garvey House1815 Bryant Ave. N.MinneAPOlis., MN 55411Ph.: (612) 588-1313Fax: (612) 588-2031Member: MinnesotaMulticultural MediaConsortium (MMMC)Midwest Black PublishersCoalition, Inc. (MBPCI)National NewspaperPublishers Association(NNPA)

Postmaster: Send addresschanges to McFarlaneMedia Interests, MarcusGarvey House 1815 BryantAvenue North, Minneapolis,Minnesota, 55411.

Black women expert in hiding sadness, refusing to name the pain

"I am so sick and tired of being sickand tired." Fannie Lou Hammer

because she didn't know any bettershe stayed aliveamong the tired and lonelynot waiting always wantingneeding a good night's restNikki Giovanni, "Introspection"

How many times have we repeatedthe words of Fannie Lou Hammer,whether out loud or in silence?Slavery, years of oppression anddiscrimination have contributed toour need to hide our feelings. Wehave generations and generations ofhabitual hiding and have becomeexperts on hiding our sadness andrefusing to name the pain. We hide itfrom the medical profession andourselves. Our illness goesunnoticed, untreated or mistreated.Untreated depression can lead todeath by suicide and violent

behavior. We need to lose the fearand name the pain.

"Many times when AfricanAmerican women consult healthprofessionals they are frequently toldthat they are hypertensive, run down,tense or nervous. They will beprescribed antihypertensive,vitamins, or mood elevating pills; orthey may be informed to lose weight,learn to relax, get a change ofscenery, or get more exercise…"Barbara Jones Warren, R.N., M.S.,Ph.D. When we talk to our friendswe commiserate and share ourfeelings of woe believing this is justthe plight of a Black woman. Thesesistah group conversations validatewhat we hear from many of thedoctors. In reality, African-Americanwomen live with a triple jeopardystatus that places us at risk fordepression. We live in a majority-dominated society that frequently

devalues our ethnicity, culture andgender.

Formal statistics on depressionin African American women is eitheruncertain or non-existent because theresearch is scarce. Many women areunwilling to participate in researchstudies because they are afraid theinformation will be misinterpretedand will be used against them. Thefew studies that have been doneshow African American womenreport having more depressivesymptoms than African Americanmen and twice the rate of EuropeanCaucasian women.

If depression was linked toanything other than mental illness, itwould be called an epidemic andmeasures would be taken to find acure.

The stigma of living with amental illness is so ingrained in usthat we are afraid to inform ouremployers or report the informationon insurance forms. Those of us withhealth insurance would rather pay formental health services "out ofpocket" than have it on our insurancerecord. We lose the ability to ask foraccommodations at work becausewe won't reveal our medicalcondition. We believe that Blackpeople have to be ten times betterthan white folks. So we hide our

pain, because to show it would be asign of weakness.

Many Black women hide theirpain out of fear of losing theirchildren to the courts. AfricanAmerican children in Minnesota areseven times more likely to be placedout of their homes than theirEuropean Caucasian counterparts.(Juvenile Out-of-Home PlacementTask Force Report, MNDepartments of Corrections andHuman Service, January, 2001.)

But sometimes when we hideour pain we overreact to ourchildren's misbehavior. We may yellat the top of our lungs, punish tooseverely, give them the silenttreatment or withhold our warmth.Unfortunately for our children thisneed to hide our pain results in pain.It takes away from them what theyneed most-our nurturing and love.

If we as women suffer in silence,our men are imprisoned by thesilence. Male children are told frombabies to "act like a man" or just"suck it up." We are preparing ourmale children for a life of pain andsilence.

Who do we talk to when we seea young child gunned down in thestreet by another child? What canwe say to the family of a 15-year-oldwho is tried as an adult for murder?

How much does it hurt to see ouryoung men and women selling theirbodies? How do we react when welearn that the neighborhoodbasketball team we have seenplaying in the park for years is one ofthe most vicious gangs in our townand they are recruiting our sonsdaily? How do we feel when wehave lost our jobs and we go down tothe public aid office to receive themuch needed money and we aretreated like second class citizens?

We need to verbally react in away that addresses that pain. Weneed to express our emotions in away that addresses the pain we seeevery day. Keeping that pain insideis killing us and our loves ones.

The good news is that there iseffective treatment. We musteducate our community on the earlywarning signs and symptoms ofdepression and the many treatmentoptions available. We must not allowthe stigma of mental illness to get inour way of obtaining the appropriatetreatment for this brain disorder.Depression is an illness of the brain,not a character defect or a moralfailing.

While we have good reason tobe depressed, we need to find goodreason to talk about our pain. Wecannot hide it; doing so is dangerous.

It is not only dangerous to us, butalso to our loved ones. Weperpetuate the dysfunction of mentalunhealthiness when we don'tacknowledge our pain or seek help.We need to seek help from a mentalhealth professional, and find supportfrom our community. I once heardculture is the glue that keeps themind, body and spirit together. Whatdoes a healthy mind, body and spiritmean to you? Where do you go toget that support? Connecting allthree is important to our overallhealth.

NAMI Minnesota ProgramsNAMI Minnesota has AfricanAmerican specific support groupsand education groups for familymembers who have loved ones witha mental illness and for people livingwith a mental illness. Please callMatthea Little Smith at NAMIMinnesota for more information toreceive a subscription to our AfricanAmerican Outreach E-News.

"Save our souls; plain and simple.Save our souls" . … Terrie Williams Black Pain: We JustLook Like We Are Not Hurting,January, 2008.

By Matthea Little Smith,African AmericanOutreach DirectorNational Alliance onMental Illness ofMinnesota (NAMI-MN)

mentalhelp.net

Stairstep From 1

social service agency eighty-seven years ago, to address theneeds of the African Americancommunity in St. Paul.

The SPUL, like many of ourorganizations, is not perfect. Ithas experienced many ups anddowns in the areas of finance,service delivery, availableresources, community supportand participation. In the face ofadversity, this organization hasin the past held its head up,picked up the pieces andcontinued to march forward.Today the organization seems tooperate under a cloud of secrecy.

In the past, on an annualbasis, SPUL presented an annualdinner where it would showcaseits accomplishments, providescholarships, elect new board

members, identify itsmembership and volunteers,recognized the achievements ofoutstanding communitymembers and acknowledged afamily of the year. In this era ofaccountability the SPUL failsmiserably.

For the last two years wehaven't seen or heard a peepfrom the SPUL since it has beenunder new leadership. Fromwhat I can see, the new CEO hasmade few attempts to introducehimself to the community in apositive and productive way.When the words "community,""accountability" and"transparency" are brought up,he backs away to a defensiveposture thinking that the Blackcommunity is after him,personally. The community hasbeen asking about the affairs ofSPUL long before the arrival ofthe current CEO, and shouldcontinue to do so.

It is my assessment that theperformance of the current CEOis inadequate due to his lack ofexperience in the non-profitsector and the challenges heinherited. Since his arrival, staffworked under an atmosphere ofdistrust, with a CEO whosubscribes to a management styleof blame, unwilling to takeresponsibility for his decisionsand actions. He was introducedas an individual who possessedgreat management andfundraising abilities; the "goldenboy"who was going to turnthings around. Instead, SPUL israpidly falling apart under hisleadership, and the failure of theboard of directors, who appearsto be misdirected, to address it.

What is the currentleadership afraid of? What "bigbang" are they waiting for? Thebuzzards are flying overhead inanticipation of a corpse. Is theplan to sell all off the assets andsuccumb to death just rumor, or abit of truth? This is not simplyabout an individual it is about aheritage, a legacy, a history andcultural responsibility to AfricanAmerican people.

Unanswered attempts havebeen made to appeal to the localboard of directors and to theNational Urban League forinformation. What is now beingdemanded by the community is aforum where the currentleadership may address thecommunity and present the stateof the organization publicly.Also where support,memberships, volunteerism andadvice can be solicited andreceived.

Ignoring the community ordoing nothing feeds into therumor mill and fuels falseinformation. Current leadershipstates that everything is fine,while others tell of a differentscenario. Both are far from thetruth and require clarification.

I make no claims to know allthe details of the currentcondition or future of theorganization. I make noaccusations of wrong doingand/or mismanagement, but I canwith a clear conscious state thatall is not well at the SPUL.

If there is no formal responseto this commentary from currentSPUL leadership, then we thepeople must take the necessaryaction to resuscitate what isperceived to be a dyingorganization. The St. Paul UrbanLeague belongs to all of us, andits future is in our hands.

Ridder Ice Arena on the U of Mcampus will come to life on themorning of September 17 as morethan 1,000 students from highschools throughout the metro areafill the seats to participate in aneducational experience ---exploring their own racial andcultural identity and the impacttoxic conditioning (or branding)has had on the creation of theirown personal identity.

These students will beattending a free 9:30 amperformance of "Being Branded,"a one-of-a-kind cultural educationconcert sponsored by theMinnesota Black Chamber ofCommerce, designed to expandthe students' racial awareness andawaken them to the complexitiesof racial and cultural identity andsocial conditioning, also known as"branding."

"Being Branded," is theunique fusion of modern dance onice and features for the first timein the Twin Cities area a team ofcompetitive, professional iceskaters who are of color. Theskaters' ancestry includes EastIndian, Puerto Rican and AfricanAmerican. In fact, two of theskaters are native to the TwinCities. Instead of skatingcompetitively, these ice skaterswill perform steady, slow, gracefulmodern dance moves -performances on ice that depict

the stories of struggle and survivalof individuals of color.

"The concert will be apersonal journey for students,"says Deneane Richburg, "BeingBranded" project director andchoreographer. "It will expandtheir level of racial awareness andmake them more cognizant of thetypes of toxic conditioning (orbranding) that impact their dailylives, and how to stop it," shesays.

"Being Branded" will beperformed for students at 9:30 amon September 17 at Ridder IceArena on the University ofMinnesota campus, 1901 4thStreet SE, Minneapolis. Followingthe concert, students will engagein a post-concert discussion,which will include theprofessional skaters, and will helpthem learn to identify toxicconditioning and stop its impact.

"Being Branded" will alsooffer two evening performanceson September 17 and 18 at 7:30pm. Tickets for these twoperformances are $25 for adultsand $12 for students. A post-concert discussion follows eachperformance.

For more information,including the classroomcurriculum, the morningperformance for the students, orthe evening performances on theSeptember 17 and 18, contact

Ashley at (651) 777-9119 or emailablocton@keystonecs.com To purchase tickets for eitherevening concert, visitwww.mbccculturaleventg.eventbrite.com .

For more information about theevent, please contact Ashley at(651) 777-9119.

Page 4 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

The Minnesota State Collegesand Universities Board ofTrustees today appointed LarryAnderson as president of Fonddu Lac Tribal and CommunityCollege in Cloquet.

Anderson, 58, has served asinterim president since July 1,2008. Previously, he heldvarious positions at the college,including vice president ofadministration and studentaffairs; director of studentservices; dean of the collegeand athletic director.

In recommendingAnderson's appointment aspresident, Chancellor James H.McCormick said, "Sinceserving as interim president,Larry Anderson has done anexceptional job. The college ison a positive and progressivepath in the midst of challenges.

Equally important, LarryAnderson has earned the respectof the American Indiancommunities with which Fonddu Lac works, and he has wonsupport from the campuscommunity he serves."

Trustee Ruth Grendahl, whochairs the board's HumanResources Committee, said,"Fond du Lac Tribal andCommunity College plays avital role in the growth anddevelopment of the surroundingcommunities.

Under President Anderson'sleadership, we can expect thecollege to continue advancingand enhancing the lives of thepeople it touches."

Anderson said, "It is anextreme honor to be presidentof Fond du Lac Tribal andCommunity College. My role is

to serve our students, facultyand staff. I am committed to themission of the college becauseit serves the whole communityin a diverse, respectfulenvironment."

Before joining the Fond duLac Tribal and CommunityCollege staff, Anderson was theUpward Bound and StudentSupport Services director at theCollege of St. Scholastica; aTalent Search coordinator forthe Minnesota Chippewa Tribeand assistant director ofAmerican Indian programs atthe Arrowhead EconomicOpportunity agency. He holds amaster's degree and a bachelor'sdegree, both in counseling,from the University ofWisconsin - Superior.

Fond du Lac Tribal andCommunity College, which

served more than 2,700 studentslast year, offers a wide array ofliberal arts and transferprograms, including lawenforcement, computerforensics, American Indianstudies, clean energytechnology, environmentalscience and human services.

The Minnesota StateColleges and Universitiessystem comprises 32 stateuniversities and community andtechnical colleges serving thehigher education needs ofMinnesota. The system servesabout 250,000 students per yearin credit-based courses and anadditional 140,000 students innon-credit courses.

Larry Anderson appointed president of Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College

Fond du Lac Tribal and Community CollegeLarry Anderson

Concert on ice awakens students’ racial awareness

Jaccues Jean TiziouDeneane Richburg, project director and choreographer

UrbanFrom 1

When it comes to art, theinterpretation of excellenceaffects everyone differentlywhen one's vision elopesgracefully within the perimeterof a blank canvas. From VanGogh to Aaron Douglas, andeven through the Impressionistera and onto the beauty of aGordon Parks photograph, theuniqueness of every artist givesbirth to the importance ofindividualism. But in this dayand age, in order to further touchthe masses, an artist's visionneeds to be a closer reach thanthe confining walls of a pictureframe.

With writing and filmproduction, that same theory ofindividualism holds true. Anoriginal idea is born, nurtured,and expound upon, until itscreation dares to travel throughthe extensions of a writer'sfingertips. Yet when the marriageof visual words adjoin with thebeauty of a life in photographs,the pages begin to move and artis no longer affixed to onedimension. So what better placefor a writer to tell a more visualstory than to take their originalidea from the trappings of paperand onto the television screen?For poet and Award Winningscreenwriter Tye Green, making

the transition from the page to amoving picture is proving to bean excellent decision infurthering her career as an upand coming filmmaker.

Them!, a television pilotcreated from the amazing mindof Green and her collaborativeteam, is at the ending stages ofpre-production. The project isalready proving to everyonewithin an ear shot, that it's goingto pave a new road in the worldof free cinematic expression.With the idea, born from thewalls of Green's openly gaylifestyle, the show speakspositively to not only the AfricanAmerican GLBT community, butrather it works to dispel the trail

of derogatory stereotypes thatare sometimes associated withthese individuals. "I think ifpeople see a television show thatdisplays this choice in lifestyle ina positive light, it will lessonsome of the derogatorystatements and some of theignorance that comes from lackof understanding," Green states.

As the world becomes moreaccepting of people's choice inlifestyle, our televisions setsbegin to reflect this positive newdirection. Shows like The LWord, Noah's Arc and the oncefamed Queer as Folk, generallytarget all audiences, but theirtheme emphasizes a lavishlifestyle attributed solely to therich and/or famous. Althoughthese shows are celebrated fortheir excellence, this makes ithard for people to personallyidentify with any of thecharacters.

That is an obstructive wallthat Them! never attempts to putup. The show is centered on thelives of six lesbian women andtheir daily exploits. The theme islike a cross between the showsThe L Word and Girlfriends.Through this production, whichGreen will present to HBO forpossible pick up, she is finallybridging the narrow gap bycreating realistic female AfricanAmerican GLBT characters infar more than just ensembleroles. What makes Them! furtherunique is that the characters aremore like you and me and areinter-relatable to every audienceapart from the focal point of thecontent.

The show begins filmingOctober 3rd, and at this pointsince it is not yet attached to abig network, is still anindependent production. This is aplus, as most filmmakers know,because it gives Green creativecontrol over her vision and itsdirection. But in essence, it's safeto say, that most films derive alot of their success duringproduction through use of ashared effort. Green, whobelieves in the beauty ofunifying to create something, hasa volunteer production team ofseasoned veterans as well asCollege interns, workingtogether perfectly to keep thewheels turning in order to forgeher vision. "Film students are theones who are most passionateabout what they're going to do,"says Green, "They're the oneswho are going to put in the timeand the energy, and they're theones who still truly believe infilm. It's easy to get burnt outafter years in the industry

whereas they're still passionateabout the creative process."

Auditions for Them! arebeing held September 26.Currently the majority of interestin auditioning has been reachingout from the Caucasiancommunity. Although Them!will reflect a positive balanceamongst the races andnationalities, the show hopes toemploy a more dominate AfricanAmerican cast as to be more of areflection of the life Greenknows and lives as an AfricanAmerican woman. If you'reinterested in auditioning, Iencourage you to contact Green.

The show is also in need ofdonations on the days ofproduction. To be independentalso denotes an idea of self-funding to bring your vision tothe forefront. Because all thehands on deck are those ofvolunteers, Green hopes toacquire food donations to feedthe cast and crew on days offilming. If you can help in anyway, please contact theproduction. You'd be helpingGreen blur the lines ofacceptance and bring anothergenre out in the open that speaksto many individuals who'spersonal story is definitely worthtelling.

This is the progressive age; atime when freedom of expressionshould be celebrated in allavenues. With Green in thepicture, and now reachingoutward from behind theconfinement of a camera, she'semitting a new beam of light ona world that is truly ready to bedelivered into the mainstreamspotlight.

For more information on thisproduction and how you can help

or become involved, please visitthis link at the MN Film Boardhttp://www.mnfilmtv.org/mnhotline/?p=1355

To send a resume/headshot to beconsidered for an audition, or todonate to the production, pleaseemail Tye@Tyegreen.com

AESTHETICSBy Alaina Lewis

http://insightnews.com Insight News • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Page 5

Photo courtesy of the artist Tye Green

Poet and Award Winning screenwriter Tye Green is up and coming filmmaker

In an effort to expose our threechildren to various types ofexperiences while helping them todiscover their God-given gifts andabilities, my husband and Iencourage their participation invarious extracurricular activities(just not all at the same time). Thegeneral rule of thumb for thisextracurricular fun is that the childmust complete the activity seasonor at least stick with it until the

end of the school year (or untilmama says otherwise).

Currently, our two youngestchildren are taking piano lessons.Because I was unsure whetherpiano lessons would be a short-term or long-term commitment,we had the children practicing ona small electric keyboard whichcost around $100. Although itdidn't have the 88-keys like a realpiano, nor the "feel" of the realthing, it was fine for beginningstudents. We are now enteringtheir second year of lessons and Ifelt it was time for an instrumentupgrade. Purchasing a new oneright now was out of the question:they are expensive, they take up alot of space, and they areexpensive (I'm only buying one ifI know we have the next StevieWonder in our midst.) We solvedour problem when we found a

gently-used digital piano,complete with the full 88-keys,foot pedals, and the "feel" of a realpiano. Guess where we found it-priced right? A nearby…. pawnshop… ssshhh.

Yes, I went to a pawn shop,but please don't tell my mama!See, I grew up thinking that pawnshops are the places where thievesgo to "fence" stolen merchandise.I even went to a few looking formy stuff when our neighbors"robbed us blind" while we livedin Chicago many years ago. WhatI have since learned is that mostpawn shop customers are law-abiding citizens. In addition, thepawn shop is really a brick andmortar version of Craigslist-aplace where buyers, sellers,borrowers, and swappers meet.Before you turn up your nose andstop reading this article I want youto reconsider your nearby pawnshop because it might becomeyour favorite shoppingdestination.

Is your kid a buddingmusician??

Instead of buying brand newtop-of-the line instruments foryour beginning student musician,check out the selection at yourlocal pawn shop. Our very firstpawn purchase was in Georgia afew years ago. We bought ouroldest daughter her first flute, so itseemed like a good idea when we

visited the St. Louis Park PawnAmerica last week. (Truth betold, I was really looking for abike.) We scored when we foundour digital piano, because I hadn'tseen anything on Craigslist and Ihadn't wanted to pay $1,000 for anew one. Pawn America has 13locations around the twin citieswww.pawnamerica.com whereyou can buy, sell, and borrow.They even have online shopping. Are you an electronics fanatic??

Years ago, when I was still

suspicious of pawn shops, mybrother-in-law would come tovisit us and always ask where hecould find a pawn shop. Keenanis a DJ and loves everythingelectronic. He would frequentlybuy and sell DJ equipment andupgrade when the price was right.In fact he bought DVDs, cameras,etc. If you have outgrown yourold electronics and want to find alow-cost upgrade and sell your oldone-all in one stop-check it out.

Need new tools in yourtoolbelt or a new piece ofjewelry??

These days pawn shops have itall. Find great prices on all typesof jewelry and gadgets. Choosefrom new, gently used, orrefurbished merchandise. Unlikemost consignment shops, thepawn shop will buy your items onthe spot and give you cash.

Most of us would neverknowingly buy stolenmerchandise and neither do mostpawn shops. They have

definitely evolved over the yearsin ways that have helped to shedtheir shady image. I rememberafter our incident in Chicago, Iwent to the nearby pawn shophoping to retrieve some of myown stolen items; I was informedthat merchandise is only acceptedfrom sellers after a verificationprocess --which involves lawenforcement-- to determine that ithad not been stolen. At the timethat made me feel slightly betterabout these establishments. Inow go (read: sneak) into pawnshops regularly…okayoccasionally. Just anotherbargain shopping option that Ithought (some of) you (moredaring readers) would like to hearabout. Enjoy!

Marcia Humphrey is an interiordecorator and home stager whospecializes in achieving high styleat a low cost. A native ofMichigan, she and her husband,Lonnie, have three children.

LIFESTYLEInstruments for children: Finding treasures at the Pawn shop

By Marcia Humphrey

Style on a dime

Page 6 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

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construction ranks and beganworking residentially doing smalljobs and later moved into the ranksof commercial construction withTri-Construction.

So it seemed natural for theircompany to have a hand puttingtogether the new Minnesota TwinsBallpark- one of the largestconstruction projects in the Stateof Minnesota.

Tri-Construction bid andreceived three contracts for $1.5million to supply the entirestadium with furnished drywall,carpentry/woodwork andpartitions for bathroom stalls. Thestadium houses 667 bathroomstalls (401 for women and 266 formen).

The $522 million MinnesotaTwins stadium and Target Field isset to open in April 2010.According to reports, the ballparkwill generate an estimated $50million in revenue per year. PassedTwins organization owner CarlPohlad shelled out $167 millionwhile the rest is publicly funded.

The 1 million square footstadium will be a mixture ofcolumns of Minnesota Limestone,glass, and metal. The stadiumseating capacity will be for 40,000fans with ticket prices rangingfrom as low as $12 to as high as$275 per ticket with 3,400premium seats and exclusivesuites some of which will includeparking, dinner, beverages andsnacks served by waiters.Reportedly, the park will alsofeature what is known as"knotholes" along 5th street thatshould allow fans to see someaction outside of the park without

paying. Through provisions laid out by

the state and Minnesota BallparkAuthority (MBA) in themanagement contract awardedMortensen construction, buildingthe stadium included meetinghiring and subcontracting goals forSmall, Women, and Minority andWomen Business Enterprise(SWMBE). Reportedly, all partiesunder agreement were to keep thepledge that 30% of all ballparkconstruction was to be maintainthroughout the project bySWMBE.

As of May and June reports theballpark was at 28% compliance.According to the MBA website(www.mnba.avenet.net) ChairmanSteve Cramer recently stated thatthose SWME goals have beensurpassed.

Tri-Construction is registeredas a small minority-ownedconstruction company. Forty percent of the company is diverseemploying 17 people includingtwo women with Littlejohn andRoyal at the helm.

Littlejohn said that the twohave trained and placed somecommunity members hired inother companies that worked onthe stadium project. "It has been apleasure to place some of thesepeople within our ownorganization," Littlejohn added.

"If we don't find a way toemploy our people; to introducethem to construction and thatstandard of living and if we don'ttake the time as business owners;as Black men; as people of color inour community… If we don't careenough, how can we ask someoneelse to care," Littlejohn said.

Royal admits as a minority-owned company they have toprove themselves like everyone

else on issues such as safety,keeping good records and makingpayroll on time. He said Tri-Construction contracts wereawarded based on a strong recordof workmanship and safety.

"Performance is veryimportant as well as doing whatyou say as a smaller contractor,"Royal said. "It is also important tofollow guidelines andspecifications for the job and hitgoals above and beyond."

Another aspect of owning abusiness, Royal stressed, is havinggood skills. "If you don't haveskills set or financial backing oreverything it takes to engulf alarger job, you are not going to getit no matter what color you are…thus making it harder for thoselooking for opportunity to make ithappen."

Royal added as a constructionbusiness it is important to identifyyour roles and limitations. "Neverthink you are bigger than thoseroles. We worked on communityprojects like the Spirell Bar, butwhen it came to the Stadiumballpark we knew we had alearning curve."

According to Littlejohn,relationships and true partnershipsare what help make a companylike theirs successful on the biggerscale.

Reportedly, Mortensonencouraged many of the SWMBEsto bid on the Twins projectincluding Tri-Construction. Bothmen worked on previous jobs withMortenson including on theUniversity Of Minnesota Stadium.

"The construction field is allabout relationships," Littlejohnsaid. "There has to be arelationship built. The biggerpicture is to find a partner andlearn. Forming partnerships is one

of the ways smaller contractorsreally and truly can grow."

Littlejohn pointed out that Tri-Construction built a strongnetwork and partnership withmany other subcontractors thatenabled them to bid on the stadiumjobs.

"Tri-Construction learned bigbusiness from Olympic Drywalland J.R. Jones in generalsubcontracting," Royal added."We learned on a big scale from asmall contractor then moved togeneral contracting."

Tri-Construction includedOlympic Drywall as a partnerwhen they acquired one of thestadium bids.

"In our business it is a win-winfor both parties. We bring work tothe table and they bring expertiseand it goes hand in hand,"Littlejohn added. "Smallercontractors need to understandtheir value as the larger contractorunderstands their roles."

Throughout their combinedyears in construction Littlejohn'strade was laborer and Royal's waslabor and carpentry. Nowadaysboth men consider themselvesfulltime front office workersentering invoices and compilinghours for payroll.

"It is quite unique to have twoAfrican American males workingin the office sitting as the heads ofthe business," Royal said. "It canbe challenging at times, but wehave a good relationship becauseour passions and drives are thesame and we know we will bepartners through to the end."

Even with some of thecontroversies surrounding the

stadium including issues of publicfunding, public use and reachingSWMB goals both men see theentire stadium experience as verypositive.

"I think there's always someflak somewhere people thinkcertain organizations should havebeen utilized more for this or somepeople could have been more usefor that. Sure there has beencriticism, but on our end it hasbeen a wonderful project to workon," Littlejohn said. "We havelearned a lot. It was great to workwith Mortenson, the Ball ParkAuthority, Olympic, JR Jones andthe others."

"It has been quite a ride and wehave had nothing but fullcooperation from all involved inthe project," Royal said. "Thesepeople truly meant what they said.It wasn't flak or sweeping thingsunder the rug. From the beginningto end they truly meant what theyset out for with the goals andfollow-through and making sureeverybody was accountable aboveand beyond."

"It was our pleasure to employ

people on a project of that size andto realize how everyday we aremaking a difference," Littlejohnexplained. "That is a partnershipwhen we can be out thereeveryday performing a task. Wecannot be out there without them.We need them like they need us.

"It means a lot if we caninspire the community," Royaladded. "We like to say if we can doit, you can do."

Tri-Construction recentlyfinished work on a multi-tenantCapri Theatre building providingdrywall and framing package andalso helped with the AkerbergGroup Building at 1200 WestBroadway. The Stadium projectlooks to open on time in April2010.

Of being part of the Twins ballpark project, Royal said: "Mygreatest satisfaction was makingpayroll every week. Even if wedon't eat, I love to pay my guys,"Royal said. "Those are importantgoals for us."

There are 2.3 million people whoare unwittingly wearing thegovernment's ironic label,Discouraged Worker. These arethe people who have stoppedlooking for work because "theybelieve there are no jobsavailable." The label isincongruous because a

discouraged worker is still, mostlikely, a worker. Discouraged ornot, few of us have the luxury ofretiring permanently. So what arethese people working on?

For many would-be workers,stopping the formal job search isnot so much an act of surrender,but of changing gears. If you arediscouraged, and want to beworking, it may be time to changeyour perspective, too. Takingtime to reorganize, retool and

reconnect will put you in positionto accept new opportunities whenthe job market opens for businessagain soon.

Reorganizing physically andemotionally is critical to careersuccess. Move away from anybitterness you have about yoursituation and try to lookobjectively at where you havebeen and where you want to go.Create a resume specific to theindustry you are most interested in

and direct the bulk of your effortsto that industry: its companies, itspeople, its conferences, itsprofessional organizations.

Retool if you have to. Ifyou're not sure, then you have to.Gaining new skills and polishingold ones is going to be a basiccharacteristic of careermanagement in coming years.

Can you name ten things inyour work that are different nowthan they were when you first

started working? (Rememberthermal paper for fax machines?Remember floppy disks?) Tenyears from now, technology andtechniques will have forged aheadeven further. Make self-development part of your routine.

Reconnect with colleagues,classmates, neighbors and friendsfrom your past lives. People whoknow you were a good workerback then may be willing to passon a job lead or even hire you now

and, with everyone in Americashowing up on Facebook andLinkedIn, reconnecting is easierthan ever.

Don't wait until the jobs arethere to get back to work.Reorganizing, retooling andreconnecting gives you plenty towork on now.

Please send career planningquestions toJulie@insightnews.com.

Three R’s of job searching: Reorganize, retool, reconnecthttp://insightnews.com Insight News • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Page 7

By Julie Desmondjulie@insightnews.com

www.womansday.comLester Royal (L) and Calvin Littlejohn

ConstructionFrom 1

cause, and to gain wisdomabout solutions from acommunity perspective.

Minnesota has madesome strides forward to reduceinfant mortality and otherhealth disparities in ourcommunity. But we still havefar to go before the journey iscomplete. Clearly, we cannotafford to look past what's rightin front of us. It's not enough tojust talk about an issue, we need- no, we must - becomeinformed, engaged, active and

compassionate. This discussionwill never be just aboutstatistics, it's about real peopleand real lives and deaths. It'sabout economic and moral

justice. And it's about the kindof world we want to live in, andthe kind of change we cancreate together, for our childrenand for our community.

RCV. That year, 149,318election ballots were cast. Ofthose voters, about 78,741voted "yes" for RCV and about42,493 voted "no." Another28,084 voters did not vote onthe question.

Why the Switch?

RCV is based on the majorityrules principal. In theory theprincipal is easy to

understand…in a democracy themajority rules. However, thishasn't been the case in manycity and state elections. Ingeneral, candidates running forelected office are often timesdecided by her/his politicalparty. During the party'sconvention only one candidateis endorsed. True, it is the"majority" at the respectivepolitical party's deciding theoutcome of who gets theendorsement, but theconvention is only a subset ofhow the majority of voters atlarge feel about thecandidate(s). For instance, in2001, Minneapolis Ward 5 CityCouncilmember and IncumbentJackie Cherryhomes handilywon her party's (DFL)endorsement for City Council.In a surprising turn of events,

the voters made anotherdecision and elected newcomerNatalie Johnson Lee. RCVwould assure that the principalof majority rules is upheld inMinnesota elections.

How does RCV work?

RCV allows voters to rankmultiple candidates in the orderof preference. For instance, ifthere are five candidatesrunning for Mayor, voters get torank up to three candidates.This year, RCV will be used inthe Mayoral, City Council,Board of Estimate and Taxation,and the Park Board. Rankingup to three candidates applies toa single seat election andmultiple seats as is the casewith the Park Board. Theballots will look pretty much

the same. Each ballot will havethree columns. In each office,voters will mark the ballot fromleft to right, marking their firstchoice for each office in thefirst column. If voters wish torank different second and theirschoices, they will mark them inthe second and third columns onthe ballot. The candidate withover 50% of the vote wins.

RCV Training

If you would like to learn moreabout RC: next upcomingMajority Rules Training onTuesday, September 15th atNorth Commons located at1801 James Avenue North. Wewill start promptly at 7 pm.Refreshments will be provided.

There are many different thingsthat can affect the health of aperson's heart -Optimism canhelp, loneliness can hurt. Thisarticle discusses the former andlatter.

Optimism May Lower the

Risk of Heart Disease inWomen

In a study published theweek of August 10, 2009 in theJournal of the American HeartAssociation, women 50 andover who have a moreoptimistic approach to life incomparison to the "glass halfempty" approach, are less likelyto get heart disease

In her article, HeatherMayer quotes Dr. Hilary Tindle,an assistant professor ofmedicine at the University ofPittsburgh, in Pennsylvania. "Inthe grand scheme of things, thereal importance is recognizingand raising awareness of the

link between attitude andheath," she said. Tindle alsoadds that pessimism may be asbad as having high bloodpressure - a well known heartrisk factor - when it comes tocardiovascular health.

Mayer noted in her articleon cnn.com, optimists ingeneral experience less stressthan pessimists, tend to assessthe situation, deal with thesituations head on, and findadequate support to solveconcerns, whereas pessimistsdo not handle situations thesame. In her research, Dr.Tindle and her fellowresearchers found thatpessimists were also morelikely to be at risk for otherhealth concerns such as beingoverweight and a sedentary lifestyle, although once thesefactors were corrected, moodalso was still a factor in thepessimists risk for heartdisease.

In contrast, Dr. Kirk Garratt,who works a Lenox HillHospital in the Cardiac Unit,says "Nobody has a clear cutanswer, but there's a strongsense that attitude impactsphysiology.

Loneliness May Hurt a Heart

On August 10, 2009, RayHanier reported that researchshows being lonely can breakyour heart, literally. Hereported that people who lack a

close, trusting support networkfrom family or friends are morelikely to develop and die fromheart disease. Dr. JohnCacioppo, PhD., . . . says, "Wefound fairly quickly thatobjective social isolation ineveryday life isn't as importantas perceived social isolation".

This means that feelingalone can be just as bad for theheart as physically isolatingyourself from others. Thefeeling of being lonely leads tostress and through research,stress has been proven to lead toheart disease. Hanier notes, inthe past, researchers havedefined loneliness as thedifference between a person'sdesired and actual socialrelationships and interactions inthese relationships.

The definition of lonelinessmay differ from person toperson. Some people areconsidered to be "loners",because they like to spend a lotof time alone. Others like tospend time with one or twofriends, while there are stillothers who like to be aroundmany people most of the time.So, it is important to distinguishbetween choosing to sociallyisolate from others based onneed for space, and feelingalone, which is a lack of aclose, trusting, and evenemotionally intimaterelationship with anotherhuman being.

Dr. Cacioppo, states "The

brains of lonely people are onhigh alert for social threats."This level of alertness releasesa hormone called cortisol,which is related to stress, whichin turn leads to strain on thecardiovascular system.

So, in conclusion, stayoptimistic and try buildingclose trusting relationships withothers. Doing so may lead toless stress, thus less heartdisease and possibly death.

Mayoclinic.com is a goodwebsite to obtain information

about having a healthy heartand diet. If you have anyquestions or concerns aboutmaintaining a healthy heart,contact your health careprofessional or local library orsearch the Internet for moreinformation.

Brandi Phillips is a Life SkillsTherapist, Personal Trainerand Professional Dancer. Hergoal is to cultivate healthychildren and sustain healthyseniors.

HEALTHFor a healthy heart: Optimism can help, loneliness can hurt

Health &Wellness

By Brandi D. Phillips

Page 8 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

wegohealth.ning.com

VotingFrom 1

Stairstep From 3

Stairstep is recruiting individuals and familymembers who have experienced the loss of aninfant to participate in focus groups andsurveys. We need to hear your experience inorder to help spare our community more ofthese tragic losses. For more informationabout how to participate, contact HelenLockett-El at Stairstep Foundation, (612)521-3110, or by email at info@stairstep.org.

delivered. He has taken the leadand his statement was strong.He is determined to get healthreform done under hisadministration. His goals areright on – particularly holdinginsurance companiesaccountable.”

President Obama was rightin defining the challenge as notjust a health care issue, but andeconomic issue, and a moralissue, Whitney West said. “It isimmoral that insurers areallowed to drop or refuseinsurance to people when theyneed it most. President Obamagave examples that illustratedthat in some cases people havedied or suffered greatly becausetheir insurers dropped them orwithheld insurance benefitsunreasonably,” she said. “Thisis a moral issue. For the UnitedStates to be a leader amongdemocracies and to have one ofthe worst health care systems isa travesty. The time for changehas come.”

Whitney West runs the $40million NorthPoint Health andWellness Center which servespopulations that will bepositively impacted byproposed healthcare reforms.

“For our customers, healthinsurance accountability issignificant. We see people onassistance and people withprivate insurance. Some peoplewho can’t get coverage becauseof pre existing conditions cometo our clinic and pay out ofpocket. With the proposedhealth care reform, we canprovide them with more service,care and treatment,” WhitneyWest said.

“For our community,President Obama’s plan ofhaving an Insurance MarketExchange for small businessand individuals alongside thetraditional private market isreally going to increase thenumber of small business thatcan be competitive,” she said.

State Representative BobbyChampion serves MN District58B in North Minneapolis andDowntown. In a phoneinterview Thursday, Championsaid, “It is timely andappropriate for our country tothink about the most vulnerableas well as those who haveinsurance. I like PresidentObama’s attention to gettingboth proper health care andproper insurance coverage foreveryone, regardless ofeconomic status. His proposalsfit the needs of my District. Wehave a lot of people in theDistrict who have insurance anda lot of people who don’t haveinsurance. The President’sproposals mean access toaffordable, efficient health carefor everyone. His plan alsolooks heavily towardprevention. This approach has apositive impact on daily lives ofordinary citizens.”

Champion praised PresidentObama’s speech as being“Detailed enough for every layperson to understand”.

US Representative KeithEllison concurred. “PresidentObama’s speech clarified whathe meant by the public optionfor insurance coverage. Hestood by it and was unwavering.

That was very important.”Ellison said the public

option proposed by thePresident was not presented as a“nice add-on” that was non-essential. “It doesn’t make thebill ‘perfect’,” he said,emphasizing that the publicoptions should not be viewed asfluff or a ‘finishing touch’.

“The public option makesthe bill function. It is whatmakes the bill work. It is theessential element of the bill,”Ellison said.

“We are mandating that 49million Americans will havehealth care. This will break upthe monopolistic practices ofthe insurance industry. ThePresident pointed out that in 34states, five or fewer companiescontrol the health insurancemarket. In Alabama, onecompany controls over 90% ofthe health insurance market.”

“The American people wantand deserve competition andthey deserve choice incompetition. President Obamawas right in showing that the‘public option‘ in highereducation —the state universitysystems — don’t ruin privatemarkets. Private colleges arethriving, and in fact, improvedby the competition they facefrom public state-runinstitutions of higher learning.”

Ellison said he didn’t knowhow it came across ontelevision, but he and otherMembers of Congress thoughtthe behavior of someRepublican members wasappalling and disrespectful.One Congressman yelled “Youlie!” in and effort to deride thePresident’s remarks. Others

were booing the President.“The Republicans are

reacting this way because theyare fit to be tied,” Ellison said.“During Iraq war, nobody inCongress called President Bush“a lie or liar”. I sat in theRepublication section. Thisbehavior was different fromnormal decorum in house. Thiswas not some town hallmeeting. This is congress,”Ellison said.

Why the venomousposturing? Ellison said, “Theirmajor paymaster will have to bemore equitable. The insuranceindustry has bankrolled them.” He added, “This President isunique. Some are not quiteready to accept his leadership.”

Whitney West said, “Thisshould be a wakeup call. Thisbehavior that disrespects thePresident of United States isunheard of. Our President isheld in high regard around theworld. The rude behavior ofsome Republicans is anembarrassment.”

Yet, she said, “It pulls thecover off what we alreadyknow.”

Congresswoman BettyMcCollum (MN-4), who serveson the House Appropriations &Budget Committees, said she issupporting President Obama’sHealth Care Reform initiatives.“It is time to fight for affordablehealth care for every American.It is time to unite the countryand defeat the fear mongers,profiteers and right wing lies.”

“President Obama can countme as a strong ally in this battleand we will win because theAmerican people – all ourcitizens – deserve affordable,quality health care,” she said ina media release.

“Health security for onlysome Americans – those withthe wealth or the best jobs – isthe way our current systemoperates and it is unacceptable.Private insurance companiesthat focus on profits rather thanpeople are running our healthcare system and leavingmillions of ruined livesbehind,” she said.

“Republicans in Congresshave a simple choice – workwith the President andDemocrats in Congress to makehealth reform that will benefitevery American family a realityor remain on the extremistfringe fighting for the statusquo. I sincerely hope myRepublican colleagues willstand with the Americanpeople” McCollum said.

http://insightnews.com Insight News • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Page 9

ObamaFrom 1

State Rep. Bobby Champion(DFL-58B)

US Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN)

Senator Al Franken (D-MN)

Senator Amy Klobuchar(D-MN)

Stella Whitney-West

Page 10 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

Send Community Calendarinformation to us by: email,ben@insightnews.com, by fax:612-588-2031, by phone: (612)588-1313 or by mail: 1815Bryant Ave. N. Minneapolis, MN55411, Attn: Ben Williams. Freeor low cost events preferred.

Events

Weight Watchers sessions atNorthPoint Health & WellnessCenter - Sept.Everyone is welcome to join.This session will be 12 weeksand will include 8 weeks of freee-tools. This group meetsFridays from 12 - 1 pm. If youare interested, please call toDoris Hanson at. – 612-543-2886 or 612-543-2577.NorthPoint Health & WellnessCenter, 1313 Penn AvenueNorth, Mpls.

Foreclosure informationworkshops scheduled atHennepin County librariesand city halls - OngoingMonday, Sept. 14 6:30 p.m.Hennepin County Library –Brookdale 6125 Shingle CreekParkway Brooklyn Center. 952-847-5600.

Thursday, Sept. 17 6:30 p.m.Hennepin County Library –Ridgedale, 12601 RidgedaleDrive, Minnetonka. 952-847-8800.

Thursday, Oct. 1 6:30 p.m.Brooklyn Park City Hall5200 85th Ave. N. 763-424-8000

Monday, Oct. 5 6:30 p.m.Hennepin County Library – St.Anthony 2941 Pentagon DriveN.E. 952-847-6075.

Saturday, Oct. 17 11 a.m.Hennepin County Library –Southdale 7001 York

Ave. S., Edina. 952-847-5900.

Thursday, Nov. 12 6:30 p.m.St. Louis Park City Hall5005 Minnetonka Blvd.952-924-2500.

For more information about theworkshops, call the individuallocations or Ed Nelson,Minnesota Home OwnershipCenter: 651-659-9336.www.hennepin.us.

The Law and Mental HealthSeries - OngoingA Free Training Series forParents and Caregivers,Advocates, and Support GroupLeaders. 9:30 am - Registration& light breakfast. 10:00 am –1:00 pm – Session. Maple GroveCommunity Center, 12951Weaver Lake Road. Presentedby: Minnesota Association forChildren’s Mental Health •MACMH www.macmh.org •651-644-7333. There is nocharge but space is limited; youmust call to register.

Monday, September 14 Law Primer: An Introductionto Systems and LawsFriday, September 18 My Idea and Your Idea of BestInterests May Not Be the Same:Avoiding and ResolvingDisputes

Thursday, September 24 Rights and Remedies in JuvenileJustice

Tuesday, September 29 Special Education: Know YourRights

GLBT Host Home ProgramInformational Meetings - Sept15, 17Tues, Sept. 15, 6-8 pm atHosmer Library, 347 East 36thSt, Mpls. www.hclib.org. Thurs,

Sept. 17, 6-8pm at MidtownYWCA, 2121 East Lake St,Mpls. www.ywca-minneapolis.org. For moreinformation, contact Raquel atAvenues for Homeless Youth,612-522-1690, ext. 110,hosthome@avenuesforyouth.org.Fremont Community Clinics’4th Annual Gala - Sept. 17Thursday, Sept. 17, 5:30 - 9:00pm at the Ukrainian EventCenter, 301 Main St. NE, Mpls.Live and silent auctions,refreshments, and live musicfrom Best Kept Secret.Allproceeds will support FremontCommunity Clinics.

B-Girl Be Dance Showcase –Sept. 17 - 20Intermedia Arts, 2822 LyndaleAve South, Mpls. Tickets onSale now atwww.IntermediaArts.org. Call612.871.4444 or visitwww.IntermediaArts.org formore info.

“Being Branded” concert onice – Sept. 17, 187:30 pm with post-concertdiscussion at the Ridder IceArena, University of MNcampus1901 4th Street SE, Mpls, MN.To purchase tickets visit:www.mbccculturaleventg.eventbrite.com. For moreinformation call: 651-777-9119.

Reduce Stress WhileUnfolding Your Full Potential– Sept. 17, 19Thursday, Sept. 17, 6:30-8:30pm or Saturday, Sept. 19, 10 am- 12 pm. 399 Ruth Street St.Paul. RSVP needed by:September 15. A Workshop forstudents, educators and parentson the TranscendentalMeditation® Quiet Time

program. Contact: 651-714-0254 or twincities@tm.org.

Fremont Clinics 4th AnnualGala – Sept. 17Thurs, 5:30pm – 9pm, at theUkrainian Event Center, 301Main Street NE, Minneapolis,Tickets are $25 in advance, $30at the door.

Mitch Hedberg MemorialCharity Golf Tournamentbenefits drug and alcoholtreatment programs – Sept. 18Fri. at the Oak Marsh GolfCourse, 526 Inwood AvenueNorth, Oakdale, MN. 1:00 pmTournament (4-PersonScramble), 6:00 pm SilentAuction, Dinner, and Program.www.mitchhedbergmemorialgolf.com

B-Girl Be Block Party – Sept.19Saturday; 12PM to 10PM. atIntermedia Arts, 2822 LyndaleAve S, Minneapolis. Acelebration of women in hip-hoppresented by Intermedia Arts.Call 612-871-4444 or visitwww.IntermediaArts.org formore info or tickets.

From the River to the River -Sept. 19Saturday, 9 a.m at theMississippi River. 1st AnnualAppreciation Walk-A-ThonFundraiser in honor of PastorBettie Williams. For moreinformation or to participate,contact River of Life ChristianChurch, 739 Summit Avenue, St.Paul, MN. 651-290-2348.

COMMUNITY CALENDARADVERTISEWITH US:

612.588.1313

EMPLOYMENT/DRIVERS

D R I V E R S :L o c a l / R e g i o n a l .Great Pay/Home-Time/Benefits. Notouch, Pd Vac. CDL-A 2yrs OTR Exp.Koch: 888-242-3675.

Assumed Name1. State the exact assumed name underwhich the business is or will be conducted: 3 Season's Maintenance and LandscapeProffessionals

2. State the address of the principal place ofbusiness: 1907 Glenwood Ave. North, Mpls.,MN 55405

3. List the name and complete street addressof all persons conducting business under theabove Assumed Name: Richard J. Hill, 1907Glenwood Ave. North, Mpls., MN 55405

4. I certify that I am authorized to sign thiscertificate and I further certify that Iunderstand that by signing this certificate, Iam subject to the penalties of perjury as setforth in Minnesota Statues section 609.48 asif I had signed this certificate under oath.

Signed by: Richard J. HillDate Filed: 9/04/2009

Insight News 9/14/2009, 9/21/2009

Minneapolis Institute of ArtsSales & Service Reps

The MIA is seeking people to greet & provide info& services to museum visitors for approx 3months. Sell tickets & memberships in person &over the phone. Reqs: prev sales or customerservice exp; accurate data entry & financialtransactions; comp & keyboarding skills; apositive professional appearance & work ethic;good comm, organization & problem solvingskills. Avail to work flexible sched. $10.50/hr, PT-hrs vary. Send resume or complete app.

Minneapolis Institute of ArtsAttn: Human Resources

2400 Third Avenue SouthMinneapolis, MN 55404

Fax: (612) 870-3263miajobs@artsmia.org

Development &Communications Manager

Lead and manage the fundraising andcommunications efforts for Emerge CommunityDevelopment. Position includes developingrelationships with donors, directing annualappeals, fundraising events, grant writing,overseeing agency’s communications program,etc. Refer to www.puc-mn.org for positiondetails. Deadline: 9/30/09. Send resumes to:Pillsbury United Communities, HR, 414 S. 8thSt, Mpls, MN 55404; e-mail:mcw.jobs@mcwmn.org or fax: 612-341-1653.EEO M/F H DV.

CLASSIFIEDS

At the recent 2009 AAU JuniorOlympics held at EasternMichigan University there were172 heats of the 100m Dash. Ifwe estimate that on average sixathletes run in each heat, then thatequals over 1,000 youth whocompeted against each other in asingular event, and the many otherevents were much the same.

Obviously a NationalChampionship includes powerpopulation states such asCalifornia, Texas, Florida,Illinois, and so forth. From whatI've observed, Olympic athletesare many of the standouts whoalso competed at the JuniorOlympic level. So when wereport that Cameron Downey ofTrack MN Elite got second placein the discus, and fifth place in theshot put, we are really talkingabout truly stunning feats. Add tothat the consistently stunningnational performances by sprinterElise Anderson of Track MN Elite- this year placing sixth in the100m and fourth in the 200m -with a breakout sixth place finishin the high jump by TaylorAnderson, and you have the seedsof a track juggernaut that all thepopulous states are forced torecognize.

It would be different if therewere only those three highlightsfor the overall performance byTrack MN, but they accomplishedmuch more. The level of AAUAll-American means that acompetitor placed in the top eightwithin a given event. All-American Honorable Mentionswere given out to Track MN youthfor placing in the top 20 nationally--remember we're talking aboutthousands of competitors. Alongwith the three All-Americans,Track MN honored eight otherathletes for All-AmericanHonorable Mention (names listedat the end of this article).

The high variation of events inwhich Track MN athletesachieved top 20 placement within,tells a track enthusiast that theteam has National Championshippotential. Many track programsdon't have diversity inspecialization to offer thoroughsuccess in field events, sprintingevents, and distance events, andprefer to concentrate theirspecialization on one of those

three areas. Track MN takes astrong broad approach, and thisapproach lends itself to nationalchampionship level track teams.

And though the team has astrong contingent of professional,affectionate, and stern coaches, itis easy to see that it is the holisticsystem that they apply, that raisesthe performance of all the childrenunder their watch. At their recent10-year anniversary banquet, theimage that dominated was that ofthe bright, healthy, engaged, andintelligent smiles that the diversegroup of youth possesses. As youget older one of the mostcomforting and hopeful thingsyou can see is a group of kids onthe right track (pun mildly

intended). The holistic approachof Track MN not only teachestechnical mastery of events, butalso passionately maintainsconcern for the child's overallhealth and educational success.The young athlete's network ofcaring parents, provides anabundance of hard, but rewardingwork, in order to bring the wholepicture of success together. Theresults are undeniable, and wherethe team travels, they are known.

Track MN carried a team of 65youth this year, and judging by thestrength and breadth of thecoaches, the team can and willhandle further growth in the nearfuture; that is to say, they haveplenty of room for additional

children that the readers mayknow. The opportunities to travel,the focus on health and education,and the influence of a large groupof kids "on the right track", aregame changers for any child'soutlook, and future success in life.

As for the outlook on TrackMN Elite as a whole: the vision ofa team from Minnesota trumpingall the teams from warm weatherclimates and populous regions, isthe type of thought that stirs theAmerican celebration of theunderdog coming out on top.Though when you see the strengthof this group of children, youknow that you are not looking atunderdogs, but elite, youthful,conquerors. Congratulations isdue to the institution of Track MNfor 10 years of consistentlyproviding an opportunity that iswelcoming to all youth, anddetermined to provide thefoundations of successful youthdevelopment through simplyshowing kids big and small howto properly run through life.

Track MN All-AmericanHonorable Mentions Awarded to:Bridget Amoako, MitchellDickerson, Hunter Downey,Jeremy Duruji, Sidreshia Floyd,Shaheed Hickman, Niara Hill andShane Ringkob.

Track MN Elite sews seeds of a National Championshiphttp://insightnews.com Insight News • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Page 11

By Ryan T. Scottryan@insightnews.com

Track MN

Page 12 • September 14 - September 20, 2009 • Insight News http://insightnews.com

We reserve the right to limit quantities and correct all printed errors. Not all varieties available at all locations. Prices subject to state and local taxes, if applicable. No sales to dealers. Purchase requirements exclude discounts, coupons, gift cards, lottery tickets and bus passes. Check out our website at: www.rainbowfoods.com *Free promotion will be applied to item of least value.

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