‘Cover Stories’ Archives
Phillips Community Listening Session Focused on Encampments
By JANA METGE, JAMES TRICE and DONNA PUSUSTA NESTE On March 30, a meeting entitled “A Listening Session About Encampments in Phillips and Minneapolis” organized by a Phillips Neighborhood group calling themselves Phillips Neighborhood Safety Coalition took place at the East Phillips Park Community and Cultural Center. Facilitator James Trice, a resident of Phillips for 25 years, welcomed all and went over the ground rules for a respectful meeting, which it was. 78 people signed in, however there were an estimated 100 in attendance. AIM Patrol members mingled with the crowd to let everyone know they were welcome and that their presence was important. Attendees were invited to add printed materials to an information table in which various perspectives were represented, from a harm reduction model for safe injection sites to a draft on policy and procedure for encampments. Five community members gave testimony on their experiences with encampments. Mike Forcia, a leader in the [...]
Phillips Neighborhood history book wins award
Top photograph by alley contributor Paula Williamson/ University of Minnesota Press by BEN HEATH As part of the 2022 Minnesota Book Awards, scholar David Hugill is the recipient of the Minnesota History award for his book Settler Colonial City. Hugill's book, published last year by the University of Minnesota Press is a critical look at some of the social forces in Phillips after WWII. Our present city and our neighborhoods are not neutral places where history is suspended, instead they are founded in settler-colonial relations, where white supremacy and non-white oppression are by design. The author lived and worked in Phillips as he completed his research. Hugill describes the neighborhood of Phillips in terms of “sites of articulation”, meaning places where the interactions between two or more social factors are especially visible. Minneapolis is the Settler Colonial City, and Phillips is where the record is rich in material. This a study of racism and inequity. It [...]
Historic Move for Tough Times
There’s no denying that our society today is highly polarized, but even during these grim times, you can find examples of cooperation, as groups pull together to serve and strengthen our community. Case in point: the Urban Indigenous Legacy Initiative. We are a collective of 16 American Indian nonprofit organizations in the Twin Cities that have provided the community with powerful and effective support for more than four decades. Each year, our organizations – focused on issues ranging from healthcare to housing, workforce development to childcare – reach more than 10,000 of our neighbors with critical support. But there’s a problem. The COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest of the past two years have made life even tougher for many. Indigenous people have the highest level of death per 100,000 residents than any other group in the state, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. And from an economic perspective, American Indian employment is down 13 percent from [...]
