‘Miscellany’ Archives
From the Desk of State Representative Hodan Hassan: April ’23
By REP. HODAN HASSAN, District 62B Hodan Hassan One of my top priorities this session is strengthening rights and protections for renters in Minnesota. We are in the middle of a housing crisis, with rental prices soaring and affordable, quality units in short supply. This problem has disproportionately affected communities of color, which tend to have a higher renter rate than white communities. Coupled with fewer and fewer young families being able to afford to purchase a home, residents are in a perfect storm for landlords to take advantage of tenants. My colleague, Rep. Esther Agbaje, is carrying a bill package to strengthen tenants’ rights, and many pieces of legislation I have authored over my past several terms are included in the proposal. Once passed, this bill will create a host of much-needed protections for renters in Minnesota and put a stop to many predatory practices used by landlords. The list of protections this package will create is long, so I’ll jump [...]
Library Patrons Union Protests Over Policing at East Lake Library
By EVANN ZUCKERMAN, Library Patrons Union Early afternoon on Saturday, February 18, community members held signs emblazoned with “Care not Cops” and “Libraries Belong to the People” in front of the East Lake Library. The group was made up of members of the Library Patrons Union, a collective focused on organizing for more accessible, equitable, and just public libraries in Hennepin County. One sign, “Sitting Down is not a Crime,” referenced an incident where police were called to the library when a patron who was sitting on the floor did not move onto a bench at the request of staff. Less than 45 minutes later, the patron was arrested from the bench she was sitting on quietly. On Saturday, other patrons who spoke to union members outside of the library were shocked to hear about the arrest. Many recalled times they sat on the floor of the library with their children or observed other patrons doing so. As sitting on the floor is not against the rules outlined library’s [...]
