News & Views of Phillips Since 1976
Monday December 22nd 2025
Cemeteries: The Modern Day Urban Park
TALES FROM PIONEERS AND SOLDIERS MEMORIAL CEMETERY
187th IN A SERIES
By OLGA ACUNA
What began as a class project addressing environmental injustice in the East Phillips neighborhood steadily flourished into an Arbor Day celebration at the notable Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery on the intersection of Cedar Ave and Lake St. On Saturday May 1st, over 60 volunteers from the surrounding community gathered at the cemetery to aid in the planting of over 50 trees throughout the 27 acres of green space.
On one of the warmest days of the Spring season, this resilient intergenerational group of volunteers worked through the heat together to nurture the Earth by planting trees with help from arborists from the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation. Volunteers later gathered around for an ethereal blessing of the tree performance which included two deer puppets, bells, and poetry all done by the Semilla Center for Healing and the Arts. The event rounded off with the enjoyment of a collective meal in the shade with food from Pham”™s Rice Bowl. Volunteers mingled with one another, took photos with Elmer the Elm Tree, and watched out for an appearance from Fern and Lily, the local cemetery deer.… Read the rest “Cemeteries: The Modern Day Urban Park”
The Other Pandemic, Violence Against Women
By Marco Dávila C.
HER NAME IS YADHIRA ROMERO MARTĺNEZ
Let”™s imagine how great would be the indignation in the mainstream media if the murdered young woman, instead of being a Mexican with US Citizenship, had been the daughter of the governor, the president, or some millionaire or celebrity?
She never returned home. Yadhira Romero Martinez lived in Morelos, Mexico with her parents. Recently she traveled to Minnesota, her place of birth. She was 19 years old. She was found dead in a house in Powderhorn Neighborhood (E Lake Street and 18th Avenue South).
It is a systemic problem. Of course, a murderer is a murderer and should pay for their crime. But it is also imperative to turn and see the circumstances and causes, and ask ourselves how we can prevent these horrible murders, instead of holding to the conservative idea that simply putting people in prison solves all problems.
Femicide is a pandemic that ends women”™s lives. “In 2011 alone, according to The Guardian, it happened to 1,600 women and girls from Alaska to New York, of all races, ages, and income levels. They were murdered in their beds and in their cars, at work and at yoga classes, with parents, husbands, ex-boyfriends, cousins, children, neighbors, and strangers.”… Read the rest “The Other Pandemic, Violence Against Women”
Why Should You Care About City Elections?
Part 2 in a series of articles about the 2021 Municipal Elections brought to you by the League of Women Voters Minneapolis
If you drive a car, walk, bicycle, live in a house or apartment, breathe the air, have a pet, discard trash, flush the toilet, or eat or drink in a restaurant, then, as a resident of Minneapolis, you have a vested interest in who runs our city. If your concern is safety, policing, and civil rights, your interests are even more relevant this year.
City council members ”“ one elected from each of Minneapolis”™ 13 wards – make the laws and policies that govern the city. They approve budgets, levy taxes and elect a council president who sets the council”™s agenda and presides over meetings. Council members serve on committees that focus on specific issues like housing & zoning, public health & safety, public works and budgeting. The city council writes the rules that govern nearly every aspect of the city that impacts our daily lives. Read more about City Council Powers and Duties here: https://www.minneapolismn.gov/government/city-council/about-city-council/powers-and-duties/
Reminder: every city council seat and the mayor will be on the ballot on November 2!
The mayor is the only city official elected at-large; that is, by the entire city voting population.… Read the rest “Why Should You Care About City Elections?”
Keep citizen journalism alive!
