Presidential Politics in the Black Community of Mpls. in 1872
253st from Tales from Pioneers and Soldiers Cemetery…
By SUE HUNTER WEIR
On August 24, 1872, the Minneapolis Tribune printed an announcement signed by 74 members of Minneapolis’ African American Community endorsing Ulysses S. Grant’s bid for a second term as President. Black men in Minnesota had won the right to vote on November 3, 1868, two years before the 15th Amendment which granted suffrage to all men regardless of race was passed. But the 1872 election was their first opportunity to vote for a president. The group said that they had sent a letter to the Republican State Central Committee repudiating candidate Charles Sumner, who challenged Grant for the Republican nomination and declared their intent to follow up the letter “by ballots [for Grant] at the polls in November.”
Black men in Minnesota had won the right to vote
on November 3, 1868, two years before the 15th Amendment
which granted suffrage to all men regardless of race was
passed. Women of any race could not vote until 1920
when the 20th Amendment to the Constitution became law.
Seventy-four might not seem like a large number, but, according to the 1870 Federal Census, there were only 750 Blacks living in the State of Minnesota.… Read the rest “Presidential Politics in the Black Community of Mpls. in 1872”
Franklin Library News Nov. ’26
Compiled by Christina Smith, Librarian
FRANKLIN LIBRARY HOURS
Monday 9am-5pm
Tuesday 12pm-8pm
Wednesday 12pm-8pm
Thursday 12pm-8pm
Friday 9am-5pm
Saturday 9am-5pm
Sunday 12pm-5pm
Closure
Veterans Day
Wed November 11
PROGRAMS FOR YOUTH
Let’s Read
(Grades K-5)
Tues’ and Thurs’ 4:00 – 7:30 pm
Sats: 2:00 – 5:00 pm
Free in-person reading support for K-5 students. Students and trained volunteer tutors meet weekly one-on-one to work on grade level reading skills.
Homework Help
(Grades K-12)
Tues’ & Thurs’ 4:00 – 7:30 pm
Sats: 2:00 – 5:00 pm
Free in-person tutoring for K-12 students. No advanced sign-up needed.
STEAM Workshop
(Ages 8+)
Weds 5:00 – 6:00 pm
Drop in for fun and creative STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math) experiments and projects! Materials provided. Led by Franklin Library’s Teen STEAM Squad.
PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS
Coffee & Conversation
Every 2nd and 4th Wed of the month
12:30 – 2:00 pm
Join Franklin Library staff for free coffee & conversations with neighbors.
Expungement Clinic
Wed November 18th
12:30 – 4:30 pm
Having a criminal record can make it difficult to obtain work, housing, or professional licensing. However, in certain cases a person can request that the court seal their record through a process called expungement.… Read the rest “Franklin Library News Nov. ’26”
Absence of Accountability
from the series Something I Said…
By DWIGHT HOBBES
An absence of accountability is the core evil at the heart of ICE’s nightmarish assault on humanity, driven by President Donald Trump’s ruthless abuse of power. He has never taken responsibility for any wrong doing, most conspicuously egging on, then pardoning the January 6, 2021 White House rioters who committed wanton violence against law enforcement and everyone else in their wake of wholesale destruction. Accordingly, ICE heeded his lead, beating, locking up, even killing citizens with impunity.
The worst of it is this stemmed from a legitimate, quite lawful premise. Even affirmative action icon President Barack Obama oversaw upwards of 3 million deportations over his two terms – 400,000 in 2012. It wasn’t, however, characterized by atrocities, but carried out via due process not persecution. Importantly, it was a matter of diligently pursuing illegal immigrants, not outright xenophobic bigotry typical of the present administration. Trump passes relentless racism off as contentious, stalwart safeguarding of national security.
Immigration agents falsified statements during Operation Metro Surge, the campaign that notoriously scandalized America before the world. They lied to hide culpability, taking a page out of the president’s playbook. They did this because higher-ups had their back.… Read the rest “Absence of Accountability”