Dear John,

There’s a lot of attention to money, power, and wealth inequality in this week’s News Digest. Don’t miss the facts about race and income inequality in Minnesota from the Minnesota Reformer, or the WGA members calling attention to whether it is workers or billionaires who get to be “unrealistic.”

This reminded us of Mona Chalabi’s award-winning visualization of Jeff Bezos’ wealth. Check it out if you haven’t. [link removed]

Here’s what we’re reading, watching and listening to this week.

1. (Some) Student Loans: Forgiven
Biden’s new plan forgives $39 million in student loans. The Minnesota Reformer shares more about what this means for thousands of Minnesota borrowers.
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2. We’re living in billionaires’ imagination
“It’s funny who gets to imagine in this world and who gets to be unrealistic. Because we’re living in the wildest imagination of a few billionaires,” Alex O’Keefe, a writer for The Bear, shares via this CNN TikTok about the WGA strike.
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3. No-Knock
This MinnPost piece delves into a new Minnesota law that went into effect earlier this month further restricting the use of no-knock search warrants. “The new no-knock restrictions that are in place now would have saved Amir’s life,” said Andre Locke, whose son, Amir Locke, was murdered by police attempting to execute a no-knock warrant.
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4. No rent control on the ballot for Minneapolis after vote on Eid al-Adha
The Minneapolis Spokesman Recorder reports that hopes for movement on rent control in Minneapolis, which voters overwhelmingly supported on the ballot in 2021, were dashed when Minneapolis City Council voted 6-4 against a motion to introduce an ordinance to get rent stabilization on the ballot this fall. Three Muslim City Council members were absent on the day of the vote, which was on Eid al-Adha, one of the most important Muslim holidays.

Council Member Ellison said the vote “felt like the biggest breach of trust” that he had experienced over his entire time on the city council. He released a joint statement with Council Members Chughtai and Osman condemning the vote.
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5. Restore the vote + restore the right to run for office
Miranda Pacheco is a candidate for Duluth City Council whose right to vote – and run for office – was restored this spring. She had lost these rights after a felony conviction. Miranda is a drug and alcohol counselor, a community leader, a parent, and would be the only Native American on the Duluth City Council if elected.

“I found my voice in that time, and now I’m able to use it in a good way,” she said. “Before, I didn’t really think what I had to say mattered, especially in the political realm.”
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6. Minnesota has among the highest racial inequality in income
Minnesota Reformer has the facts: “White Minnesotans in the middle quintile — the 41st to 60th percentile — earn an average of $46,000 per year more than the middle quintile of Black Minnesotans. That gap is among the six worst in the nation, according to the recent report.”
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7. Hmong plant medicine
At HmongTown Marketplace in St. Paul, Wangchou Yang’s family sells medicinal plants. Read about this family’s commitment to preserving this cultural tradition — and also their work to expand access for younger generations in the Star Tribune.
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8. Silent Disco
Not Impossible, an organization which uses new technology to address social issues like poverty and disability access, has made breakthroughs for deaf and hard-of-hearing people to experience music. Dan Belquer, Chief Vibrational Officer, and his team have developed haptic suits to complement music that are now being used at the Silent Disco.
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9. Barbie taught me the power of play
“My father, the consummate hustler, had paid enough attention to my play to develop an elaborate ruse in which my dolls and I could be his spies at his midday backroom games… My father’s thinking was simple: A girl with a doll wasn’t an obvious ploy and was not a threat.” A fantastic piece by Airea Matthews reflecting on Barbie and the power of imagination.
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Speaking of Barbie, there are many ways to celebrate the premiere across Minnesota — check it out!
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10. Sabrina Ionescu
This all-star crushed WNBA and NBA shooting records.
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And that’s a wrap!

Send us what you’re reading, watching and listening to.

Until next time,

Katie Blanchard (she/her)
Basebuilding Director

Jessica Zimmerman (she/her)
Development Director

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