Tag Archives: justice 4 all
VIDEO: Saturday, February 15 — 2014 Annual Meeting Livestream
Posted February 12, 2014
Our 2014 Annual Meeting & Progressive Carnival is this Saturday, February 15th at 10:30 a.m. at St. Paul Central High School Hundreds of Minnesotans will gather to launch TakeAction’s work for the year and to dream big about the change we want to see in our state in the long term — and we hope that you’ll join us (get the details here).
But if the drive is too far or you can’t get away from the house, we still want you to be a part of the day. Watch live on this page from your home starting at 11:00 a.m. this Saturday.
You’ll join a program in three acts. We’ll remember parts of our state’s progressive history and the people whose shoulders we stand on. We’ll talk about how we win by building relationships and partnerships, and why it matters that we shape the stories that get told about us. We’ll also explore what it takes to build the Minnesota we want — winning elections, winning campaigns, investing in our movement, and dreaming big together.
The program will start at 11:00 a.m. — hit play below to start watching, and then join the conversation on Twitter by tweeting @TakeActionMN with hashtags #ForwardTogether and #TAMN. … Continue reading »
VIDEO: Boring Meetings Protest
Posted February 11, 2014
Breaking! A group of tiny protesters has taken over our office in advance of our 2014 Annual Meeting in protest of boring meetings. Head below the fold to watch what happens:
(And then join us on February 15th at St. Paul Central High School for what promises to be a non-boring meeting.)… Continue reading »
For my Grandma Hickman
Posted February 7, 2014
One of my biggest heroines is a woman I do not remember meeting.
My great grandmother Hickman, born less than 70 years after slavery was “officially abolished,” grew up as a servant but was treated as a slave. I am told she was a wise woman who loved with all her heart. I grew up hearing stories of her doing back breaking work in the plantation fields of Alabama. She died when I was barely walking but I have idolized her all my life.
Hearing those stories, I always have had a sense of pride in my roots; pride that my people have been struggling for a very long time but we have continued to survive and figure out ways to strive. When I am asked “why I do what I do”, it always has been about my family’s history of struggle for dignity. I constantly remind myself that I am not alone, that I stand on the shoulders of warriors in a long battle for justice.
My favorite Grandma Hickman story is of her time breast feeding the babies on the plantation. She told my mom that she would breast feed the babies of the white and black “servants.”… Continue reading »
13 Best Photos of 2013
Posted December 19, 2013
From January to December, see some of the best shots of the action that made big change possible in 2013.
1. We kicked off the year at our Annual Meeting making plans, and asking the legislature to expand and improve MinnesotaCare.
2. In February, we braved the cold with Representative Ray Dehn and the NAACP to file 10 complaints with the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission regarding Target’s hiring practices.
3. The next week hundreds of us stood outside Target Headquarters and asked them to be a leader in closing Minnesota’s worst-in-the-nation racial jobs gap.
4. In March we visited Wells Fargo to shine a spotlight on corporate tax loopholes.
5. We celebrated Minnesota’s new health exchange, and thanked champions like Senator Al Franken for making it possible.
6. In May, we hit the Capitol to ask legislators to ask the wealthiest in our state to pay their fair share in taxes.
7. In June we traveled to Denver with Representative Ray Dehn, ISAIAH, and CTUL for Target’s shareholder meeting.
8. Our members met with Governor Dayton to talk about making our state a place where all Minnesotans can thrive.
9. August isn’t complete without a visit to the State Fair!… Continue reading »
Pause for a moment to celebrate.
Posted December 18, 2013
As we close out 2013, take a look at all that people-power made possible this year, and start dreaming big about what big change we can win together in 2014 and beyond.
Like this? Share it with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.… Continue reading »
What’s working in Minnesota?
Posted October 29, 2013
Consider what life is like in our neighboring states in the upper Midwest.
To the south, in Iowa, farm and rural activists are fighting off factory farms at every turn. Farther away, Illinois is continually facing a looming financial crisis. To the west, North Dakota continues trying to limit a woman’s freedom to choose by passing the most restrictive anti-choice laws in the country. And to the east, Wisconsin state government resembles that of Mississippi, restricting the right to vote and sitting idle as its health care costs skyrocket.
Meanwhile, here in Minnesota the list of populist accomplishments in the last 12 months is long and impressive… being the first state to defeat both the Voter Restriction and Anti-Gay Marriage Amendments, turning around six months later to pass Marriage Equality, passing historic Ban the Box legislation, Homeowner’s Bill of Rights, The Dream Act, increased progressive revenue and closed corporate tax loopholes, and expanded and strengthened health care coverage. The list goes on.
What’s working in Minnesota that we are breaking through the same barriers that are holding other states back?
For one thing, nothing that has happened here in Minnesota has happened overnight. For years, organizers and activists have laid the groundwork for what just recently emerged as a grassroots movement. … Continue reading »
Target Joins the Conversation
Posted October 28, 2013
Last week, more than 400 people packed the Capri Theater on the northside of Minneapolis and others watched online in Duluth, Grand Rapids, Virginia, Rochester, Mankato, and beyond.
Why?
To be part of a conversation with Target Corporation about closing our worst-in-the-nation racial jobs gap, and to be there as they made a commitment to be part of the solution.
For more than two years, every day Minnesotans with criminal histories have been asking Target to be a leader in closing our worst-in-the-nation racial jobs gap. People like you made phone calls, stood in Target’s lobby, travelled to Denver for their shareholder meeting, filed complaints with the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, and more.
And last Thursday night, they joined the conversation and took some serious steps forward. What did that look like?
At the meeting, Target leadership went on the record and committed to continuing a public discussion, funding a free legal clinic on the north side for people with criminal histories, and supporting hiring practices that remove barriers to employment. In a major step forward, they announced that they’ll be adopting “Ban the Box” (a policy that removes questions about criminal histories from employment applications) for all of their applications nationwide.… Continue reading »
Justice 4 All: Bridging the racial jobs gap
Posted October 22, 2013
Did you know that in Minnesota one in five people have an arrest or conviction record that can show up on a routine criminal background check for employment? Community members with a criminal or arrest record are routinely denied employment, leading to one million people within Minnesota struggling to find work. A person’s criminal record and even a person’s arrest record will follow them throughout their lives and may negatively impact their employment opportunities. By promoting changes to employer’s use of background information, it allows for access to employment opportunities for those with criminal records.
Equal access to employment opportunities benefits neighborhoods, families, the economy, and the overall societal well-being. However, for many members of our community this access has been denied. Communities of color are facing a serious employment crisis in our state. Minnesota has the worst unemployment gap in the nation, where Blacks are three times more likely to be unemployed than Whites. A contributing factor leading to this disparity are the challenges experienced by those with a criminal record who are seeking to obtain employment. Especially when, more than 92% of employers use background checks, and as many as two thirds refuse to hire applicants with criminal or arrest records, regardless of the length of time since conviction or relevancy to the job.… Continue reading »
Dan McGrath, Getting From No to Yes
Posted May 23, 2013
“This campaign has lit a grassroots fire that has swept our state. We want a politics that happens by us, and not to us… Tonight I’m so happy to say we closed the chapter on no and we opened the chapter on yes – yes to a future where Minnesota unites in active grassroots democracy.”
Remember that? Election night 2012. Against all odds, an amazing grassroots movement defeated two harmful amendments and elected a progressive majority to the Capitol. We were on cloud nine. But we also knew we hadn’t won anything yet.
But what happened next? You refused to go away. The grassroots movement that started last fall got even stronger, and won a long list of populist achievements in this legislative session. A new health care exchange that puts people at the center. Ban the Box legislation that takes a step toward closing the racial jobs gap. Fairer taxation that closes corporate tax loopholes and invests in all-day kindergarten and a stronger MinnesotaCare. And those are just the issues TakeAction Minnesota focused on most. Our friends and allies led the way, passing marriage equality, the DREAM Act, the Homeowners Bill of Rights, the right to organize for personal care attendants and childcare workers…and on and on…and on.We… Continue reading »
