The Minneapolis City Council approved an ordinance on Oct. 31 which city officials hope will ensure affordable housing remains affordable.

As the city continues to make affordable housing a priority, the Affordable Housing Preservation Ordinance outlines a seven-step process that would give organizations a better chance at buying property to preserve affordable housing.

Edward Goetz, a University of Minnesota housing professor, said this process is a way to keep certain areas of Minneapolis affordable for renters.

“Sometimes that affordability is lost when the owner of the unit sells it to someone else,” Goetz said. “And then the new owner wants to either increase rents or make renovations or sell it at a level that’s not affordable. So the intended impact is to preserve as much housing affordability as possible.”

According to the ordinance, a non-profit group or individual with experience maintaining affordable property, known as a qualified organization, would have the rights of first offer and first refusal.

The right to first offer requires sellers to provide a timeline to qualified organizations to buy the property. The right of first refusal means that if a property owner wants to sell to someone else, the qualified organization can match the other buyer’s price.

According to HomelineMN, there were over 1,600 evictions in Minneapolis for failure to pay rent from January to October of this year.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition reported that more than half of US workers can not afford to rent a one-bedroom apartment while working a full-time job.

Council Member Jeremiah Ellison (Ward 5) said this ordinance can help people avoid the increasing eviction rates in Minneapolis.

“We have one of the fastest eviction processes in the country right here in Minnesota, Hennepin County. A lot of landlords will say ‘Oh, it’s so hard to evict.’ Well, if it’s hard to evict here, then it’s hard to evict everywhere,” Ellison said.

Fadumo Mohamed, an advocacy manager at Ayada Leads, said qualified organizations provide non-English speakers the ability to rent power.

“We work with whether their English is their second language or they’re still kind of learning the language,” Mohamed said. “I’m hoping with this affordable housing preservation some of these tenants can become qualified organizations themselves and buy some of this housing and maybe set up that infrastructure for tenants.”

While the ordinance passed, the city still needs to create a program manual, which will further define specific limits for the ordinance, according to Ellison. He said the program manual should be finished within the next 10-12 months.

Ian Rosenthal, a housing organizer at Jewish Community Action, wants the city government to do more to help renters in Minneapolis, but this is a step in the right direction.

“I would like to see this as a first step to a process to institute tenant opportunity to purchase because renters have the greatest stake in maintaining the affordability in their buildings,” Rosenthal said.

The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is facing increased scrutiny after failing to take action against a man who made multiple threats to his neighbor as well as their delayed response to a U.S. Department of Justice investigation.

Minneapolis City Council members expressed their frustration with both incidents at a Monday City Council meeting. At that meeting, MPD officials said they needed more time to respond to the justice department investigation into their use of force at a June protest and a legislative directive filed by city council members that further questioned the MPD’s use of force.

City Chief of Staff Jared Jeffries said at the meeting that the city departments, including the MPD, did not have enough time to make an accurate update to the legislative directive. The directive asked the MPD to provide more data about its responses to protests in general.

Council Member Robin Wonsley (Ward 2) said a more detailed response would have allowed the Minneapolis police to address the community’s concerns.

“This legislative directive inquires about one particular protest that was the subject of resident inquiry,” Wonsley said in a statement. “Answering these questions is a way for MPD to demonstrate good faith engagement with the public and a willingness to be transparent.”

According to MPD spokesperson Garrett Parten, the MPD answered most of the questions in the directive to Wonsley before the directive was issued.

While the legislative directive reported the police department’s behavior in 2023, the Davis Moturi case and the MPD’s failure to protect him became the main focus of the meeting.

According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, Moturi made multiple phone calls and emails to the MPD about his neighbor John Herbert Sawchak for violating restraining orders and pointing a gun at him.

On Oct. 23, Morturi was shot by Sawchak in the neck, fracturing his spine. The next day, Sawchak was charged with second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, stalking and harassment.

According to the press conference, the MPD did not arrest Sawchak until early morning on Oct. 28, four days later. After the arrest, community members and the City Council questioned the MPD’s response time.

Alicia Granse, a staff attorney for ACLU-Minnesota, said this case drew media attention due to the police’s prolonged response to the suffering of a person of color.

“I think particularly the optics of this are quite bad,” Granse said. “Mr. Moturi is a Black man. A Black man called the police and asked for help, and he didn’t get it. Instead, he got shot by his neighbor, and then even after he got shot by his neighbor, the police didn’t want to go in and arrest this white man.”

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara issued an apology on Sunday where he said the Minneapolis police failed Moturi.

“We’re trying to rebuild a department that is severely understaffed,” O’Hara said at a press conference. “Yes, in this particular instance, we failed this victim, 100%, and to that victim, I say ‘I am sorry.’”

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples (NAACP) Minnesota President Cynthia Wilson said the apology from the MPD shows a willingness to change.

“When somebody acknowledges that there was an error made, I’m willing to sit down to see how we can move forward to doing things better so that it doesn’t happen again,” Wilson said.

Wilson said the NAACP-Minnesota is currently working with police on neighborhood disputes and neighborhood engagement.

Communities United Against Police Brutality President Michelle Gross disagrees and said the incident proves the MPD and city need new leadership.

“It’s not enough, you know, just to make some new policy and this and that and the other thing,” Gross said. “They’ve got to address the culture of this department. And that’s something that it takes a very strong leader to do.”

In a statement to the city, the group called for the termination of O’Hara and the resignation of Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.

The City Council will hold a public hearing on Tuesday to give residents a chance to discuss MPD’s action regarding the Moturi case.

Gross and Wilson said the Minneapolis police need to be more transparent with the public.

“We’re the public and the public deserves to know exactly what’s going on,” Wilson said. “There’s a lot of distrust that’s been lingering within the community for a long time. So it takes time to regain people’s trust.”

Through rain and lightning, OutFront Minnesota and other LGBTQ+ activists organized the “Protect our Trans Refugee State” rally outside the Minnesota State Capitol building on Thursday.

About 30 people attended the rally in St. Paul adorned with signs showing support for LGTQ+ rights and umbrellas for the rainy weather. The rally was designed to show support for a 2022 law that instructed state officials to disregard out-of-state laws targeting transgender youth who obtained gender-affirming care and their parents.

Minnesota House Rep. Leigh Finke, the first transgender person elected to the Minnesota Legislature, said the rally was a way for the trans community to make their voices heard.

“I just want there to be an opportunity for trans people and the trans community to speak for ourselves,” Finke said. “And it’s more difficult than it should be for trans people to get to have the mic and to say our own piece and to be able to speak for our own communities.”

While LGBTQ+ activists have made gains in states like Minnesota, activists argue that more needs to be done. According to a 2023 FBI report, anti-LGBTQ+ and Anti-Trans hate crimes increased by 32% from 2021 to 2022.

With the election two weeks away, transgender issues are still on the political scene.

Former President and current Republican candidate for President Donald Trump, as well as other Republican groups, have spent around 33% of their ads on anti-LGBTQ+ commercials, reported ABC News.

“We’ve seen an uptick in direct acts of violence even here in Minnesota over this last year,” said Kat Rohn, the executive director of the OutFront organization. “But moreover, what we’re seeing is a lot of impacts on people’s mental health. So right now about 90% of trans adults in this country are expressing fear or anxiety about the future political landscape.”

Singer and transgender activist Ryan Cassata, who attended the Thursday rally, said gender-affirming care saved his life. Cassata said the election will have a major impact on the trans community and people’s ability to access gender-affirming care.

While Minnesota has laws protecting access to gender-affirming care, many conservative states have taken a different stance. In 2024, many Republican-led state legislatures introduced bills to further restrict transgender youth’s access to gender-affirming care, according to reporting by AP News.

Nearly half of all U.S. states have laws restricting best-practice medication and surgical care for transgender youth, according to data from the Movement Advanced Project. Of those states, six make it a felony crime to provide care to transgender youth, according to the same data.

Cassata said queer youth who have anxiety about the upcoming election should practice self-care and use this moment to take action politically.

“I’m hoping people will use their fear and, and put it into wanting to go out and vote,” Cassata said.

A small venue with a lot of history, the Cedar Cultural Center on 416 Cedar Ave. in Cedar-Riverside is celebrating 35 years of existence on Oct. 26.

The celebration will be hosted by local rapper Dessa with additional performances from local Minneapolis artists as well as the unveiling of a mural painting along the outside of the building, according to the Center’s website.

Along with music and mural painting, the anniversary celebration will have a fundraiser to help the center with repairs and paying the artists, said Cedar Cultural Center spokesperson Bo Young An.

The Cedar Cultural Center is a music venue that hosts international music and cultural events in Cedar-Riverside.

The West Bank building started as a movie theater in 1948, according to the website. In 1989, the building became a center for live music, mostly consisting of international artists and folk music.

MollieRae Miller, a historical archivist and volunteer at the Cedar Cultural Center, said the late ‘90s were when the cultural center established itself as a mainstay in the community. Miller added that the Cedar Cultural Center even became the set for a few episodes of a TV show called “The Cedar Social.”

“Cedar really founded this small venue that was bringing in Americana and international folk music in this epicenter of Minneapolis that was just rich in people in activism,” Miller said “The West Bank was totally like a scene. Just tons of hippies, tons of kinds of punks and Americana and LGBTQ was all the way up Washington Avenue.”

From 2009 and beyond, the Cultural Center evolved from hosting mainly Nordic and Folk music to more world music and local Somali artists.

Michelle Woster, the executive director at the Cedar Cultural Center, said the venue reached 35 years because of its place in the community.

“It’s truly a community-based organization,” Woster said. “It’s written in our neighborhood. We have all volunteers, every show has volunteers that work. We have paid staff as well, but volunteers give up their time all throughout the organization. And so people care about it.”

The historical exhibit will be put together by Miller and Tim Gnadt, another volunteer at the Cedar. 

Gnadt said he wants the 35th-anniversary celebration to show how even the smallest places hold years of history. 

“I’m hoping that people come in and see the fact that, if they put the effort into doing something now, in 35 years someone’s going to be digging through a box somewhere and find what you have and probably think it’s really awesome,” Gnadt said.

Andrew Boyum, a local resident, said he has gone to the cultural center dozens of times and that he is both surprised and happy that the Cedar lasted this long.

“I’m really glad and grateful,” Boyum said. “It’s kind of like any niche art, art venue where there are people who love it and you just have to be grateful that there’s been support for it over the years.”

In a heated discussion over the old Third Police Precinct building, the Minneapolis City Council supported turning the site into a voting and cultural center.

The Third Precinct building renamed Minnehaha 3000, was burned down during the protests in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd. The site has sat empty for years as the city has gone back and forth on the building’s future.

Minnehaha 3000 made national headlines after Ohio Sen. and Republican vice presidential hopeful JD Vance visited the former Third Precinct building Monday and used it as a backdrop when he portrayed Minneapolis as a city in decline.

Under the plan supported by city staff, Minnehaha 3000 would become an election and voter services (EVS) as well as a cultural center. The election voter services would include a warehouse for election equipment and a logistics center. 

The City Council passed a resolution supporting rebuilding Minnehaha 3000 as a community center with the voting service center but not adding on the warehouse on Lake Street. 

City Council Member Jason Chavez (Ward 9), whose ward contains the Third Precinct, said that the addition of the warehouse would be an insult to Ward 9. 

“When we’re talking about bringing back vitality to Lake Street, which is an area that is predominantly people of color and immigrants, we’re talking about building a warehouse?” Chavez said in the meeting.  “I’m frustrated actually. I’ll take an EVS, but a warehouse? That is not acceptable to me.” 

Minneapolis City Clerk Casey Carl said Minnehaha 3000 is the best place to add an elections service because of its position in the neighborhood. 

“We have 137 precincts spread across the entire city,” Carl said. “So on election day, there are 137 precincts that we have to support. Having access to a really secure transit grid is important for us to get out on election day and to bring stuff back from election day.” 

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the plan would acknowledge the past while moving forward. 

“Moving forward doesn’t mean negating our history, it means taking a step into the future,” Frey said at the meeting. 

While Frey and his office thought the design should move forward, the Minneapolis City Council was marred with disagreements. 

Chavez and Council Member Aurin Chowdhury (Ward 12) expressed frustration over the lack of beautification efforts on the outside of the building, specifically the razor wire on the building. 

“It’s an image of disrepair that hurts our community and it makes people feel exhausted, it makes people feel uncared for,” Chowdhury said at the meeting. 

Council Member Robin Wonsley (Ward 2) and Council Member Aisha Chughtai (Ward 10) asked why the city department did not consider other locations for the voting center.

Other council members like Linea Palmisano (Ward 13) and LaTrisha Vetaw (Ward 4) encouraged other members to support the mayor’s recommendations.

Palmisano said council members were dragging out and stalling the process. 

“Enough is enough, we have found a shared democracy center with shared community space and that is still not enough for some people,” Palmisano said. 

Minnehaha 3000 is still a source of contention for many on the council and the surrounding community. 

Sam Gould, a local resident who has lived near Minnehaha 3000 for 14 years, said the city did a poor job reaching out for community input. Gould said he wants the city to do more community outreach and he hopes Minehaha 3000 will be turned into a center for the community. 

“We have an opportunity here,” Gould said. “And what I’m seeing is an aggressive push to tamp that opportunity down, to be able to continue unjust systems as they are, because it benefits a certain few over the many. And that’s definitely what’s going on in my neighborhood.”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and the Minneapolis City Council are butting heads over the budget after the council approved a $1.5 million grant to save Agate Housing. 

In an email to the City Council, Frey called the spending on the homeless advocacy organization Agate Housing irresponsible. Frey said in the email that funding Agate comes at the cost of reducing the North Commons Park fund by around $350,000.

“The $1.5 million you set aside is not free money, it must come from somewhere,” Frey said in the email. “Because of this Council action, several City departments and services will be affected.”

Dushani Dye, the Minneapolis chief financial officer, mirrored Frey’s statement and said the consequences of the City Council’s actions would be felt in other areas of the budget.  

“The Council’s action either cuts funding for North Commons or cuts City staff,” Dye said. “There is no way around it.” 

The City Council responded to these claims in a statement written by Council Vice President Aisha Chughtai (Ward 10) and Council Member Emily Koski (Ward 11). Koski said that the mayor’s comments call the financial data into question. 

“The City’s Quarterly Financial Reports are how we understand the City and our department’s actual spending; they are touted by the Administration as the best source of budgetary and fiscal information,” Koski said in the statement. 

In response to Frey’s budgetary concerns, Chughtai and Koski launched a legislative directive to investigate the city budget. The directive would look into the second quarter financial report, current state financial practices and overall financial performance. 

Council Member Jason Chavez (Ward 9) said he hopes the directive will find answers on the city’s true financial outlook. 

“We’re inquiring into the current budget process because it’s clear that either the Mayor’s administration is retaliating against North Minneapolis and the City Council for saving a shelter, or his quarter two financial report was incorrect and inaccurate,” Chavez said. 

Chavez pushed back against the mayor’s claims that the council ignored budgetary concerns when they approved the Agate Housing Funding. He added that his office and other City Council members looked over the budgets before deciding on the resolution. 

“When we received the quarter two report, it showed us that there was going to be projected surpluses in many departments,” Chavez said. “And the action the City Council took was bold, it was important, and it was needed to ensure that we can save a shelter from permanent closing. So, we end up with surpluses all the time, and to pretend that the money is not there is just unfair.” 

Former State of Minnesota Finance Commissioner Jay Kiedrowski,  a former finance professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, said if the legislative directive finds any discrepancies in the financial report then the proposed budgets could be revised to match the findings of the report.

Despite the legislative directive and disagreements over Agate Housing, Chavez said Frey and the City Council can still work together to combat homelessness. 

“We would love to come together with the Mayor,” Chavez said. “I think it’s important that we show Minneapolis residents that we are serious about addressing unsheltered homelessness at a time when homeless shelters are being attacked. We need to show solidarity. But it’s hard to create that solidarity when you’re pushing back against a shelter. It doesn’t make sense.”

 The results of the legislative directive will come back on Oct. 15.

The Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution encouraging the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to study more options for the redesign of Interstate 94 (I-94).

In the resolution, the council members said MnDOT should review the report from Our Streets Minneapolis, a grassroots organization focused on transportation and infrastructure, before the scoping phase. 

This resolution is part of the Rethinking I-94 project, which started in July 2024 to improve the I-94 highway. Currently, MnDOT has 10 alternative plans for the highway.

MnDOT spokesperson Ricardo Lopez said that in the scoping phase, MnDOT will evaluate alternative design options based on criteria like environmental impact, feasibility and meeting project goals.

Additionally, the resolution recommends I-94 scoping decisions to choose a plan that will expand the freeway. 

One of the alternative designs would remove the freeway and dedicate one lane to bus rapid transit. Another option would be to rebuild the freeway to add a new lane for buses and carpooling. 

Council Member Robin Wonsley (Ward 2) said in a statement that local residents want the I-94 project to focus on adding multimodal boulevards. 

“The City of Minneapolis has the chance to rethink I-94, and my residents have been clear with me that they want a city that repairs the harms this highway has committed,” Wonsley said in the statement. 

Joe Harrington, a transportation expert for Our Streets Minneapolis, said MnDOT’s evaluation criteria leave out important voices from the community.  He said MnDOT needs to evaluate alternatives based on air quality, public health, walkability and sense of place. 

“MnDOT’s process is advancing in a way that leaves the same voices out in this process,” Harrington said. “So, it really is thinking about how to improve the project’s evaluation process to more accurately measure and prioritize the impacts on adjacent neighborhoods.” 

Yasmin Hirsi, advocacy coordinator for Our Streets Minneapolis said the resolution shows the city council is listening to those most affected by the project. 

Lopez said MnDOT is listening to the input made by the city council and community members at large.

“MnDOT appreciates the continued interest from stakeholders in the broader community about this important transportation project. We’re working with partners from federal, state and local agencies to evaluate the alternatives,” Lopez said. 

I-94’s racial history

Rethinking I-94 is part of a larger effort to reconnect predominantly Black neighborhoods after decades of highway construction in the mid-to-late 1900s that displaced Black communities. 

When I-94 was built in 1953, the freeway first went through multiple neighborhoods in Minneapolis, according to MNopedia. The Prospect Park East River Association unsuccessfully fought to move the construction to 26th Street. 

The freeway’s construction went predominantly through Black neighborhoods like Rondo in Saint Paul and Prospect Park in Minneapolis. According to MNopedia, around 430 houses were demolished and 300 businesses were destroyed.

Erin Que, the senior city planner in historic preservation for the City of Minneapolis, said Rondo never recovered. 

“Especially in the Rondo community, we know that the interstate cut through the heart of this area that was home to a thriving Black community in Saint Paul, and it separated the north side of the neighborhood from the south side of the neighborhood,” Que said. 

The highway still affects residents today. According to Our Streets Minneapolis report, residents near highways are 2.5 times more likely to be hospitalized with asthma. 

Que said the Rethinking I-94 Project can help people remember what was lost while going forward. 

“There’s a chance to recognize that history in an as-of-yet undetermined way, while we also imagine how we can better serve the people of our communities who travel this corridor, either on foot or bike or car or bus or train,” Que said. 

Harrington said a successful redesign will help future generations flourish in the diverse and formerly devastated neighborhoods.

“We want to be able to uplift community ideas and amplify dreams and hold decision-makers accountable to make sure that the Twin Cities Boulevard vision becomes a reality so that future generations to come have cleaner air to breathe and climate impacts on predominantly low-income and communities of color are mitigated in a meaningful way,” Harrington said.

Minneapolis City Council voted to give a $1.5 million grant to homeless advocacy group Agate Housing Thursday to save it from closing permanently. 

Agate Housing, a nonprofit organization providing shelter, housing and street outreach, will use the $1.5 million grant to repair the Agate Housing facility in Minneapolis.  

Sheila Delaney, a consultant for homelessness response and innovation, said Agate Housing is a unique housing service because it has a low barrier for entrance compared to other housing services.

“When you apply for housing, most of the time, almost all of the time, you need to show that you can pay for the housing,” Delaney said. “You need to show that you can pass a background check, if you are a formerly incarcerated person, and you are being discharged from corrections, getting back on your feet, you know, creating that foundation takes time.” 

City Council Member Jason Chavez (Ward 9), one of the bill’s co-authors, said the closure of Agate would negatively affect the Minneapolis homeless population who rely on Agate. 

“The permanent closure of this would impact not only the residents across Minneapolis but many of our unhoused residents and neighbors that need these critical services,” Chavez said. 

The Hennepin County shelters reported over 3,000 people stayed in shelters or transitional housing, with nearly 500 people experiencing homelessness.  

Agate funding spurring larger debate on homelessness in City Council

While the Minneapolis City Council approved the funding 10-3, there was heated debate about the cost-effectiveness of saving Agate and a larger discussion about homelessness. 

Council Member Robin Wonsley (Ward 2) said this type of legislation is needed, criticizing Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s current policy on encampments.

“Actions like these are absolutely necessary when we have the Frey administration that has this continuing whack-a-mole approach to encampments,” Wonsley said in the meeting. “This approach has not only shown to be ineffective but treats those most poorest and vulnerable residents with the utmost cruel and disdainful way.”

Council Members Michael Rainville (Ward 3), LaTrisha Vetaw (Ward 4) and Linea Palmisano (Ward 13) voted against the bill.

Rainville said the bill should wait until they have enough data on the city’s upcoming budget and how the lack of the $1.5 million will affect other government departments. 

“I want to be able to support this bill,” Rainville said in the meeting. “Good governance is not rushed and this bill was very rushed.”

Even with the bill passed, Agate Housing and City Council members say more work needs to be done.

Council Member Jamal Osman (Ward 6) said the state and federal governments need to do more to help the city address homelessness. 

“The City of Minneapolis is not equipped to deal with all this,” Osman said. “I want the mayor and the city leaders to understand the reality that the City of Minneapolis cannot handle this by themselves. The state must step in, the county must step in and the federal government must step in.” 

Executive Director of Agate Kyle Hanson said in a statement that he is grateful for the city council’s support, but Agate’s work is not done. 

“We don’t have all the answers yet and cannot say with certainty that the building will reopen, but we’re much closer to that happy result,” Hanson said in the statement.

The Minneapolis City Council again approved over $400,000 for the Cedar-Riverside Community Council’s safety outreach program for 2024.

The Cedar-Riverside Community Council’s outreach program is an ambassador program where interns work with local youth on city beautification, crisis intervention and career development. 

Outside of Cedar-Riverside, the city council also approved over $750,000 for two other community outreach programs in the city.

The three partner organizations are the Cedar-Riverside Community Council, Northside Residents Redevelopment and the Supporting and Empowering Equity through Collaboration Advocacy and Access group. 

Julianne Lynum, director of equity and inclusion for Minneapolis’s Community Planning and Economic Development, said the contract extension will help the city learn from the new pilot programs in the different neighborhoods. 

“We understand that these are pilot projects and really to figure out how well it’s working and what the concerts are, we need that additional time,” Lynum said. 

AJ Awed, the executive director of Cedar-Riverside Community Council, said he wants to use the contract extension to expand Cedar-Riverside’s ambassador program. 

“The original RFP was limited in the sense that we had seven ambassadors,” Awed said. “So for us, our biggest priority was to expand the program, get more youth the opportunity. So we were fortunate enough to do that.” 

Cedar-Riverside’s ambassador pilot program

The ambassador program, started in 2020, gives youth in Cedar-Riverside crisis training, career development and peer recovery training, according to Awed.

Given the high Somali population in Cedar-Riverside, the ambassadors chosen must be fluent in Somali, Awed added.

“When funding like this is open to neighborhood organizations who are intimately involved and understand their communities and community populations, we are able to provide services and programming in the language most comfortable,” Awed said. 

In addition to their other duties, Awed said ambassadors are in a unique position to help residents recover from drug addiction. Ambassador program interns are also trained on giving out Narcan to people experiencing an opioid overdose. 

According to data from the Minnesota Department of Health, Black Minnesotans are three times more likely to die from opioid overdose deaths than white Minnesotans. Additionally, data on the effect of opioid crisis deaths on Minneapolis Somalians are hard to come by, according to reporting by KSTP. 

City Council Member Jamal Osman (Ward 6) said the program is deeply tied to the cultural connections shared by  Cedar-Riverside residents. 

“When I talk to the youth, even though they are trapped with addiction and mental health, they want help,” Osman said. “Then some ex-drug users or street folks now working saying, ‘Hey, we have been there and we want to help you. We understand you.’ They speak the same language they speak.”

Lyam said that the contract will extend to the end of August. Even with the extension, Awed said he hopes Minneapolis continues investing in these programs that are at the “center of the community.”

“Right now, I think there’s a lot of issues just with the budget and a lot of people interested in this type of unique funding,” Awed said. “It would be a huge disservice to both the neighborhood and the community and our youth to have this program taken away.”

Democratic U.S. senators are pushing for the repeal of an 1800s law over fear it will be used by a future conservative president or court to outlaw abortion nationwide, even in Minnesota, an abortion-legal state.

Sen. Tina Smith (DFL) is leading the repeal effort of the Comstock Act in the U.S. Senate. 

The Comstock Act was first mentioned by Supreme Court justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito during oral arguments for an abortion pill case last month, as reported by NPR.

History of the Comstock Act 

The Comstock Act is an anti-obscenity law created in 1872 which bans the mailing of obscenity, including pornographic material and contraceptives. 

The bill was created in response to growing moral outrage during the Victorian era, said University of Minnesota law professor June Carbone. 

“When you have urbanization, part of what creates the moral panic, the time of the Comstock Act and the Victorian era, this anti-sex movement that characterizes the Victorian era is in response to urbanization,” Carbone said. 

The Comstock Act could be used to ban the mailing of abortion medication, NPR reported.

The Comstock Act today

According to NBC News, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine group argues the distribution of mifepristone, the leading drug for medicated abortion, is illegal under the Comstock Act. 

After the overturning of Roe v. Wade, medicated abortions increased from 39% in 2017 to 54% in 2022, according to the Gunther Institute. 

Nicole Quinones, a University graduate student studying sexual reproductive health and specializing in abortion policy, said the Comstock Act could be used to stop people from getting medicated abortion access.

“We know that medication, abortion or self-managed abortion at home or abortion via telehealth at home is very safe,” Quinones said. “So ultimately, this is just placing another barrier to access abortion care.” 

Cathy Blaeser, the co-executive director of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, said she is concerned by the potential side effects of mifepristone. 

“We support protecting women from a very dangerous drug,” Blaeser said. “Mifepristone is a very dangerous drug.” 

In response to the abortion pill case, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists said life-threatening side effects of mifepristone affect less than 1% of patients. 

Future of abortion in Minnesota

Smith has been aware of the potential use of the Comstock Act in abortion legislation due to her time at Planned Parenthood.

“I once worked at Planned Parenthood, so I was very aware of this old, archaic law that was lurking in the dusty files of the U.S. government that could be so disruptive, but nobody was paying any attention to the Comstock Act,” Smith said. 

While abortion is legal in Minnesota, all states bordering Minnesota restrict abortion to some extent. According to the Abortion Finder, Minnesota abortion laws require no waiting period or limit on pregnancy stage. 

In 2023, Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) signed additional protections for individuals who travel to Minnesota for reproductive health and for health care providers that give reproduction medicine out of state. 

Smith said even with the protections given by the Minnesota judges and the state legislature, the protections could be overridden by the Comstock Act. 

“Here in Washington, federal law supersedes state law,” Smith said. “So what I am concerned about is that a future Trump administration could attempt to use the Comstock Act to ban medication abortion, even in places like Minnesota, where state law says that it should be legal.” 

Quinones added healthcare providers worry the outcome will set a new barrier for them to do their job. 

“With this in play, I think that brings more of a government role into healthcare,” Quinones said. “Clinicians ultimately know what’s best for their patients, and when policing gets in the way they’re unable to do their job effectively, and ultimately, that means lives are going to be lost.”