Northrop reopened to the public Monday after closing on Jan. 11 for repairs after a parapet wall failure. 

The building is now partially open to the public, with certain areas to remain closed indefinitely due to further construction, and the Bistro on the first floor reopened Tuesday. The University of Minnesota originally announced a partial roof collapse caused the closure, and Northrop’s blog announcing the reopening attributed the damage to a parapet wall failure. 

As of Monday, currently scheduled events at Northrop will be held as planned, according to the blog statement. One of the next scheduled events is an organ repertoire class on Feb. 6. Dates for rescheduled Joffrey Ballet performances during the almost three-week period Northrop was closed will be announced soon, according to the blog.

The east entrance of the building and the east box office windows remain closed, except during events. Otherwise, box office service will move to the west side entrance. Both the Northrop and Church Street parking garages are open, but Lilly Plaza, located above the parking garage, will remain closed to traffic.

Sections of stairwells and other parts of the building are roped off because of continued construction. Signs are posted to guide visitors to accessible routes, the blog said.

Northrop was built in 1929, underwent renovations that were completed in 2014 and is considered “the heart” of the University’s East Bank campus and a state historic landmark, according to Northrop’s website. The building serves primarily as a space for performances, including dance, concerts, academic ceremonies and performing arts, while also including study spaces, administrative offices and more. 

University of Minnesota student leaders are hopeful they will soon see more funding toward important campus issues following the DFL Party securing control of the Minnesota Legislature and the governor’s office on Nov. 8.

University President Joan Gabel’s proposal, presented at the Sept. 8 Board of Regents meeting, includes about a 15% increase in state financial support for the University to cover inflationary costs, boost student financial aid and improve campus safety.

Student leaders ready for change at the Capitol

Undergraduate Student Government (USG) leaders said the University will “almost definitely” raise their request since Democrats won control of both the state’s House of Representatives and the Senate in the midterm elections.

“It’s very possible because the Minnesota State system did the same thing,” Siya Sakhardande, state coordinator for USG’s government and legislative affairs team, said “They had an original request, and they updated it [after the election].”

Sakhardande said her goals for the session include expanding funding for student mental health care and offsetting this year’s 3.5% tuition increase by expanding scholarship programs.

“Students just voted in a big contentious election,” Sakhardande said. “They should want to hold their elected officials accountable on the promises that they made … If their legislators promised them things about tuition going down or keeping tuition the same, they should hold them accountable for that.”

New this year, Sakhardande is also working to form a student coalition across Minnesota colleges and universities united in achieving common goals.

“Collaborating like that just means that everyone’s on the same page about what we want to achieve, and we can work together to achieve goals,” Sakhardande said. “We all want to combat tuition; we all want more basic needs support on our campuses.”

The USG is not directly involved with the University’s budget development process, but the government and legislative affairs team will develop its own budgetary requests and policy proposals for the state Legislature once the session begins Jan. 3.

Sakhardande and Carter Yost, USG’s government and legislative affairs team director, said they hope DFL leadership will help them accomplish their own legislative goals while contributing more to University operational goals.

“I’m incredibly optimistic and also clear-eyed about the opportunity for significant progress for student interests in session this year,” Yost said. “I think we have a unique opportunity to really push things forward and move the needle and make things better for people.”

Majority leader influence

The University requested a 3.5% biennial budget increase two years ago and failed to receive full funding on its last biennial budget request two years ago, a 3.5% increase from the last biennium, one of the most modest requests in 20 years, according to reporting from the Star Tribune.

Kari Dziedzic has represented District 60, which encompasses the University’s Twin Cities campus, for about a decade. Dziedzic became the new majority leader when Democrats gained control of the state Senate in this year’s midterm elections.

She said she supports funding a larger proportion of University tuition in the upcoming session.

“When I went to the U many years ago, I think the state maybe paid for two-thirds of the tuition, and the family paid for one-third,” Dziedzic said. “As we’ve had budget deficits over the years, it’s kind of shifted now … I think we should look at ‘What is that best balance?’”

Dziedzic said increasing funding to improve campus safety infrastructure is another priority for her this session.

Last year, the University requested $100 million from the $7.7 billion budget surplus to improve campus safety through increased University Police Department staffing, building security improvements and lighting and cameras. However, University public safety funding was not included in the final version of the higher education omnibus bill, which failed to come to a vote in the Senate before the end of last year’s session.

Dziedzic said she attended a Dinkytown safety walk this fall along with University Department of Public Safety officials, regents and parents of University students.

“In a lot of the areas we walked, there was no lighting,” Dziedzic said.

Dziedzic said she is currently working on two bills that, if passed, could bring more lighting to the University area.

Holding leaders accountable

The University declined to comment on how the change in legislative control may impact their budget request or other funding opportunities.

“The U of M provides unmatched value to Minnesota, a value we only fully realize with the continued support of the state and our elected leaders,” University Chief Government Relations Officer J.D. Burton wrote in an email to the Minnesota Daily. “When funding declines, we limit the potential of all the great things the U of M can do for Minnesota. We’re looking forward to working with all the legislators who will be seated for the upcoming session.”

While Yost said he thinks the united “trifecta” will make it easier to see action taken on issues students care about, students should continue paying close attention to legislative action this upcoming year.

“There’s still a need to ensure that students are involved in the advocacy process and involved in the legislative crafting process and brought to the table and centered in the conversation,” Yost said.

Dziedzic said students should make sure to hold legislators accountable for the promises they made while campaigning. She said students can reach out to her and other University-area representatives to give feedback, but those from other parts of the state should also advocate for University student interests to legislators representing their home districts.

“Choice was a big issue, democracy was a big issue, gridlock was a big issue,” Dziedzic said. “People showed they cared and voted, and so I’m just so proud of that, and thankful for them getting out and voting. We heard them; we’re gonna get the job done.”

The Minnesota Daily asked two of the top candidates running for the DFL nomination for Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District race about their reasons for running and plans for office ahead of the Aug. 9 primary election.

Eight candidates are running this year, three Republicans and five Democrats. As a strong Democratic district, having not elected a Republican since the ‘60s, the most hotly contested race is between DFL candidates Ilhan Omar and Don Samuels.

Omar, the incumbent representative for the district answered questions via email. She has been the U.S. representative for District 5 since 2019 and has garnered national attention for her progressive views and sometimes controversial rhetoric. 

Omar has been endorsed by the DFL as well as elected officials like District 60B State Rep. Mohamud Noor, State Attorney General Keith Ellison and Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi.

Samuels was a Minneapolis council member for 11 years and is now running as a more moderate alternative to Omar. He was endorsed by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Minneapolis Ward 3 Council Member Michael Rainville and retired Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo. 

Democratic candidates Albert Ross, Nate Schluter and AJ Kern along with Republican candidates Cicely Davis, Guy Gaskin and Royce White did not respond to requests for comment.

Primary elections are Aug. 9, with polls open between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Information about polling place locations and voter registration is available on the Secretary of State website. 

What makes you the strongest candidate? 

Omar: “Serving the 5th District in Congress has been the honor of my life. We’ve made so much progress through our MEALS Act, legislation that fed millions of children throughout the pandemic, we were also able to pass $17 million in federal funding for our district for community projects, including investments to address joblessness, housing insecurity, access to healthcare and transportation barriers. I have a proven track record of delivering for the district and fighting for working people. I can’t wait to keep making progress on behalf of the 5th.” 

Samuels: “Very often a politician can have such lofty concepts that they begin to lose touch with the local realities of their constituents. And I think Ilhan has crossed the line on that and is now so far out that even in her campaign, she’s making international trips to the Middle East or to Europe or whatever. Her confidence in her position and that she reflects her constituency has become somewhat of a delusion. She has a niche market nationally and internationally that affirms her while she loses a grip and connection with local issues and priorities. So I’m coming in as someone hyperconnected, proven by the last election, and I’m going to lead like that in Washington.”

How do you plan to advocate for student issues in Washington? 

Omar: “I have been fighting to cancel student loan debt since I first ran for office. Most recently, I sat down with President Biden last month to discuss this issue, and I believe our advocacy will lead to real movement on this issue … Student debt has more than doubled in just 10 years. Forty-five million Americans now are saddled with over $1.7 trillion in debt, and the delinquency rates have nearly doubled. Student loan interest is on hold during the pandemic, but the debt is not forgiven. That means millions will owe thousands of dollars in backpay if that debt isn’t relieved. The federal government owns 92% of the $1.6 trillion in student debt. The President can, and must, forgive this debt.”

Samuels: “I still remember my college days; I worked full time, went to school full time. And while I wear that as a badge of resiliency, it’s not the way to live… A first-world country shouldn’t have hardship be a part of the educational process. And so we have to make sure that low-income folks can go to college without acquiring lifetime debt, and college should be free for folks who can’t afford it. And two-year college should be absolutely free as part of the public education system.”

Public safety has been a high-profile issue in Minneapolis over the last several years. What is your approach to public safety and how do you plan to make Minneapolis safer for all people? 

Omar: “I want a public safety system that actually works for the community. I want police to actually respond to 911 calls. I want a city where homicides are actually solved and rape kits aren’t destroyed  … I believe we need to rebuild trust between the Minneapolis Police Department and the communities they are supposed to protect here in Minneapolis. Whether it’s Amir Locke, George Floyd or the recent Minnesota Department of Human Rights report, we need massive changes to make sure the MPD and the union can be trusted to protect their constituents … My job at the federal level is to advocate for nationwide reforms, like banning no-knock warrants and military equipment fired at protestors. Which we are fighting to do in Congress every day.”

Samuels: “Having lived in low-income communities all my life, I understand that crime exists in an ecosystem that often involves tolerance, lack of empowerment, neglect and an acceptance of inferior quality of life, both for people and by people … The young people at the University and all over the city [that were] upset with the police were very justified. We have to deal with the issue of unjust policing. But we can’t get rid of the police; that emboldens the criminal community. And so we have to fix both at the same time … We have to empower police officers to intervene when they see their peers doing something unjust, and that their careers don’t suffer as a result, and that the perpetrators pay a price that isn’t reversed by union negotiations. And then we have to track the performance of the police department and individuals carefully. We have to report trends to the public periodically, and we have to have oversight by citizens that has effective teeth.”

These interviews have been edited for clarity and length. 

Kari Dziedzic (DFL), the incumbent candidate for state Senate in District 60, is running unopposed for reelection in November. Dziedzic, who has been the senator for the district encompassing the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus for 10 years, spoke with The Minnesota Daily about her accomplishments and goals for the upcoming Legislative session.

How do you reflect on the past decade you’ve spent as a state senator?

“I think anybody that has been in a job for 10 years kind of thinks, ‘wow, this is a long time.’ But what’s different in the Legislature is just everything is constantly changing and there’s things that we’re dealing with every single day. In that 10 years, I think I’ve had a good relationship, working a lot with the Minnesota Student Association on different bills and different issues.”

Which bills that you’ve worked on are you most proud of?

“As lead on the housing committee in the Senate, housing is kind of a passion of mine. Everybody needs housing … One of the bills we did pass [in 2018] I called the ‘bait and switch’ bill. Some larger apartments had you come in and look at a room and you think that’s the room you’re renting, so you sign the lease thinking you’d live on the fourth floor. But then you get there and you’re renting ground level, and for safety purposes, you think, ‘I don’t really feel safe on this ground level,’ but you signed the lease. We required them to put the unit number on the lease … We [also] made them put your move in date and move out date on the lease so [tenants] can make plans.

Last year, we worked on expanding the bus options [on the University of Minnesota campus] because there wasn’t a full service grocery store nearby, and then this year to get Universal Transit Passes. That’s something that I think was a very big issue for students.”

What are your top priorities for next year’s session?

“I’m on the tax committee as well, so a lot of student loan credits for student loans and then how to just help people with student loans. Because that debt is crippling. We didn’t pass a tax bill [this year] so that wasn’t included in the tax bill. And then just working on how we keep the cost of tuition down. Because I believe education shouldn’t just be available for the wealthy. So how do we help people do that?

I plan on continuing in this session to work on some additional tenant protections. A lot of places will charge fees, just random fees, to pay your rent. That’s ridiculous … Some tenants and landlords will say, ‘as things get more expensive, we want to build things in,’ but again, then put that on the lease, so you’re not surprising people. It’s a consumer protection issue.”

What is your position on affordable housing and its availability near campus?

“Housing is just tight. We’re 40,000 units short across the state, and so how do we address that? Spending a lot of time looking at multiple layers that impact students, and like with Winona and St. Cloud students are kind of held hostage to a degree because you need a car. The further away you get you might have cheaper renting, but in some college towns, not necessarily. So how do you balance that and how do you find that affordability? And so what can we do to help increase that affordability? So looking at it from bonding and looking at what are some of the underlying issues impacting that affordability.”

How do you think campus public safety should be addressed in the Legislature?

“The University proposed $100 million for public safety [last session], and a lot of it is just basic infrastructure … I think that was a reasonable request and I think we should be looking at that, and that is system-wide not just the Twin Cities campus. The end bill at the end of the session unfortunately did not include some of that money … As I sat on the floor, I heard the call for more public safety. [Republicans] had an opportunity to put their money where their mouths were but did not. So that was a little frustrating, but we’re continuing to have conversations.”

Is the state doing enough to keep tuition affordable?

“I think we need to hold the line, and I think the Legislature needs to fund it. Education shouldn’t just be for the wealthy. And so a lot of people take out loans. I mean even 20 years ago, you didn’t have to take out as much of a loan … It’s just hard to build up out of and so that impacts people’s whole future going forward … We need to look at putting more into help at the University to keep tuition down, and then also the state grant program.”

How do you feel going into next year’s session?

“I think the governor should call us back into a special session. I think families are hurting, students are hurting, seniors are hurting. I think coming back and passing at least some of those bills [from the budget surplus] would help. I would adjust the higher education bill for more public safety money and the state grant program … With all the retirements, [next session] will be different. You will have a lot of new people in, and it’s a huge learning curve coming in. Hopefully it doesn’t get too partisan, and new people often come with new good ideas. We have to get to work.”

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated since it’s initial publication.

The University of Minnesota announced Wednesday via a systemwide email it will increase the student minimum wage to $15 per hour. The change will take effect in the fall, starting with the Sept. 26 pay period and reflected in the Oct. 19 paycheck. 

Before the increase, the University held the state’s minimum wage, $10.33. 

Minneapolis’ city-wide minimum wage increase to $15 for large businesses took effect on July 1. Groups like the Minnesota Student Association (MSA) have advocated in the past for the University to raise minimum wage. 

“We’re thrilled that the University met us all the way and agreed with students and student advocates that this was a necessary step in the right direction,” co-chair of MSA’s Fight for $15 Committee Carter Yost said. “We’re taking the victory with both a deep joy and gratitude to all of the advocates and allies and organizations that fought so hard to make this happen.”

The University has faced staff shortages over the last year. University Vice President for Human Resources Kenneth Horstman wrote in the email that the wage increase will make the University a stronger competitor in the student job market. 

“Raising our student worker wage floor will allow the University to be more competitive in recruiting and retaining student workers,” Horstman said in the Wednesday email. 

Horstman also said the wage increase will support student workers and “acknowledge the invaluable contributions they make” in a variety of jobs. 

“We are confident that both our effective use of work-study funds and the wage increase will help the University fill its student worker positions and help students meet their financial needs,” Horstman said. 

On July 26, the University of Minnesota announced traffic would be blocked on two busy Dinkytown streets between Thursday afternoons and Sunday mornings, beginning Thursday, July 28 and ending Sunday, Aug. 14. Some local business owners expressed frustration that they were not included in the decision-making process at a public meeting following the announcement.

The Strategic Safety Advisory Committee, formed after pressure mounted at the University from parents of University students, drove the development of the Dinkytown Safety and Pedestrian Access pilot program.

To execute the project, the University of Minnesota Police Department funded the barricades and contracted a private company to ensure that 5th Avenue SE between 13th and 14th avenues, and 14th Avenue SE between 4th and 5th streets, are pedestrian-only zones over three weekends.

The streets will be barricaded from 4 p.m. on Thursdays through 10 a.m. on Sundays. Parking meters will be closed and blockades will be installed on the two streets where many businesses like Wally’s Falafel and Hummus and Tony’s Diner are located.

However, at a Dinkytown Business Alliance (DBA) meeting on Wednesday, many business owners said they had not been warned of this plan and expressed frustration that the decision to designate the area as pedestrian-only had been made without their input.

“We’re on 13th Avenue, the main area of concern, which is not where the barricade is,” Karyn Zweig, director of property management at Riverton Community Housing, said. “We wanted to have a say beforehand. Like could we talk first before you just do that?”

Director of Local Government and Community Relations Tina Erazmus and Community Engagement Liaison for the University Department of Public Safety Nick Juarez spoke at the DBA meeting, addressing business leaders’ concerns and ideas.

During the meeting, Erazmus said the committee decided to eliminate parking and driving through those streets to distance people who come to Dinkytown to commit crimes from their vehicles. She said blocking off the street can prevent people who participate in street racing or get into fights, for example, from escaping the area quickly.

Erazmus said Ward 3 Council Member Michael Rainville said during a committee meeting this type of strategy had proven effective in the Mill District and on Main Street SE.

“When we heard that it was very effective, I said ‘we need to try it here,’ because we have to try something,” Erazmus said, addressing the attendees. “I know the most frustrating thing is when people feel that they are not heard or they’re not being listened to, and that’s not my intention at all. We want your feedback.”

Other concerns that arose during the meeting include the lack of parking, as this could discourage people from visiting Dinkytown businesses, and the decision to close down 14th Avenue instead of 13th Avenue, which some owners said has more frequent problems with crime, including a shooting at Burrito Loco on July 8.

Burrito Loco had to close for 10 days following the incident to clean up a mess left by a shattered window and develop a safety plan for staff and customers, owner John Park said. Changes implemented in the restaurant included cutting back patio hours and forcing people out of the bar if they do not comply with safety-related orders.

Park said he’s worked with other businesses, such as the Kollege Klub, to hire an off-duty police officer to keep watch on weekends.

Erazmus said the City of Minneapolis could not close down the section of 13th Avenue near Burrito Loco, even though it was their first choice place to target, because the blockades would conflict with permits in the area.

While local business leaders have a serious stake in reducing crime in the area, they are also uncertain about what the pilot program will mean for them. Owner of Blarney Pub and Grill Mike Mulrooney said he is open to the street closure idea, but is concerned about how it will affect the area.

“[Dinkytown] is not a destination area anymore,” Mulrooney said. “[With] what little destination traffic that we had in Dinkytown, we’re going to even remove more, and that’s going to hurt some of these businesses.”

DBA members also expressed frustration at the meeting that the pilot runs on the weekends when their businesses often have the most traffic.

Some members advocated for removing the barriers during the daytime when there is less crime and more traffic, but Erazmus said removing and putting back the barriers each day would take too much manpower and create confusion.

DBA members proposed installing a speed bump and adding mobile lights and a mobile camera near 13th Avenue to help reduce crime in the area. Erazmus said she would discuss these ideas with the city.

Erazmus said she plans to meet with the DBA again to discuss the results of the pilot after the three week trial period, including whether businesses saw fewer customers. Mulrooney said he’s skeptical that three weeks will be long enough to obtain meaningful data.

“Three weeks isn’t going to change habits; it’s not going to change where these people are coming from and why they’re coming into the area,” Mulrooney said. “Listen to us who have been here for 20 plus years. Listen to us business owners that are part of this every single day and every single night.”

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated from its original version. 

After blaming Somali youth for violent crime over the Fourth of July weekend in Minneapolis, Ward 3 Council Member Michael Rainville faced backlash from those who said they feel they have been unjustly targeted.

Over the weekend, multiple incidents of violent crime occurred, including a shooting at Boom Island Park and people shooting fireworks at buildings and cars while driving downtown.

Rainville organized a gathering to discuss public safety on July 8 at Kramarczuk’s and expressed outrage about the violent incidents. He said he was going to go to a Northeast Minneapolis mosque to tell Somali elders “their children can no longer have that type of behavior,” according to a tweet from Wedge LIVE.

Police have not released information related to the ethnicity of the people involved in the crime from that day.

Rainville released a statement later that day apologizing for his comments. In the statement, he said he meant to communicate that “we need more support for our youth,” but acknowledged “the way I said it was not appropriate and I wrongly singled out Somali youth.”

Rainville did not respond to the Minnesota Daily’s requests for comment.

In the days following Rainville’s comments, nine council members released statements denouncing his rhetoric, using language like “racist” and “xenophobic.”

Rainville held a rally on July 9 called “Take Back the Street,” where he doubled down on his stance to toughen up on crime. At one point during his speech, he warned attendees about other attendees recording Rainville’s speech and the event.

“We are being filmed by people who don’t understand living in the violent atmosphere you have,” Rainville said during his speech. “Be aware of what you say and who you say it to.”

This rhetoric caused Executive Director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Jaylani Hussein to question the sincerity of Rainville’s apology.

“His initial apology we accepted, welcomed,” Hussein said. “Then the night after that, he walked it back by encouraging watching what you say and actually talking about the hurt that he has caused.”

While some said Rainville should be forgiven for his comments at the meeting, others said he needs to face consequences to prevent future rhetoric that could pit people against Somali residents.

“We usually tend to point a finger at someone, say ‘that’s the problem’ without fixing the real problem,” Rep. Mohamud Noor said. “So I think that was a really big damage done, especially to the youth who are ostracized and mistreated for who they are, being Black, Muslim, immigrant.”

Hussein said CAIR has called on the city to ensure Rainville’s comments do not invigorate others to express harmful, stereotyped rhetoric in the future.

“Somali youth will be targeted by both police and by people who may call the police on them for just being Black,” Hussein said. “There are consequences to these comments that, at this point, we don’t know.”

Some politicians and activists have spoken of a possible censure of Rainville, which would mark the first time the City Council has used such an action. A censure is a formal expression of disapproval, often in the form of a resolution, explaining misconduct and action taken by council members.

Minneapolis does not have a formal censure process, but the City Council could draft a censure resolution. According to the city clerk’s office, no council members have approached them formally about crafting this yet.

Rainville met with local Somali leaders to make amends at the Dar Al-Qalam Islamic Center in Northeast Minneapolis on July 15.

Outreach coordinator for the Islamic Center Abdul Artan said Rainville fostered a strong relationship with the mosque from before he was elected to the council. He said he believed Rainville’s apology was sincere and agrees with his stance on public safety in the city.

“Mistakes will happen, and we did accept the apology in good faith,” Artan said. “We are pro-police, and numbers [of officers] should be increased … Crime has increased so we need to come back to our senses and have a normal life for everybody.”

Noor said he thinks Rainville and the rest of City Council need to focus on investing in youth to prevent crime and engaging with the people who are most impacted by violent crime to come up with solutions.

“My goal is to make sure that trust with law enforcement is built,” Noor said. “There’s been more conversation about public safety, but there’s less conversation about investment in communities that are impacted the most by crime.”

Student leaders at the University of Minnesota said anti-Somali rhetoric impacts Somali students who may feel alienated.

Government and Legislative Affairs Director for the Undergraduate Student Government Carter Yost said he hoped the University would release a statement in response to Rainville’s comments to condemn his rhetoric and show their support to Somali students.

“When people in positions of power, particularly power that’s wielded a block away from our campus, are perpetuating unfair stereotypes about already vulnerable communities, particularly in reference to young people, I think our University has some kind of responsibility to ensure that students are not harmed by that action,” Yost said.

The University did not release a statement about Rainville’s comments or their impact on Somali students prior to publishing.

The Somali Student Association released a statement following Rainville’s comments and President Abdulahi Abdalla helped organize the July 15 meeting with Rainville at the mosque.

Abdalla said he hopes people who attended the July 8 meeting do not hold or develop unfounded stereotypes about Somali people after hearing Rainville’s comments and like Noor, advocated for alternative public safety responses to address crime issues. 

Abdalla also said Rainville should continue to strengthen his relationship with the Dar Al-Qalam mosque and believes he’s taken the appropriate steps to apologize and move forward. He said he felt uncomfortable about the issue becoming politicized because many of the loudest voices speaking out against Rainville were not from or did not represent the Somali community.

“At the end of the day, we’re going to be left dealing with this political mess and dealing with the repercussions,” Abdalla said, “Whether positive or negative.”

Michele Bevis was one of thousands rallying at the state Capitol on Sunday afternoon for increased access to abortion care in Minnesota. She said she came to fight on behalf of her nieces, daughters and granddaughters, in addition to herself.

“I want them to have privacy in their lives,” Bevis said. “It gives me some hope to see all these other people. I’m hoping the politicians are watching and care.”

About 5,000 people marched from St. Paul College to the Capitol to protest the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and listen to speakers express continued support for abortion rights.

“This is a stark reminder that once a right is won, it has to be protected,” U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar said on stage. “I wonder how many of us imagined we would be here again.”

The rally was organized by UnRestrict Minnesota, Planned Parenthood, Gender Justice, ACLU of Minnesota and ERA Minnesota, Jewish Community Action and the Minnesota Coalition for Reproductive Choice. The event attracted people of all ages to protest on the Capitol’s lawn on a hot and humid day to increase access to reproductive health care both within and outside of Minnesota.

UnRestrict Campaign Director Abena Abraham said Black people will be criminalized at an especially high rate in a post-Roe world, and that for her, racial and reproductive justices go hand in hand. According to data from the Minnesota State Department of Health, Black people represented 30% of those who received abortions in Minnesota in 2019.

Abraham said she is optimistic about the future of the abortion rights movement and hopes it will gain more activists of color and LGBTQ+ activists. She said UnRestrict’s strategy to fight abortion restrictions differs from movements before Roe.

“Organizing has changed so dramatically for us in terms of being more inclusive, having different ways of connecting with people,” Abraham said. “Years ago, it focused a lot on the federal level, and I think the work now is a state-based problem. So I think that there’s just more opportunity for people to organize locally with their neighbors and to really teach the next generation what’s happening because this is gonna be a long fight.”

Toward the end of the rally, Minneapolis Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley Worlobah and Ward 10 Council Member Aisha Chughtai announced a campaign to fund abortion in the city, partnering with organizations Our Justice and Pro-Choice Minnesota. At the rally, they called on Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey to invest in making abortion more affordable and accessible in the city budget that is expected to be announced mid-August.

The Council passed a resolution promoting access to reproductive health care, including abortion, on May 12, and Wonsley said now is the time to “materialize that commitment.”

“Every person should have the right to access safe and affordable abortion in a city that prides itself on being a liberal champion,” Wonsley said. “We should want to protect our rights here for our residents but also seek to be a refuge for many working class people who no longer have that right.”

A group of students from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities chapter of Medical Students for Choice sat in the shade, watching the speakers. Brianna Wenande, a student at the University’s Medical School, said the group educates medical students about reproductive health care and its importance.

“We came out today because we are angry,” Wenande said. “We can’t provide equitable, comprehensive health care without being able to provide abortions, and it’s not just going to stop at abortion … These are things that people need, that we need to provide as health care providers.”

Gov. Tim Walz reaffirmed his support to expand reproductive health care access in Minnesota during his speech, saying he will protect everyone within the state and from other states who seek an abortion. Walz is running for reelection in November and said his campaign opponents support a statewide abortion ban while he opposes restrictions on abortion.

“We will not go quietly off into the night,” Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan said during her speech. “We will march in the thousands to say we will not go backwards and as long as we are in this office … we will fight like hell to protect your rights.”

About a dozen anti-abortion protesters gathered across from the lawn during the rally, holding signs and chanting into a bull horn. Cristian Pascari said abortion is not a reproductive right and that “sexualized culture” is to blame for outrage about the overturn of Roe.

Pro-abortion protesters gathered around the group of anti-abortion protesters, drowning out chants with their own.

Renata Solum, who is pregnant, said she hoped to protect the future rights of her unborn daughter by making her voice heard at the rally.

“We’re having to fight for something that, frankly, we thought we could take for granted, that I wish I hadn’t taken for granted,” Solum said. “Not enough people understand the medical realities that a lot of people face … I guess there’s a foil in their mind for this perfect little baby and they don’t think twice about the life that’s carrying it.”

Parents of University of Minnesota students on campus July 11 became emotional as they described the danger they believe students face in their daily lives due to a recent uptick in violent crimes on or near campus.

Over 100 University parents packed into Nicholson Hall for a University public safety forum, expressing frustration at a lack of response and action from University and city officials. One event that galvanized parents was the shooting of a 15-year-old in May that occurred in front of a property on University Avenue and had been the site of violent crime.

“I called my son the morning after the shootout,” Melissa Runkel said, tearing up. “I wanted to know if he was safe and discuss what I needed to do … I love these kids. I am so proud of them. And I’m here to speak up for them because they are afraid of retaliation.”

University President Joan Gabel announced on July 12 the formation of a Strategic Safety Advisory Committee to address public safety concerns in off-campus neighborhoods, though the official role of the committee has not been announced. The committee will include University students, family members, staff, faculty and representatives from the University of Minnesota Police Department (UMPD) and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD).

The committee will begin their work this week, according to a University-wide email sent by Senior Vice President of Finance and Operations Myron Frans Tuesday.

The meeting began with statements from Gabel, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, UMPD Chief Matt Clark, MPD Interim Chief Amelia Huffman and Senior Vice President of Finance and Frans.

“I know we’re a room full of people who are deeply concerned and care about our University community and our city,” Gabel said during the meeting. “All of us have the same goal of reducing crime, eliminating crime. It’s our number one priority.”

Gabel attended the meeting virtually and left before the Q&A session with parents concluded, which visibly frustrated parents. At the beginning of the meeting, Gabel said she had not been able to attend the meeting in person because of a prior commitment to teach a class out-of-state. Gabel listened to the remainder of the meeting via a recording, according to University Director of Public Relations Jake Ricker.

“And the president of the University making a million dollars a year was able to attend 10 minutes of this meeting,” one parent said, with the crowd erupting in applause and cheers. “I don’t believe that this president or this mayor has a strong commitment to public safety. I hope you prove us all wrong.”

Frans said UMPD is working to hire 10 unarmed community service officers and a recruitment engagement and mentorship officer, and created two police captain positions to support and lead other officers.

Both UMPD and MPD are short a significant number of officers, according to Frey and Clark. Frey said increasing staffing levels is a necessary part of reducing violent crime.

“We have a very aggressive recruiting plan that we’re presently undergoing with four to five classes this year,” Frey said. “We’re doing everything possible to bring on those officers and making sure that they’re paid to do the job that they need to do, which is a hard one … At the same time, I’ll tell you very bluntly that no city in the country is going to be able to recruit their way out of some of the attrition experienced overnight.”

Attendees were given the opportunity to line up to ask a question. After each question was asked, more and more people entered the line to follow up.

Brian Peck was the first parent to speak and announced the formation of a nonprofit called Campus Safety Coalition to address safety issues on college campuses around the nation. He said the board is made up of six University parents whose goal is “to make the University of Minnesota safe once again.”

Peck said the group plans to work with the University and the city to come up with creative solutions for how to decrease crime.

“We’re kind of putting a blueprint together here, a roadmap on how we get involved and can actually get the change, because I think we’re making a lot of progress,” Peck said.

According to Peck, he was invited by Vice President of University Relations Matt Kramer, on behalf of Gabel, to take part in the new Strategic Safety Advisory Committee that will be asked to determine “priority actions” for either the city or University to take to improve safety.

Ahead of publication, Peck was not given further information about the committee, and Frans was unable to give a statement about the committee.

While the meeting was scheduled for one hour, the crowd objected when Frans said they could only take one more question. Some University and city officials, such as the two police chiefs, agreed to stay to hear from others. Many parents stayed for over 30 minutes after the meeting ended.

Many parents echoed similar sentiments to one another about their feelings toward the presence of crime and how it needed to be addressed. Carter Yost, the government and legislative affairs director for the Undergraduate Student Government, said this reflected a lack of diverse voices present at the forum.

The University sent out two emails about the meeting, but Yost said the University should have done more to increase participation of students and others impacted by violent crime on campus.

“Systems and processes at the University facilitated an environment and setup where the only voices [at the forum] represent one specific demographic,” Yost said. “In a public school setting and in a public forum setting, to only ever hear from one type of perspective is just a bad thing. It’s just limiting the strength of our solutions.”

Yost said he was unable to stay after the meeting, which is when several students spoke in front of the remaining attendees.

Yost said he was “disappointed” that the state Legislature’s role in funding public safety measures wasn’t discussed. He mentioned that the Minnesota House of Representatives proposed a $10 million investment in public safety at the University within the higher education omnibus bill during last year’s session, which was eliminated during a compromise with the Senate.

“It is perhaps slightly imprecise to suggest that this is solely a failure of the University or solely a failure of the city, because [Republican] Senators decided that the University of Minnesota didn’t need any more money to help with public safety,” Yost said.

Several University students spoke up about witnessing violent crime on campus after the meeting officially ended. Third-year student Ricky Kanak lives in a fraternity house next door to the Students’ Cooperative property on University Avenue, which was the site of fights and a shooting in May.

Kanak said witnessing violent incidents has been normalized for students like him.

“I work on-campus and off-campus, and at my off-campus job, people come in and are like, ‘oh yeah, there’s just been shots,’” Kanak said. “It’s just become something that happens pretty frequently. It’s been two years of just talking and stuff, no real action.”

Ph.D. student Paida Chikate said she moved from Zimbabwe to Minnesota five years ago to attend the University and has seen the increase in violent crime over the past two years first-hand. She addressed the parents who stayed after the meeting, telling them about a recent incident when she was followed home from the grocery store and had to call the police.

“I chose to come to the U.S. because I value this community and Minnesota is a second home to me,” Chikate said. “So I bear the financial costs of being here. What my soul cannot bear are the lies that I tell my mom when she asks me, ‘How are things going?’ Because she’s 9,000 miles away, I can’t tell her the truth.”

Clarification: A previous version of this article misstated when President Joan Gabel left the meeting. She attended the beginning of the Q&A session and left before it concluded. 

Parents of University of Minnesota students banded together to pressure University and Minneapolis leaders to take action after a recent rise in violent crime on and near campus.

Last year, parents organized a Facebook group called “U of MN parents – campus safety and call to action topics” to address public safety issues. But after recent crimes in front of a property on University Avenue, a block where many students live and visit regularly, the group’s membership rose to over 1,800 people.

Videos of fights breaking out in front of the Students’ Cooperative building on 1721 University Ave. gained widespread attention on social media in May, and on June 3, a 15-year-old boy was shot in the leg near the property. Squatters were evicted from the building on June 4, according to a June 7 email to The Minnesota Daily from the affordable housing provider Students’ Cooperative Inc., who owns the property.

The building has since been secured and boarded up, and the University hired 24/7 security at the property for a 10-day period, which ended June 30.

“We are grateful to all those who have helped support and guide us through this difficult process – our hearts go out to those who have been affected by these tragic events,” the Students’ Cooperative said in an email to The Minnesota Daily.

Since the incident, city and University officials have organized meetings to hear student and parent perspectives and brainstorm potential solutions to prevent and address violent incidents in the future. Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley Worlobah held a town hall meeting June 21 at Van Cleve Park, and Regent James Farnsworth held a meeting at the state Capitol on July 6.

In June, the University of Minnesota Police Department (UMPD) reported there has been a 45% increase in violent crime around the Twin Cities campus since 2019.

The University held its own public safety forum on Monday with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Minneapolis Interim Police Chief Amelia Huffman and UMPD Chief Matt Clark in attendance to address public safety updates and field questions. University President Joan Gabel attended via Zoom.

Parents share frustrations with police shortages

At Council Member Wonsley’s meeting at Van Cleve Park, Tina Erazmus, director of the University’s Local Government and Community Relations department and Nick Juarez, the community engagement liaison with the University’s Department of Public Safety attended as panelists.

During the meeting, Erazmus stressed that the Students’ Cooperative property was privately owned, so the University would be unable to control what happened to the building.

“I believe it is the hope of the University to own that property and find more renters to live there,” Erazmus said. “[Until then], there is no way that they can guarantee that this is a situation that wouldn’t happen again.”

About 20 people attended the meeting in person and about 80 virtually via Zoom. Parents of University students represented the majority of those present and took the opportunity to make their voices heard. Attendees had the opportunity to submit written questions for the panelists and Council Member Wonsley to answer, but some parents also opted to speak in front of the group.

Parents said they were frustrated that University and Minneapolis officials had cited jurisdiction issues as an explanation for lack of action.

“What I heard here today is that a lot of people say they don’t have jurisdiction for things,” Mike Olsen, parent of a University student, said. “The solutions are very simple. People need to start working together to actually address violent crime…Everybody in the community is a potential victim here.”

Juarez said during the meeting the University recently hired four police officers, but soon after, three of those four quit. He said one officer reported taking a pay cut to move to the University of Wisconsin-Madison because “the atmosphere and support is better over there.”

“It’s dehumanizing; it’s demoralizing when you don’t feel like you have the support of the community you’re policing,” Juarez said. “We should be one University.”

Some parents echoed Juarez’s sentiments about supporting University police.

“What has transpired over the last year was disgusting, honestly,” parent Erin Bruns said after the meeting. “The leadership at the University of Minnesota does not support the police department. And until there’s that support, they can’t fill those vacancies, so who’s gonna do it?”

On June 20, Senior Vice President for Finance and Operations Myron Frans sent an email to University students and staff outlining steps the University is taking to beef up public safety, which included: continuing to invest in overtime for University police officers, using mobile lighting and camera trailers, evaluating adding additional security personnel on campus and launching a safety awareness campaign in the fall.

“UMPD has the full support of the University’s leadership,” Frans said in a statement to The Minnesota Daily. “Our directive from President Gabel and our Board of Regents is to continue investing more in public safety than we ever have, both financially and by visibly and vocally supporting the critical safety work taking place on and near our campus every day.”

Council Member Wonsley said she wanted to continue to organize forums to discuss ideas for change.

“The biggest thing that I walked away with from that meeting is that parents want to see leadership at the University of Minnesota as well as the City of Minneapolis,” Wonsley said. “We’ll come back with some of the ways in which we think we can be proactive around some of the things that were raised.”

Because not all written questions were answered at the meeting, Wonsley sent answers in a follow-up email on Saturday. In response to being asked what will be done to address the increase of violent crime this summer, she responded that she is committed to expanding innovative public safety measures, such as the Behavioral Health Crisis Response team, which Wonsley said has been shown to effectively prevent crime.

Wonsley also wrote that she attended hiring and training events for Minneapolis police officers and found recruiting and retaining “quality” officers is “extremely difficult” right now because of MPD’s reputation “as a Department where employees face discrimination from their colleagues, where training and policy enforcement are inconsistent,and where even officers with the best of intentions might be put in riskier situations more frequently than in other local PDs, which function more consistently.”

“I think it is clear to everyone that our current public safety system isn’t working for anyone,” Wonsley wrote. “It isn’t working for residents who are apprehensive about being victims of crime. It isn’t working for residents who are apprehensive about being victims of police brutality and misconduct. It isn’t working for officers who are leaving the force at extremely high rates due to PTSD.”

Listening session provides space for collaboration

Despite reassurance that the Board of Regents and President Gabel are taking their outrage seriously, parents said they have felt their campaign for change has not been heard and addressed. An exception, parents said, is Regent Farnsworth, who organized a listening session at the state Capitol on Monday. The session drew a similar crowd to the meeting at Van Cleve Park, with about 100 people attending in person and online.

Attendees were invited to speak in front of the group and shared their opinions about how to make campus safer, stories of dangers their children had experienced near the University and frustrations about the University’s response to their concerns.

Jennifer French spoke over Zoom and said her oldest son’s friend was shot on campus, which inspired her to form the parent’s public safety Facebook group in 2021.

“I wish I knew what to do because otherwise I would do it, but we just absolutely need to know what is going on,” French said during the meeting. “One of the biggest complaints on this website is that no one tells us what’s going on. And I feel like they have a right to do that. To hear us.”

Parent Brian Peck presented his own compilation of violent crime data in the University neighborhood, taken from the City of Minneapolis’ database. He created a bar graph showing violent crime by month from January 2019 to May 2022, with the trend line indicating that crime has continued to rise over time.

“My proposal has been all along that we need a scorecard. We need to try something new, and then let’s see if these trends change. If they don’t, then we have to try something else,” Peck said. “We can’t wait because every second we wait, that’s more violent crimes that happen and that’s more increased anxiety for the students or anybody that walks around there.”

Most people who spoke up were parents of students at the University, but Morgan McElroy, who graduated from the University in 2021, presented his own message as an alumnus who was involved in campus safety as a leader in his fraternity and a member of student government.

McElroy said that while he was a student, he wrote a letter to regents, the president, city council members and state representatives, among others, pushing for 12 measures he believed could help make campus safer. He eventually received responses acknowledging his concerns but said University leaders failed to work with him to bring any of his requests to fruition.

Measures he advocated for include communicating with MPD over “hurt feelings” shared in Gabel’s decision to cut ties with them in May 2020 so they would patrol off-campus neighborhoods again, coordinating with Dinkytown businesses and apartment complexes to place external cameras to watch the streets and improving SafeU crime alerts to include more detailed physical descriptions and providing follow-up messages when cases are closed.

He said he has continued to fight for change post graduation and is now supporting the efforts of parents in the Facebook group.

Member of the University student group Students for a Democratic Society Cal Mergendahl said they think there is reason to be concerned about violent crime on campus, but parents who have been speaking out don’t always have a direct understanding of life on campus and the “reality of the situation.”

“Campus is a pretty safe place to be…maybe the safest place to be in the City of Minneapolis,” Mergendahl said.

Mergendahl said University leaders have been concerned with appearing as if they are working to address crime in neighborhoods near campus, such as Dinkytown, but in reality, they lack jurisdiction outside of campus. Mergendahl said the University is losing UMPD officers because of culture issues within the force, not because of lack of administrative or student support.

Frans said the University funded the UMPD’s entire budget request for the upcoming year, according to an email to The Minnesota Daily.

“If UMPD wants to really address this culture issue, it needs to be holding itself accountable,” Mergendahl said. “Until then, the administration is throwing money at the problem and it’s not doing anything.”

McElroy said it’s important to form a committee that includes underrepresented voices to share public safety concerns.

“I think there’s a lot we can do; it doesn’t necessarily have to just be armed police,” McElroy said. “This shouldn’t be political, and the fact that it is, is why we’re not seeing a whole lot of traction. We really just need to get people to sit down and figure out what that common thread is because I know it exists.”