Posts by James Sanna
Hennepin County holding accused transgender murderer in solitary confinement
A transgender woman charged with murder in Hennepin County is currently being held in solitary confinement in the county jail, local LGBT rights activists say. The activists are attacking the county for using a measure criticized by many national transgender rights organizations as a flawed attempt to keep the accused safe while she awaits trial.
Kline condemns regulation of industry that’s given him thousands
Kline is pushing back against efforts to regulate the industry, which is being investigated by 10 state attorney generals.
Gingrich in Minneapolis: Government is redistributing wealth ‘to the insufficiently happy’
Mixing classic rightwing economics and Christianist populism, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told a rapt crowd in a Minneapolis hotel Tuesday night that “government is taking from the overly happy and redistributing to the insufficiently happy.” Gingrich was addressing the Minnesota Family Council’s Annual Dinner at the downtown Minneapolis Hilton Hotel, where he shared top billing with a prerecorded speech by Rep. Michelle Bachmann.
GOP education plan has educators seething
On Thursday afternoon, the state Senate passed a highly contentious education budget bill that has many in the Minneapolis schools seething. They see the bill, and its sibling passed by the state House of Representatives on Monday, as an attempt to put their districts on a “starvation diet.” And, as poor Minnesotans move to the northern and southern suburbs in increasing numbers, some wonder if the Republican proposal is setting schools in many of their members’ districts up for failure.
Peace activists targeted by FBI call Minneapolis home raids harassment
A series of FBI raids on residences of peace activists in Minneapolis and elsewhere Friday morning sought information on whether local residents are providing “material support” for groups in Colombia and Palestine the U.S. government has deemed “foreign terrorist organizations.” But individuals whose homes were raided and their supporters claimed their travels were peace-oriented and that law enforcement was engaging in harassment.
Anti-bullying bill seeks Safe Schools for All
It’s an all-too-familiar story for many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or transsexual students, or their parents: students who single out and mercilessly harass another student for years because the school administrators can’t, or won’t, act. A coalition of Minnesota LGBT advocacy groups are trying to keep this story from repeating with a bill that would require all schools to have anti-bullying policies that protect a broad range of youth, including LGBT students.
Sacred cow or sitting duck: In budget crisis, is education funding on the chopping block?
Will state funding for education take a hit in efforts to close the gaping $5.3 billion state budget deficit? State Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller thinks so, noting that since cuts could affect all state departments, it’s optimistic to expect education’s 40 percent share of the state budget to remain unscathed. Schools officials contend that, after years of underfunding, there’s no fat left to cut. Meanwhile, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has vowed to protect schools funding. With no resolution yet in sight, school officials statewide are wondering if — and when — their districts will feel the pinch.
