At the Alliance, we don’t just change policy. We work in coalition to build power that shifts systems and elevates true community solutions. In 2018, thanks to your support and the collective efforts of our member and partner organizations, we advanced equity across the region through coalition organizing, policy advocacy and field building.  Download our…

UPDATED 7/9: The City of Minneapolis Planning Commission voted 5-4 against the Federal Reserve Bank’s plan for an 800-space parking ramp by the Mississippi River. The Alliance, along with member organizations Sierra Club North Star Chapter and Our Streets, submitted letters of opposition. Read our’s below.  Dear Members of the Planning Commission, Mayor Frey and Council…

In 2004, the Brooklyn Park City Council voted to place a bond referendum on the ballot to raise $35 million in property taxes  to purchase and demolish 900 affordable housing units along the Zane Avenue corridor. Living in Brooklyn Park at the time, with a long history of labor and community organizing, Julia Freeman was a central leader in a coalition to preserve those units that was convened by the Alliance.

In reaction to proposals for reasonable, modest and urgently needed tenant protections from the Minneapolis City Council, the Minnesota Multi-Housing Association has launched an astro-turfing campaign called “Safe and Affordable Minneapolis.” What is MHA, who do they represent and what do they stand for? Watch our video to learn more and share with your networks!

This commentary was originally published by the Star Tribune on June 4 and is re-posted here with the authors’ permission. The May 31 article “Proposal may limit tenant screening” described new proposals championed by Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender and Council Member Jeremiah Ellison that would remove some of the barriers so many of our neighbors face…

Working at the Alliance, Jabri Whirl moved from concept to community, from methodology to making change. Providing a space they could bring their full self, they tapped into new skills — and even discovered a potential new career path. “I came here with a strong interest in social change but wanting to understand how to make that real, how to actualize it,” they said.

Past exclusionary transportation policies moved people through neighborhoods rather than throughout neighborhoods, destroying rather than building upon the assets of African American and other communities of color. Development surrounding light rail and bus rapid transit can reverse this — if tailored to the needs of people of color, indigenous, immigrant and low-income communities who are…

For Louis King, the power of the Alliance is simple. “Frankly, the name says it all: We come together and get things done.” In 1996, just two years after the Alliance was established, King started building something big: a community-based vocational training and job placement program in North Minneapolis. But the success of Summit Academy OIC bumped up against the ceiling of structural and systemic racism: Even with the best education, his graduates weren’t being hired for the construction jobs that provide living wages.

While the decision hasn’t changed, the conversation has shifted. Last week, the members of the Metropolitan Council once again heard from the General Manager of Metro Transit on the essentially final determination to eliminate 24-hour service of the Green Line on weekdays. But, in the weeks since the proposal was first floated, community leaders have…

This commentary was originally published by the Pioneer Press on May 7 and is re-posted here with the author’s permission. By Kadra Abdi From housing to public transit, the Metropolitan Council is uniquely positioned to influence the quality of life for residents across the Twin Cities. To guide that vital work, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz…