Good morning, my name is J Randolph and I am the Director of Neighborhood and Organizational Development at the Phillips West Neighborhood Organization. PWNO stands in solidarity with our neighbors at the Longfellow Community Council and request that the resolution put forward by LCC be honored and adopted by the City of Minneapolis.
The issue of the 3rd precinct is not an isolated one. The systemic racism identified by the Minnesota Department of Human Rights will continue to thrive if our neighbors are ignored and denied their right to representational governance.
Our communities have expressed their distrust of the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department and are demanding to be heard and included in the decision making process; we believe that that is the minimum our communities are owed and we will fight for community autonomy and self-determination until we are heard and the demands are met.
Thank you.
Tesha M. Christensen
Nickey Robare ofthe PPNA board of directors said:
The effects of the night in 2020 when the Third Precinct burned have stayed with me - I find myself and many of my neighbors continue to struggle with PTSD from the MPD’s behavior before and throughout the uprising following the murder of Mr. George Floyd. The same night as the third precinct fire, the art studio I shared in the Ivy Building was also destroyed by a fire that a group of us renters attempted to put out with small fire extinguishers and garden hoses. In our studio alone, we lost tens of thousands of dollars of equipment and work..
The reality of PTSD is that your nervous system does not know the difference between trauma that is happening right now and trauma that happened long ago. The community members of the Third pPrecinct are traumatized. Last month I saw a room full of business owners in tears because the city is pushing forward a return to the status quo without any attempt at building trust and addressing the community’s trauma.
There has been a narrative created that business owners who lost property during the uprising blame the protestors. But for myself and many other local business owners, that could not be further from the truth. The commitment to the fight for Black lives and an end to state violence remains steadfast. We need to see that the city of Minneapolis cares about us before they even begin to consider rebuilding the third precinct. People over property, always.
Tesha M. Christensen
Two Bettys Green Cleaning owner and Longfellow Business Association vice president Anna Tsantir speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. She said: I am Anna Tsantir. I own Two Betty’s Green Cleaning CO in Longfellow. We work from 2 locations - one is .3 miles from the Third Precinct. We employ over 100 people and have been around for 18 years.
This community has been through a lot, and it deserves more transparency, and above all else - a vision for the future to pull us through and into an innovative future where safety is for everyone.
The void that has been created by a lack of those things has only deepened divisions and mistrust. A leader, leaderships’s, responsibility is to manage both reality and perception. I don’t know, if in this critical time, this “strong” mayor has managed either due to the lack of communication and collaboration in our neighborhoods.
Therefore - this last minute choice regarding the Third - that does not address what will go on within the walls of the Third, when no neighborhood rebuilding of trust with Minneapolis Police Department has been felt - is a non choice because it skips way ahead of where we are as a community, and it bypasses a lot of us conveniently.
It’s a recipe for a repeat of mistrust and fear-based divisions in years ahead. That there has been such an abject failure to really work with businesses and neighborhoods after the Uprisings. Listening sessions are not enough - and at this point are just reliving the past with no future plan to get on board with.
We need a vision - and we need collaboration. And that would require much more transparency.
Tesha M. Christensen
Standish-Ericsson Neighborhood Association staff member Kate Gens speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. "We want our residents and businesses voices to be heard," said Gens, pointing out that it will build trust and justice.
Tesha M. Christensen
Henry Slocum of The Hub Bike Co-op stated: For 20 years, we’ve been putting democracy to work on Minnehaha Ave in the shadow of the precinct building. We’re asking now that the City of Minneapolis change course and honestly attempt to do the same. Consent is built on mutual trust, which we as business owners desperately want to build with the City. Until a month ago, not once had a City official come to talk with members of our business community about our visions, hopes, and concerns, or even how we had been impacted by the police murder of George Floyd and the events that followed. In the past three years, we’ve had robust conversation and process among neighbors, community, and business partners, facilitated by various groups and organizations, about the issues we face and development plans that meet our neighborhood’s needs. If the City of Minneapolis wants to say that concerned residents and business owners engaged in the process of deciding where to locate a future 3rd precinct building, it has significantly more work to do. We cannot consent to a decision for which we have no context or background, as we have no opportunity to genuinely understand the implications of that decision on our present and future. Why the rush now after years of silence? We need to take the time to understand the City’s need for a physical Third Precinct, what sites have been considered, why certain sites weren’t brought forward as potential locations, along with hearing constructive arguments for why locating a Third Precinct at either of these sites has positive impacts for our community. How are our concerns being addressed through this process if the City hasn’t shown any interest in even learning what those concerns are?
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Ann Zawistoski of the Hale Page Diamond Lake Community Association stands in support of more community engagement during the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Tabitha Montgomery of Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Nokomis East Neighborhood Association Executive Director Brandon Long speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. He said: As someone who has worked in the neighborhood organization systems of both of the Twin Cities I can confidently tell you that the
City of Minneapolis views engagement as a checkbox. Something to be done at or to us rather than with us. It's "public relations" at
best. This debacle around the 3rd Precinct does not surprise me in the slightest. NENA did not hesitate to stand with LCC in their
demands because this is too important of an issue to allow the City to, once again, use our organizations as cover for their terrible
decisions. Electeds seem to think that they only need our opinions once every four years. We are here to remind them that is not true.
The irony to all of this is that the City won't touch the police department's budget but never hesitates to slash ours. NENA requires, at
minimum, $250,000 to operate every year and the City has us down to $56,000. We are the organizations that build community, make
our neighborhoods safer, provide block parties and art festivals, support food shelves and raise money for rental assistance. We
manage to not murder anyone. I do not want to hear the City talk about community safety if they are unwilling to fund organizations
that build community and provide basic needs while railroading communities into accepting a fortress of trauma. The least they can do
is let a proper engagement process play out. Let the community make a real decision.
Tesha M. Christensen
Lauren Callis of Curiousity Studio at 36th and E. Lake speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. Curiosity Studio is one of 17 businesses and organizations who co-signed the resolution with the Longfellow Community Council asking for more outreach before a decision is made by the city about the Third Precinct building.
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Lauren Callis of Curiousity Studio at 36th and E. Lake speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. Curiosity Studio is one of 17 businesses and organizations who co-signed the resolution with the Longfellow Community Council asking for more outreach before a decision is made by the city about the Third Precinct building.
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Seward Neighborhood Group Board President Lisa Boehlke pointed out that Seward was directly affected by the civil unrest after the murder of George Floyd by four Minneapolis police officers. The SNG released this statement: The Seward Neighborhood Group supports the Longfellow Community Council’s call for a delay in any decision regarding the location of a 3rd Precinct building, and for a comprehensive community outreach process regarding the future of policing in the 3rd Precinct. At this time the Seward Neighborhood Group opposes locating a 3rd Precinct building at either 3000 Minnehaha Avenue or 2600 Minnehaha Avenue. Further, the Seward Neighborhood Group requests that the City of Minneapolis pilot new ideas for the delivery of public safety services in the 3rd Precinct, including but not limited to a decentralized approach to housing 3rd Precinct staff.
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
A Seward resident observed that the recent city meetings on the Third Precinct did not have translators, not for Somali residents or for those who are deaf. "I think it was really poorly done," said a Seward resident. She added, "We cannot say we're being inclusive if there are no translators."
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Sam Gould of Confluence Studio speaks at the Third Precinct press conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall. In the wake of the protests after George Floyd's murder, Gould helped organized neighbors to care for one another and to do the work that needed to be done, he said. Neighbors gathered supplies and fought fires that the Minneapolis Fire Department couldn't get to. He pointed out that the violence done by officers at the Third Precinct existed for decades before George Floyd was murdered. "Here is a moment for us to do things differently," said Gould. "Our neighborhood – we experienced something the world watched. We have a moment now to change that narrative. To do something different."
Tesha M. Christensen
Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley speaks at the Third Precinct Press Conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley speaks at the Third Precinct Press Conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley speaks at the Third Precinct Press Conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley speaks at the Third Precinct Press Conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley speaks at the Third Precinct Press Conference on May 16, 2023 at Minneapolis City Hall.
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
Third Precinct Press Conference May 16, 2023 Minneapolis City Hall
Tesha M. Christensen
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