The Issues:

 

LGBTQIA Rights

We need advocates in the state legislature to continue to honor Karen Clark’s legacy and her advocacy for women and the LGBTQIA community. The struggle for civil rights is still with us, and we need strong voices in positions of power to advocate boldly and without hesitation. LGBTQIA face gaps in income, health and housing that are not acceptable. The trans community, specifically black trans women, face the highest rates of domestic assault, random violence and murder as a result of their sexual identity. These issues are ones that I am passionate to bring to the fore and willing to fight for.

 

Conversion therapy is still a reality in the state of MN. I will be a bold advocate to end this anti-scientific practice, as it is one that dismisses homosexuality as a choice and is detrimental to mental health. I will advocate strongly for banning this practice, not only as a mental health professional but as a mother who knows that so often our children don’t receive the support and positive reinforcement they need.

 

Education for our children (I have a son who is 14) needs to be flexible and dynamic to changes in society that are taking place. A health education system that promotes an understanding of the world that we want to see in the future needs to encompass a dynamic sexual education. Children today are more open and understanding to gender fluidity than previous generations, so we must continue to provide education and resources that fosters this growth and education around LGBTQIA issues. Access to comprehensive health and sex education resources reduce unwanted pregnancies and STI’s, and keeps our kids both safe and informed.

 

Issues and challenges:

• Trans youth and adults are at risk of threat of bullying, bodily harm and harassment at levels much higher than other communities. We need to support legislation that brings this community into full representation and protection under the law as unique and valued members of society. Inclusive laws that seek to expand our ideas of gender and gender fluidity are needed to create a place and opportunities for trans youth and in turn trans adults.
• I oppose legislation that restricts students to use the bathroom of their choosing and their gender.
• LGBTQ residents face gaps in housing, health care, chemical dependency, workplace discrimination and poor hiring practices at higher rates than other members of our community. I promise to be a voice for the community and to elevate these issues in the state legislature.
• Health is a basic human right, and transgender Minnesotans, like all Minnesotans, deserve access to a strong universal system coverage. Health coverage that includes transgender people should create robust coverage that is tailored to their specific and unique health needs.
• I support comprehensive sexual education in our schools.
• I fully support banning conversion therapy in MN.

Universal Single Payer Health Care

Healthcare is a human right. I support a universal single payer health care system in the state that will cover all residents regardless of income. As a public health professional and clinical social worker I have seen where our services our working, and where they need improvement. Firstly, we need to stop giving tax breaks to corporations when people suffer. All people deserve access to healthcare no matter their income bracket. 

 

People experiencing mental health crises sometimes wait 4-5 days to be paired with a bed for treatment. This is not acceptable, and we need to better fund and educate around mental and chemical health.  I will be a be a strong voice and advocate for funding and education around mental and chemical health, advocating for patient specific care plans and services that that work to holistically address issues through preventative methods. This is not only better for health outcomes overall, but it is better on our pocketbooks, as well.

 

We need to address price swings between health care providers for similar procedures. Providing people with the most transparent health care services we can offer in Minnesota is what we need in order to deliver access, cost savings and effective patient specific care.

 

Greater focus on harm reduction methods to save lives and to help people struggling with addiction is something that we need to be integrated into community health and first response measures. Removing stigma around the use of NARCAN, or Naloxone, a drug that reverses opioid overdose, is greatly needed. Addressing mental and chemical health will help to reduce stigma and will make our communities safer. This is going to be central to any continuing debate on the opioid epidemic in the State and the Country, and I will be a strong advocate for this as well.

 

Some statistics and challenges that we need to address:

• 250,000 people without healthcare coverage in the state of Minnesota
• 1 in 3 say they have difficulty in paying their medical bills at a given time (PEW Study)
• Medical costs are one of the main contributors to debt and bankruptcy, something that keeps Minnesotans from being able to make large life decisions (e.g. having children, buying a house, car, etc.)
• As many as 30 million Americans get their care through community health centers
• People sometimes wait 4-5 days to find a bed for mental health treatment in the state of Minnesota

Strong Public Education

Minnesota has an achievement gap that is one of the worst in the nation. Our kids deserve better, and education is one of the key facets to providing opportunity and lifting low income children out of poverty. Strong public education funding, greater support for our teachers and teachers of color, access to affordable pre-k and child care services, and free public college education for low income students are all things we can and should provide in the state of Minnesota as pathways to opportunity.

 

All people can reach their full potential when we create the policies that empower people to aspire for a better future. Public education has allowed me to get to where I am today. That is why I feel that we need to create greater incentives to attend college, increase access to technical skills training and college readiness tools in our high schools, and have more funding for students to receive subsidized/free college when they and their families cannot afford to pay.  Right now the “Power of You” program provides two years of free college to Metro high school graduates whose families make less than $75,000 dollars a year. We need to expand access to this kind of programming throughout the state. College debt is bad for our residents, families and the economy, as it causes people to put their lives and major life decisions on hold, such as marriage, buying a home, etc.

 

A holistic approach to fixing the achievement gap is one that also seriously addresses the gaps in health and housing that exist for people of color. A universal health care model, affordable housing, and home ownership are other ways to help level the playing field for students of color, as they bring steep disadvantages related to these issues with them into the classroom.

 

Some statistics and challenges we need to address:

• Achievement gap for students of color in Minnesota is among the worst in the nation, and we are ranked one of the worst states in racial equity.
• Black and Latino students in MN rank 48th and 50th respectively in graduation rates when ranked nationwide
• Students of color make up 31% of the students in the state, when only 4.2% of our teachers are non-white
• EPIC (Education Policy Innovation Center) study shows teachers of color are central to success among students of color. (read below)

http://www.startribune.com/teachers-of-color-in-high-demand-in-minnesota/416520723/

Racial Justice, Equity and Inclusion

Minnesota has a strong legacy of supporting immigrants, refugees and new residents, and this is because we know that we do better when we all have good access to the services and resources needed to thrive. Our lives, our civic dialogue and our local economies are enriched when we bring more voices to the table. As we promote good policy, our neighborhoods become safer as well. I promise to stand up for our new residents, and to make 62A a safe place for people of all backgrounds. As an immigrant woman of color, I will always stand with immigrants. I will work within the state legislature and with community partners to make sure we are doing everything possible to protect our immigrant communities in the context of a very adversarial federal government.

 

Equality in pay and workplace sexual abuse are issues that affect all Minnesota women. We need strong women led conversations in the state legislature to address these issues head-on. We need to fight for equal pay for women, paid family and sick leave, as well as maternity leave, because there is no reason why a woman today should be making less than their male counterpart and be disadvantaged in employment due to their decision to have a child. We need advocates in the state legislature, especially in 62A, to continue to honor Karen Clark’s legacy and advocate for women and the LGBTQIA community.

 

Residents of color are over policed, resulting in reduced access to a myriad of rights and increased consequences due to higher rates of incarceration in the prison system. We need police force that involves community oversight measures and greater police accountability, and more officers in the MPD who come from our communities and look like our residents and neighbors. A civilian oversight commission that has a say in appropriate disciplinary action for police officers, and a registry that more effectively tracks infractions by police, should be central to changing conceptions on how to stop police brutality before it happens. This is how we can holistically create something that we can be proud to call ‘community policing.’

 

Policies I want to implemented related to public safety and police brutality:

• Expand community policing with more police officers coming from the communities that they are intended to serve.
• End preemption of civilian oversight of police and residency requirements, in order to make sure more police come from our communities and that we have the ability to address infractions and negligence from our policing bodies as municipalities.
• A civilian oversight committee could help to track police misconduct, and provide a public structure with stronger remedies for police discipline.
• Promote better training programs for de-escalation and cultural competence for our police officers.

 

(These are more related to municipal government, but I promise to be a voice for these issues and work with the city of Minneapolis around these issues.)

Affordable Housing and Renters Rights

I was an affordable housing advocate for 4 years with PPL in Ventura Village. I am a renter. This gives me a unique understanding of need and opportunity that we have in supplying effectively zoned affordable units that help create livable and equitable neighborhoods in 62A. This is key to success of our neighbors and neighborhoods, as 80 percent of residents in 62A are renters! 

 

We need to create more affordable housing and revitalize existing units, protect the rights of tenants through expanded legal resources and education, and provide residents with the tools they need to have stability, to save money and to thrive. I will be a strong advocate for more state dollars for affordable units to be created and repaired, greater financial and social incentives to home-ownership among POCI residents, as well as other subsidy and education resources for people to become buyers in their communities.  We can create wealth and provide strategies and policies that increase standards of living across the board for our residents. We need to commit to certain levels of affordable housing in our communities, and make sure that these units are zoned so that residents have greater access to job resources, transportation, and capital. We need to commit to robust affordable housing funds, and make commitments to expand public transportation

 

Currently there is a pre-emption law in the state that limits Minneapolis’ ability to set rent control measures, and this allows for landlords to raise rent as they see fit. Through this our our neighborhoods become increasingly unlivable, and renters become priced out. We need to protect naturally occurring affordable housing units, increase affordable high density housing, and work to remove this pre-emption law so that Minneapolis as a city can set it’s own livable standards for renters.

 

Some statistics and challenges that we need to address:

• 38% of housing is available to families at the median income (AMI) at around 45,000. This is down from 50% in 2000. http://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-leaders-look-to-tackle-affordable-housing-crisis/438395823/
• “More than 1 in 4 Minnesota households pay more than they can afford for housing, totaling nearly 550,000 families”, https://mn.gov/governor/newsroom/?id=1055-283666
• Black median income is at 30,300, well below the threshold of affordability in a an ever shrinking affordable housing stock in the city of Minneapolis.
• 30% of income is the thresh-hold that, once passed, means a household is paying rental costs deemed “cost-burdened”, https://www.minnpost.com/politics-policy/2017/10/there-or-there-not-affordable-housing-crisis-twin-cities
• Redlining through the early part of the 20th century, and the effects of racially motivated “covenants” that restricted people of color from living in certain parts of the city, are still felt today throughout the city.
• There are significant barriers to homeownership for low income and people of color, and higher turnover in rentals due to predatory landlords. Black home-ownership rates have shrunk since 1990, and are at 23% compared to whites, which have leveled out at 75% following 2008 http://www.startribune.com/already-low-homeownership-rates-of-twin-cities-minorities-fall-further-down/441087863/

Climate Change and Environmental Justice

Environmental justice a racial justice issue. Specific neighborhoods in our district and throughout the city have higher rates of asthma, lead poisoning and other environmental risks, those that impact communities of color and immigrant populations at a higher rates.  We need to better fund clean-up efforts, expand public education around these issues, and create policy that will lessen and eliminate these health risks from our homes and neighborhoods.

 

Peer reviewed science is real and non-negotiable, especially in the context of climate change. Sadly, some members of our state legislature do not agree with the assessments of a majority of the scientific community. I will be a strong advocate for education and awareness around climate change, and will make sure my advocacy for state energy policies reflects this as well. We need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as a state, and provide innovative and accessible solutions for people to personally divest from fossil fuel use and transition to clean energy sources.

 

As we move towards more use of renewable energy sources, I will still recognize that many working families rely on the fossil fuel industry for jobs, and I believe it’s our responsibility to create green jobs that will make sure our communities are supported in the transition to a more sustainable economy. I will pursue green job creation, a cleaner environment and be a voice for these issues in the state legislature, as this will be the face of future of growth in a changing economy responding to the pressures of climate change.

 

Water in Minnesota defines us. It is our greatest resource, and it should be protected. I will protect our lakes, rivers and sensitive habitats and be an advocate for them in the legislature. 

 

Community projects like the Roof Depot site in Phillips are a great example of how we can re purpose unused and defunct properties to elevate the community through the creation of imaginative community agriculture, skills exchange and youth employment.

 

 

This content was originally published at http://hodanforhouse.com/