A Tribute: Keep Working Hard for Equity in honor of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg We pay tribute to health care this week and next (see Blueprint Breakfast invite below) and most of all to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who helped break through so many barriers for women, and men, from workplace discrimination to education and health care access, and more. Justice Ginsburg's advocacy helped provi... Read More
“Toward a better patriotism” Dane Smith, a Growth & Justice senior fellow and co-editor of the Minnesota Equity Blueprint, wrote an op-ed for the Star Tribune titled “Toward a better patriotism.” He discusses the protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death, the statue removal of figures like Christopher Columbus, and the country-wide efforts to confront systemic racism-- all within the context of recent annive... Read More
Racial Health Disparities Demand Action… Racial health disparities demand renewed attention from policy-makers as Minnesota struggles to dismantle systemic and institutional racism. A recent report from the African American Leadership Forum provides context and strategic framing that deserve careful consideration. The AALF report identifies seven “basic pillars of support” for erasing disparities: increase knowledg... Read More
Our MinnPost Op-Ed Points Way to Equitable Recovery Our latest commentary, published this week in MinnPost, describes how the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the disparities and inequalities we’ve been warning Minnesota about in recent years. The op-ed, headlined “Equity is Rising as an Imperative for Minnesota’s Recovery’’ summarized dozens of major news stories that reveal how racial and re... Read More
50th Earth Day and Minnesota’s 1970 Solidarity The 50th anniversary of Earth Day finds the globe in a heightened state of awareness about the interdependence of earthlings and our ecosystems, the fragility of human and planetary health, and the consequences of both environmental degradation and economic injustice. Minnesota’s place in this momentous anniversary was highlighted in a Star Tribune article&nbs... Read More