Civil/Human Rights

Second time’s the charm for rejected absentee voter

Paula Guerra, the St. Paul woman who tried to vote absentee from New York State where she’s caring for an ailing parent, phoned the Ramsey County Elections office Wednesday afternoon to check on her ballot. As the Minnesota Independent reported yesterday, the county had rejected her first absentee ballot due to improper witnessing and she wanted to know whether her second attempt had arrived on time and passed muster. “I thought I would have to live with never knowing,” she said.

Shock-jock Baker: Media to blame in murder of transgender person

KTLK radio’s Chris Baker followed up his Nov. 14 comments about a transgender person being a “mutilated lesbian” with a tirade in which he blames the media — and transgender people themselves — for the murder of Latiesha Green in Syracuse, New York. He says “a majority of the blame does not lie with” the killer, but with the media who “enable people who need serious psychological counseling.” Now activists from Soulforce Q are trying to get on Baker’s show to discuss the issues.

Red Lake has a knack for mattering in recount-tight races

Braublog notes that the purgers at President Bush’s U.S. Department of Justice may have been onto something when they targeted former U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger for working to advance voting rights for Native Americans; turnout continues to climb to new heights at the Red Lake Indian Reservation, running 95 percent in favor of Democrat Al [...]

Slideshow: Prop 8 protests in Minneapolis

On Saturday, thousands of people across the country — in cities like Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington and New York — marched in protest of California’s Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that overrode a state Supreme Court decision allowing same-sex couples to marry. Here in Minnesota, rallies were held in Duluth, Minneapolis and St. Paul. Around 1,000 people gathered near the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis (curiously, the Star Tribune’s story estimates the crowd size at 700, while its subhead put the count at 500). Speakers included OutFront Minnesota’s Kelly Lewis; Jeremy Hanson, an aide to Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, and Minneapolis City Council Member Gary Schiff, among others. Photographer Tony Webster was there and gave us permission to publish a slideshow of the rally.

And now a public service announcement from MnIndy on the scourge of drunk voting

We’ve been remiss in not posting this sooner. We hope our tardiness has not resulted in the unnecessary disenfranchisement of any noble citizens out there. But please do not forget: It is illegal to vote while drunk. According to Minnesota state law, “election judges shall not permit an obviously intoxicated individual to vote or remain [...]

Rollins, ‘not bitter,’ clings to idea that votes of Minnesota’s ‘dead Indians’ denied Reagan ‘84 sweep

On CNN’s “American Morning” show today, at the end of a segment titled “America Divided” — about controversial comments such as those made last week by U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann — anchor John Roberts asked commentator Ed Rollins, who managed Ronald Reagan’s 1984 presidential re-election campaign, “How did you screw up Minnesota?” (Minnesota was the only state Democratic challenger Walter Mondale won.) Rollins’ reply: “They voted a lot of dead Indians along the border. 1620 votes, I’m not bitter.”

Rollins’ use of the phrase “dead Indians” is disturbing — especially coming at the end of a segment that began with Bachmann’s labeling as “anti-American” the country’s first major-party African-American presidential nominee. By the most charitable interpretation, Rollins seemed to be saying that Native Americans in northern Minnesota who were ineligible to vote (or even actually deceased?) had thrown the election and denied Reagan a 50-state sweep.

GOP pulling ad support from Bachmann

Two weeks after shifting ad support from Erik Paulsen’s race in the 3rd Congressional District to do media buys in Michele Bachmann’s 6th district, the National Republican Congressional Committee is reportedly pulling its support for Bachmann entirely. Huffington Post’s Sam Stein says that two sources aware of Minnesota ad buys say the GOP is withdrawing its media buys.

“If true, it is a remarkable fall for a congresswoman who, until recently, seemed relatively safe in her predominantly conservative district,” he writes.

And, if true, it might free up media for challenger Elwin Tinklenberg, who has committed only $188,000 for advertising — out of more than $1 million raised since comments by Bachmann on Friday’s edition of “Hardball.”

Update: Politico confirms — and adds that the NRCC is dropping advertising in Colorado and Florida districts as well. TPM offers independent confirmation.

Fox anticipated Bachmann plea for media witch hunt with Glenn Beck hire

What would it look like if the media took up U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann’s call to hunt down anti-American members of Congress? Look no farther than this headline from Friday, the day Bachmann made her plea to the press for a Capitol Hill witch hunt: “CNN’s Beck Decamps for Fox News.”
Right-wing host Glenn Beck, who will command a [...]

Hundreds gather in Minneapolis to remember Matthew Shepard

Several hundred people gathered in Loring Park on Monday evening to hear Judy Shepard, mother of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered in Wyoming ten years ago, speak on the anniversary of his death. Flanked by Angel Action, a group dressed as angels originally created to prevent religious zealots from protesting Matthew’s funeral, a crowd of 300 people, including Grey’s Anatomy star T.R. Knight, listened to Judy Shepard’s poignant words.

“What we are trying to do is make the world a safer place… Things are going to get better,” she said. “As my husband, Dennis, says, ‘It’s been 10 years of change, but no progress.’”

She called for the passage of hate crimes and employment nondiscrimination legislation, and for a society where everyone is treated equally.

Minneapolis hosts national remembrance of Matthew Shepard

Ten years ago, more than 1,100 people gathered in Minneapolis’ Loring Park for a candlelight vigil to mark the death of Matthew Shepard, who died Oct. 12, 1998, from injuries sustained from a brutal attack by two young men whose goal was to beat and rob a gay person.

Now people will gather again in Loring Park at 6:30 pm Monday evening for a candlelight vigil to observe the 10th anniversary of Shepard’s death, and to draw attention to the fact that in those 10 years, Congress has failed to pass the hate crime legislation that bears his name. Shepard’s mother chose Minneapolis as the site of the vigil.