The Minnesota Reformer continued to publish hard-hitting commentaries about Minnesota in 2024, often driving conversations about crucial issues that receive insufficient attention. Our most-read commentary of the year was by Kayseh Magan, a Somali-American fraud investigator with experience at the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office. Magan directly addressed a sensitive issue within his community: “We must grapple with something that is uncomfortable and true: Nearly all of the defendants in the cases I’ve listed are from my community. The Somali community,” he wrote, bringing to light a commonly discussed but rarely publicly acknowledged problem. His insightful and empathetic analysis gained further relevance this month with federal investigations serving search warrants on two autism providers. The year concluded with a three-part series by Chuck Johnson, former deputy commissioner of the Department of Human Services, focusing on fraud in state programs and potential solutions.
Native economist and writer Winona LaDuke lamented the devastating impact of industrial agriculture on the Indigenous people of Pine Point in northern Minnesota. She described the scene vividly: “Each spring, a huge influx of heavy equipment drowns the prairie with toxic chemicals, which then drift into the water and homes of Pine Point residents. The county roads look like a war zone, filled with planes, helicopters, and industrial sprayers careening through the fields. Tractors resembling mutant insects crawl out into fields and the air reeks of pesticides.” We also published an excerpt from Austin Frerick’s “Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America’s Food Industry,” detailing Cargill’s ruthless rise to power after World War I and its history of price manipulation, including its 1938 expulsion from the Chicago Board of Trade for this very reason.
We prioritized amplifying the voices of working people whose livelihoods are directly affected by government policies. Nancy Poll, a former nursing home scheduler from Belgrade, Minnesota, wrote powerfully about the industry’s crippling worker shortage, stemming from low wages and inadequate benefits: “Staffing a nursing home is like solving a puzzle with missing pieces. I was the scheduler for years, and I grappled every day with finding enough qualified people to fill the shifts and ensure that we had enough staff to meet the needs of our residents.” She highlighted the Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board’s wage increases as a potential solution. Kailee Schminkey, a commercial painter and journeyperson with IUPAT District Council 82, discussed the Finishing Trades Institute of the Upper Midwest’s role in closing wage gaps, noting that while only 3% of Minnesota’s middle-wage construction workers are women, nearly half of FTIUM graduates are women and people of color. Shawntel Gruba, a Mountain Iron childcare center owner, emphasized the vital role of MinnesotaCare, the state’s public health insurance program for the working poor, urging the legislature to expand it to ensure affordability despite wage increases. Unfortunately, the legislature did not expand the program, leaving many workers without affordable health coverage despite receiving raises.
Concerns regarding Democratic-Farmer-Labor-controlled local governments also emerged. Arianna Anderson and Brianna Lofton detailed their experiences as north Minneapolis mothers struggling to get the city to enforce housing codes. Steve Subera bemoaned a developer’s special deal in St. Paul, highlighting flaws in the city’s rent control ordinance. Nick Magrino, disillusioned with government dysfunction, argued against electing the Metropolitan Council. He stated, “The DFL maintains a slim majority largely based on screenshots of GOP state legislators’ unhinged Facebook posts, and ever more money is shoveled into the government/nonprofit/advocacy/social services/academia blob, while conditions stagnate, or in some cases get worse.” Conversely, Pam Dowell reported on a violation of the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution, focusing on a large Ten Commandments display at the new Itasca County jail and government complex.
This year welcomed Eric Harris Bernstein as a regular columnist for our “Tax & Spend” column. His insightful commentary often defended Minnesota values and advocated for strengthening state capacity. He analyzed the Timberwolves’ NBA playoff run as a reflection of Minnesota’s strengths and examined the perils of privatization. We sadly lost the contributions of Iron Range writer Aaron Brown, who transitioned to a regular column at the Star Tribune. Since our 2020 launch, Aaron provided invaluable insights into the Iron Range’s history, economics, politics, and people.
Many of our commentators are not professional writers but Minnesotans with important stories to tell. We encourage you to share your voice; our guest commentary guidelines are available [here], and submissions can be sent to patrick@minnesotareformer.com.
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