Keith Ellison

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of my constituent and neighbor, Mr. Thomas Charles Braun. A beloved artist, activist, family man, and small business owner, Mr. Braun passed away in October 2018. I join my neighbors in recognizing the tremendous gifts he gave to our community.

Born in Lake City, Minnesota, Mr. Braun was always an artistic and passionate person. After getting his degree in theater from Lawrence University, Mr. Braun taught theater at Lea College, Ekerd College, and Normandale Community College. He inspired countless young adults through his commitment to fun and daring productions before he left academia to run Wild Rumpus in Minneapolis in 1988.

Consistently recognized as one of the most inventive bookstores nationwide, Wild Rumpus is symbolic of the type of person Mr. Braun was--open and inviting, passionate about having fun, and always up for trying something new and mischievous. Under his devoted management, the store garnered national awards, including being named Bookstore of the Year by Publisher's Weekly in 2017. As described in his obituary, `One never really ``worked for'' Tom. Rather, you became a co-conspirator in his sense of mischief and philosophy of ``why not?'' '

But Mr. Braun was passionate not only about light-hearted ventures. He founded Linden Hills Power & Light, an organization that fights for climate action on the grassroots level. They were a key constituency pushing for citywide door-to-door compost collection, spearheading the first pilot program with the City of Minneapolis and Hennepin County. Mr. Braun's drive to model the world he wanted to see through his own choices and actions was a driving force for some of our most important city-wide sustainability efforts.

Though Mr. Braun is no longer with us, the impact he has made on our community will be visible for years to come. I am grateful that he gave us so much of his energy and vision, and that he created lasting organizations that will continue to model his commitment to being a good person, doing right by his neighbors, and fighting for a better world. I thank Mr. Braun for all that he has given to Minnesota.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Betsy Hodges' honorable service to the City of Minneapolis.

During her time as Mayor of Minneapolis, Betsy Hodges advanced environmental justice, transforming policing and safety, and closing racial and economic disparities, including among our youngest children. Through her inspiring vision of ``One Minneapolis,'' she reoriented the work of the City of Minneapolis and changed the citywide conversation to put racial equity at the core of both.

Mayor Hodges pushed Minneapolis to be one of the greenest cities in America, extending organics recycling to every neighborhood, developing a Zero Waste Minneapolis plan, winning incentives to keep pollutants out of our air and water, and pursuing environmental justice. Under Mayor Hodges' leadership, Minneapolis was named a Climate Champion city by the White House and won a coveted 100 Resilient Cities designation from the Rockefeller Foundation. Pope Francis recognized Mayor Hodges' and Minneapolis' leadership in fighting climate change when he invited her to the Vatican for a convening of world mayors that he hosted.

Because of Mayor Hodges' leadership, the City passed historic measures to help working people, including a $15 municipal minimum wage with no tip penalty, and earned sick and safe time for everyone who works in Minneapolis, both of which were firsts in the state of Minnesota. Mayor Hodges laid a strong foundation for transforming the city's policing, including implementing the use of body cameras, reforming the municipal criminal-justice system, and appointing Minneapolis' first African American chief of police. She also assembled a groundbreaking Cradle to K Cabinet that developed a plan to prevent racial disparities for our youngest children.

Minneapolis continued to grow under Mayor Hodges' tenure: in each of her four years as Mayor, the City experienced more than $1 billion in private growth, without public subsidy. The long-planned renovation of Nicollet Mall was completed on time and on budget, the City-owned Target Center was renovated at one quarter of the cost of building a new arena, and Minneapolis won both Super Bowl LII and the NCAA Final Four. Mayor Hodges fully funded a first-ever, 20-year tourism master plan for Minneapolis to build on these successes into the future.

Mayor Hodges also made significant investments in Minneapolis' infrastructure: a historic and fiscally responsible 20-year, $800 million investment in the City's parks and streets, along with full funding for Orange Line Bus Rapid Transit and a network of protected bike lanes that contribute to Minneapolis' continuing to be the best bike city in America. She also made significant investments in affordable housing, including for families facing homelessness.

Mayor Hodges' nation-leading work was also recognized with a coveted Promise Zone designation for North Minneapolis, several significant federal grants to support Minneapolis' 21st-century policing efforts, a highly competitive Mayor's Innovation Grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies to support racial-equity work, and with Minneapolis' participation in the National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice.

Under Mayor Hodges' leadership, Minneapolis remained a well-run city. Mayor Hodges passed and presented four structurally balanced budgets that continued the foundation of fiscal responsibility that she laid while a Council Member and reoriented the work of the City around racial equity. Mayor Hodges' commitment to equity extended to hiring in her own office, where she hired half women and half people of color, including the first Somali-American and the first openly transgender person ever to work in the Mayor's office.

As an openly sober person and an open survivor of childhood sexual assault, Mayor Hodges has consistently given of her time to help more people than we will ever know find their own path to healing and has actively supported them in the process.

Before serving as Mayor, Betsy Hodges had an outstanding career in public service. As the Ward 13 City Council Member for eight years, she chaired the Ways & Means/Budget Committee and worked successfully for years to reform the City's closed-pension system that was unfair to taxpayers and pensioners alike. Mayor Hodges worked as an organizer in the non-profit sector for TakeAction MN and for the Minnesota Justice Foundation, and helped found the Women's Health Project in New Mexico to assist HIV-positive women. She also worked as an aide for Hennepin County Commissioner Gail Dorfman.

Mayor Hodges is also known for her sense of humor, as well as for her love of Wonder Woman, the movie ``Die Hard,'' giraffes, and Oxford commas.

Mayor Betsy Hodges' years of leadership and activism have shaped Minneapolis and Minnesota for the better. She has made a positive impact on the lives of so many, one that will be felt for decades to come. I would like to commend and thank her for her many contributions.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Barbara Johnson who represented the Fourth Ward of Minneapolis for 20 years, serving as the Council President for the last 12 years. Johnson became the longest-serving Council President in Minneapolis history.

Johnson's accomplishments as a Council Member and as Council President were extensive. She made public safety and the health of the Fourth Ward one of her main priorities, serving on the Public Safety & Health Committee and the Hennepin County Criminal Justice Coordination Committee. She assisted in crime prevention through job training and youth programs. As a registered nurse, Johnson was passionate about the growing healthcare sector in Minneapolis and supported using a public health approach to public safety.

Johnson was passionate about constituent service, always willing to pick up the phone to help get a pothole filled. She helped support local businesses in the neighborhood, including the opening of the North Market grocery store, and businesses across Minneapolis with projects like the Midtown Global Market. She also spearheaded an effort to merge the Hennepin County and Minneapolis library systems.

Johnson has a strong interest in parks and the environment. She served for 18 years on the Metropolitan Park & Open Space Commission, and served on the Mississippi National River & Recreation Area Commission. She helped negotiate a 20-year parks and street maintenance agreement that passed in 2016. She supported the development of the Webber Natural Swimming Pool. She also worked with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to reduce pollution on the Northside.

Prior to her elected service, Johnson was a founding member of the Victory Neighborhood Association (VINA) and was the Chair from 1994 to 1997.

Johnson's experience, hard work, and leadership has made a lasting mark on Ward 4 and across our community. I want to thank Barbara Johnson for her exceptional 20 years of public service and her dedication to the City of Minneapolis.