North Minneapolis is no stranger to social uprisings, a result of centuries of disinvestment, unjust systems of oppression, and a community of activists fighting for social change. History provides us with helpful context to understand the unrest that followed the murder of George Floyd in May 2020

This joint statement was included as part of an article "Asian American Grant Makers Call on Philanthropy to End Violence and Bias on the Rise as Coronavirus Spreads" published in The Chronicle of Philanthropy 4/8/2020.

We heard loud and clear from the small business community that they were facing partial or, in many cases, complete income loss. In addition, those business owners also expressed that it was difficult to navigate the opportunities that fell under the Federal CARES Act (i.e. SBA loans, PPP loans, etc.) and due to the unknowns of the future felt a loan was not a viable solution to meet immediate needs.

Northside Storyville is a project of Northside Funders Group that tells real stories of real people to change the narrative of North Minneapolis. But it’s about much more than creating videos – it’s about lifting up the full North Minneapolis narrative.