There are other examples around town that demonstrate how readily propertied elites find ways to retain control - power - by systematically excluding alternative voices. I won't name names; the phenomenon is too common to be much of a mystery.
Try parsing actual voting membership along income lines independent of ownership characteristics (this is a screen for class). Or try parsing actual voting membership by race/ethnicity independent of ownership characteristics (this is a screen for race/ethnicity). Then compare either picture of actual voting membership to the overall demographic characteristics of the ostensibly intended participation pool in any given NRP neighborhood. Such a straightforward inspection will demonstrate how very poorly the NRP program has dealt with the phenomenon of underperforming outreach strategies - if they even exist! - in neighborhoods within, say, a couple of miles of downtown Minneapolis. There are exceptional neighborhoods: Lyndale is great at inclusionary strategies. Whittier has gotten much better in recent years. The Wedge and Stevens Square are pondering their substantial renter majorities. There are also strategies for indirect influence and non-profits, service agencies, developers, and government agencies all feed at that lunch counter. To Greg Luce, I particularly recommend my good friends at Whittier Neighbors who know that lunch menu very well indeed. To Jim Graham, I recommend a more discriminating appreciation of what the non-profit sector does on behalf of less advantaged folks - de gustibus and all that. I sincerely hope the Legislature revisits these matters - I don't think the City of Minneapolis has the right spices for meals we can all enjoy. Fred Markus, Horn Terrace, Ward Ten, in the Lyndale Neighborhood _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
