Issue Advocacy

Issue advocacy is one of the ways we work with young people to make Minnesota a better place for everyone. When young people pledge to be engaged with us, we figure out what issues matter most to them, and we find ways to advocate for change and work in those areas. Learn more about the issue advocacy work we’re doing below.

 
A table with signs and petitions for the Yes4Minneapolis campaign.

A table with signs and petitions for the Yes4Minneapolis campaign.

department of public safety campaign

With Yes 4 Minneapolis

We’ve been working as part of a coalition of Twin Cities organizations on a ballot measure for Minneapolis to eliminate the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a Department of Public Safety. Our work in this coalition has been and will be to collect and quality signatures from registered voters (we reached our signature goal in the spring ✔️), provide more information on the ballot initiative and its implications (known as “popular education”), mobilize voters and young people to volunteer, and get out the vote so the initiative receives enough positive support from voters to pass.

 
A group of young people wearing masks are ready to knock on doors in St. Paul to share information on the HENS campaign.

A group of young people wearing masks are ready to knock on doors in St. Paul to share information on the HENS campaign.

St. Paul rent stabilization campaign

With Housing Equity Now–St. Paul

We’ve been working with Housing Equity Now–St. Paul (HENS) and other coalition members to pass a rent stabilization initiative in St. Paul. Rent stabilization is the process of limiting rent increases to a fixed amount over a period of time, so housing prices can’t continue to skyrocket seemingly overnight. Low-income folks and BIPOC are most likely to be negatively impacted by the housing crisis—by being housing insecure, displaced, cost burned and more—but everyone benefits from rent stabilization.

 
A white backgroud with black text that reads, “Twin Cities Housing Toolkit” and blue text that reads, “A Guide to Navigating Housing for Young People, Resources, and the History of Housing in the Twin Cities.

A white backgroud with black text that reads, “Twin Cities Housing Toolkit” and blue text that reads, “A Guide to Navigating Housing for Young People, Resources, and the History of Housing in the Twin Cities.

Twin Cities Housing Toolkit

With the 2020 Campus Fellows

Our 2020 Campus Fellows worked collaboratively to research and synthesize information on housing in the Twin Cities. Whether someone is renting for the first time or has been renting for years, this toolkit provides information that can be helpful for any renter. The toolkit covers information from land acknowledgement to state and local (Minneapolis and St. Paul) renters’ rights laws, as well as information on how to talk to landlords, legal aid, and navigate houselessness.