Who can afford to be my neighbor?

By Brenda Blackhawk 

It’s no secret that I am a proud Northside girl. I grew up in North Minneapolis (Webber-Camden neighborhood to be exact).

My family ended up joining Salem Lutheran Church (42nd Street and Dupont North) because that is where my younger siblings and I went to pre-school. My Papa would babysit us during the week while our parents worked, and he would walk us from our house (43rd and Humboldt) down to church. Then, a few hours later, he’d walk back to pick us up and walk us back home.

Sometimes, we would take little detours and swing into the T Shoppe to visit with the bartender; or into the corner store to pick up an orange push pop. As we got older, we made friends with all the kids on our block and our house became the cool place to hang out. Our best friends lived across the street and we saw them every day.  

“As we got older, we made friends with all the kids on our block and our house became the cool place to hang out.”

When we outgrew our little two-bedroom house, my parents moved us all a little bit north to Brooklyn Park. I was devastated. I may have been excited about finally having my own room, but I did not want to leave North Minneapolis.  

So, when I got my driver’s license at 16, I transferred to Patrick Henry High School in North Minneapolis, and suddenly I was back in the neighborhood I loved with the kids I’d gone to elementary school with. My teenage years we spent hanging out all over North at the homes of the friends in my large friend group. We knew how other people talked about the Northside – but for us it was just home.  

 

I STILL KNOW A LOT of people who live in that area. While it has certainly changed some, the vibe is much the same. So, when my spouse, Chris, and I were ready to buy a house, I knew I wanted to back to what was for me home. We prioritized the Webber-Camden area in all our searches.

It wasn’t all that long ago that people were fleeing North Minneapolis (as well as many other parts of the city) and you could hardly sell a house in there. Now, “thanks” in part to the gentrification of our city, the cost of living is skyrocketing. Chris and I couldn’t afford a house there. We eventually got a bigger plot of land and a bigger house in Brooklyn Park for less than the cost of something much smaller in North Minneapolis. 

Isaiah 32:18 states, “My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” We are all God’s people and all deserving of secure housing. And when people have that security, they are freer to live healthy lives, to dream bigger dreams, and to serve others, too. 

The issue of affordable housing and gentrification all across Minneapolis has been on the radar of many of our congregations for a long time. As a racial justice organizer, my work has led me to engage with these and related issues.

Allied with talented colleagues, I started building an ecumenical coalition over North to actively work to mitigate the effects of the gentrification that is raising the cost of living and displacing longtime residents. That project led us to an even larger coalition working on the issue of rent control. (If you are part of a Minneapolis congregation and are interested in joining in this work, please reach out to me!)  

“The issue of affordable housing and gentrification all across Minneapolis has been on the radar of many of our congregations for a long time.” 

Many residents across this city (and others) are just as invested in their own communities as I am. My story is not even a little bit unique. It is a common theme these days as we hear more and more stories of people being unable to afford to live in the city they have loved and lived in for years, decades, and even generations.  

I am left with a burning question that challenges my faith perspective: What does it mean to love our neighbors fighting to remain our neighbors?