Minneapolis Review

City of Minneapolis issued the following announcement on Sept. 16.

Today, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter highlighted new research for Minneapolis and Saint Paul from New American Economy (NAE). The results underscore how immigrants are both essential to the Twin Cities’ COVID rapid response efforts and have been made especially vulnerable due to gaps in federal relief packages, language access barriers, and increased risks of infection associated with front-line and essential work. 

Minneapolis and St. Paul are among just 12 communities that received NAE research to inform culturally sensitive emergency response measures that ensure all residents are included, regardless of immigration status. Both cities’ customized research report highlights the demographic nuances of the region’s immigrant population and will inform the advocacy, development, and implementation of inclusive local emergency responses.

“From our gap funds for housing to our Know-Your-Rights placards, we’ve worked to ensure our conviction to welcome and support our immigrant community in our policymaking,” Frey said. “On this Citizenship Day, we all resolve to continue the hard work ahead and make citizenship more accessible. But the findings from the NAE make clear that the Twin Cities is making important progress and that both economically and in our public health industries, immigrants and New Americans are making our cities better city.”

“Amid this enduring public health and economic crisis, sustaining an inclusive community where no one is left behind is more critical than ever,” said Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter.  “This research from the New American Economy further demonstrates how vital our ongoing work to support our immigrant and refugee community is during these challenging times.”

“The immigrant population is essential to keeping Minneapolis and Saint Paul running, yet especially vulnerable to gaps in our social safety nets,” said Mo Kantner, Director of State and Local Initiatives at New American Economy. “This new NAE research will support efforts by the city to work quickly and innovatively to fill critical gaps in federal programs and ensure that response and recovery efforts reach all of Minneapolis and Saint Paul residents.”

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul are among this year’s most improved cities nationally, ranking 55 out of 100 and 48 out of 100, respectively.

Key findings from the Minneapolis report:

• Immigrants serve in essential industries and carry out vital roles that keep Minneapolis functioning but put them at higher risk of infection. Despite making up just 15.4% of the city’s residents in 2018, immigrants comprised more than 20.2% of all food sector workers and 16.5 percent of all healthcare workers in Minneapolis.
• The COVID-19 economic upheaval has highlighted the need for stable housing in Minneapolis for all residents regardless of immigration status. Among the city’s immigrant households in 2018, just 25%, or 7,332, owned their own homes and 75%, or 21,980, were renters.
• Culturally sensitive and language accessible emergency materials are in demand. In 2018, over 29% of immigrants, or 19,053, living in Minneapolis had limited English language proficiency. Among them, the top three languages spoken at home other than English were: Spanish (44.2%) Somali and related (34.3%) and Miao, Hmong (10.1%).
• Access to healthcare and medical services remains critical for all Minneapolis residents during this pandemic. In 2018, 28,144 Minneapolis residents were without insurance, over 42%of which were immigrants.

Key findings from the St. Paul report:

• Immigrants serve in essential industries and carry out vital roles that keep Saint Paul functioning but put them at higher risk of infection. Despite making up 19.4% of city’s residents in 2018, immigrants comprise more than 32.5%of all food sector workers and 28.7% of all transportation and warehousing workers in Saint Paul.
• The COVID-19 economic upheaval has highlighted the need for stable housing in Saint Paul for all residents regardless of immigration status. Among the city’s immigrant households in 2018, just 31.5%, or 6,800, owned their own homes and 68.5%, or 14,757, were renters.
• Culturally sensitive and language accessible emergency materials are in demand. In 2018, 33% of immigrants, or 19,386 residents living in Saint Paul, had limited English language proficiency. Among them, the top five languages spoken at home other than English were: Miao, Hmong (26.1%), Spanish (22.7%), Karen (20.1%), Somali and related (8%) and Vietnamese (3.8%).
• Access to healthcare and medical services remains critical for all Saint Paul residents during this pandemic. In 2018, 20,902 Saint Paul residents were without insurance, 42% were immigrants.

The full report is being released today, as the Twin Cities celebrate Citizenship Day and announce the findings of the third annual NAE Cities Index, a national assessment of local integration policies and socioeconomic outcomes in the largest 100 cities.

The NAE Cities Index examines 31 different policies and practices, as well as 20 different socioeconomic outcomes, to assess cities on their work to integrate newcomers. Assessment categories include Government Leadership, Economic Empowerment, Inclusivity, Community, and Legal Support, as well as Job Opportunities, Economic Prosperity, Livability and Civic Participation.

Staff from both cities will also host a citizenship information session on Thursday at 10:00AM.  The public can participate and follow along here on the City of St. Paul’s Facebook page. 

Original source can be found here.