On Minnesota Now, we hear from many different people in Minnesota over the phone and in the studio. But we don’t often meet them in the community, where news — and life — happens. In our ‘Out to Lunch’ series, MPR News host Nina Moini sits down for a meal with people from Minnesota news and culture to get to know them better.
Our lunch guest: Bishop Richard Howell
The restaurant: Good Day Café in Golden Valley
The following has been edited for length and clarity. Use the audio player above for the full conversation.
Advertisement
MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all.
Your family has a long history in Minneapolis. You were the first Black child to integrate Northeast Junior High School.
In the 1960s the Civil Rights Movement was going strong. But up here in Minnesota, we were ignorant and behind the times when it came to understanding integration and civil rights. So when I went to Northeast Junior High School, I was scared. I was in seventh grade. A lot of people at my school in Northeast had never seen an African American before.
It was a cultural shock for myself, and so it took a long time for us to get adapted and adjust to a new school system.
Kids would ask me if I was the son of Early Battey. Earl Battey played for the Minnesota Twins. He was the African American catcher, and he was very popular. The Twins went to the World Series playing the L.A. Dodgers around that time. So when they asked me if I was Earl’s son, I said yeah. And it worked! I was like a celebrity. I didn’t give it up for a long time.
Bishop Richard D. Howell, Jr. takes a bite of quiche during lunch at the Good Day Cafe in Golden Valley, Minn., on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025.
Advertisement
Ben Hovland | MPR News
What led you to ministry?
My mother’s parents were pastors of Shiloh Temple. They founded Shiloh Temple in 1931. So that’s the church I grew up in, and it’s the church I still pastor today.
When they learned that I was the first Black person that integrated Northeast Junior High School, the Minneapolis Star Tribune interviewed me. In that article I said I wanted to be a bible teacher. That was my first time announcing that. After that announcement was made as a 14 year old kid, there was something moving in my spirit. It wasn’t really about civil rights. It was like something was going on spiritually that was impacting my conscience and my destiny.
Give me more of an idea of what Shiloh Temple does. You’re not just showing up there on Sunday mornings.
There’s a lot going on in the community. I believe that the church should be open 24/7. And I think the best products we have to give to the community are love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance.
We’ve had to deal with funerals galore. We have people that came from around the country, high profile people, who came for funerals. We’ve dealt with little children being molested, bullets flying through windows and killing children. We’ve had funerals after very traumatic events. The ability to open the doors, to hold something like that, is a lot of work. That’s ministry. It’s not a performance or a national broadcast. It’s dealing with life and nature.
Advertisement
MPR News host Nina Moini wipes away a tear as she chats with Bishop Richard D. Howell, Jr. during lunch at the Good Day Cafe in Golden Valley, Minn., on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025.
Ben Hovland | MPR News
How are you processing five years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd’s murder?
That was one of the most unusual seasons that I’ve ever experienced in ministry. I think ministers need to stop being superhuman and tell people that I cry too. I hurt, I’m angry. It’s okay not to be okay sometimes, right?
During that period, I had to say something that was not easy to say. I had to say that the person that put his knee on the neck of George Floyd, we need to pray for him too and love him, and perhaps forgive him. That was not easy. I couldn’t believe I said it. Yes, we had a Black man that was killed. But do we go around hating? Or can we try to try to find some justice of love? There is a lot of hurt, hate and anger there. But we just can’t keep living in a attitude of hate and divisiveness. And so can we have hope in a world of hate? Can we have love in the midst of hate? So I think that’s what we need to understand, the power of bringing hope, faith and love to a very painful situation.
Time for our Last Bite: What are the ingredients to a life of service?
You gotta love people. Here’s what I’ve learned: celebrate people on every journey they’re on. There are so many people on edge, and what better service can we give than to sit where they sit, work with them, cry with them, speak with them, laugh with them, rejoice with them and give them hope? That’s God’s will. If you can do that, you’ve got a foot in the door.
A Minneapolis man is behind bars after stabbing a woman early Saturday morning.
According to the Minneapolis Police Department, officers responded to a stabbing around 12:30 a.m. near the intersection of W 24th St. and Pillsbury Avenue. Officers found an adult woman with a non-life-threatening injury consistent with an edged blade.
Authorities said a man known to the woman stabbed her after a verbal argument escalated.
Police arrested a 49-year-old man and is currently at the Hennepin County Jail, pending a second-degree domestic assault charge.
Advertisement
Police said no one else was hurt. The case remains under investigation.
If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse, several resources are available to offer help. For immediate help, contact:
More than 12 million people just in the U.S. are affected by domestic violence every year, according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
The organizations listed above can help connect victims to resources like safe shelter, advocacy, legal help and support groups.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline also offers tips for identifying abuse and supporting victims of abuse. CLICK HERE to see those.
Advertisement
Other organizations that can help include:
Minnesota also has a list of many other resources for victims of crimes that can be found HERE.
The lineup has been announced for the 2026 edition of Snow & Flurry, set for October 10th and 11th at Underground Music Cafe in Minneapolis, MN. Judge, Merauder, and Arkangel will headline the two-day event also featuring 25+ more acts in total.
Weekend passes are available now, with single-day tickets and daily lineups to be announced later.
Passes are available here.
Line up in order of flyer:
Advertisement
Judge Merauder Arkangel The Killer Nehemiah Another Enemy Awaiting Eschiel Basic Needs Blistered Spirit Blood Stained Concrete Cudgel Direct Order Dose Enemy Of Man Enervate Ethic Eyes Of Sorrow Fleshless Body Lead Spirit Madman Meantime Neolithic Passion Self Interest Shits Creek Sin Sufrir Skewed What Counts Withdrawal Wrath Of Sanity Velocity
After spending months helping immigrant families weather the economic fallout of federal immigration enforcement operations in the Twin Cities, Smitten Kitten is asking the community for help sustaining itself.
The adult retail store in Minneapolis’ Lyn-Lake neighborhood issued a public plea for community financial support.
The strain comes after months of directing staff and volunteer time, resources and fundraising efforts toward mutual aid work that supported immigrants during Operation Metro Surge.
The store became one of the most visible community aid hubs after the federal operation began. Following the killing of Renee Good, Smitten Kitten began collecting groceries, diapers, toilet paper and other essentials.
Advertisement
“Nothing is going to change unless we’re going to do something,” said Anne Lehman, Smitten Kitten social media manager and mutual aid advisor.
The store also helped direct efforts toward rent relief for immigrants facing heightened uncertainty and economic hardship.
“People had been hiding out since October. They’re going to need things like diapers, toilet paper and water.” Lehman said. “We ended up opening our store as a donation drop-off stop.”
Community support quickly exceeded expectations.
“It felt like every fifteen minutes someone was pulling up in an SUV that just came from Costco,” Lehman said. “As soon as we got it, it would be gone because of how great the need was.”
Advertisement
Lehman said that the attention also created safety concerns for staff and visitors.
“We had to move where our stuff was because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had caught on to what we were doing and tried to intimidate us,” said Lehman.
In response, the store decided to move its operations elsewhere and began to focus on raising money for necessities. According to Lehman, the establishment raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for various needs.
The operation, in part, ended by mid-February, and federal presence in Minnesota diminished. As things began to wind down, so did cash flow at Smitten Kitten.
“There were a lot of weeks where we were cutting it close on payroll,” said Lehman.
Advertisement
In a social media post, Lehman asked the community to come help support the store by asking for donations, asking people to shop at their store or online.
“We are asking for help, but also all of these things that we’re pouring all of our energy into is not going away,” said Lehman. “If we want to continue doing mutual aid, we have to have a solid foundation of our business as well.”
