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Description
Minneapolis City Council Vice President Jenkins at the February 7, 2019 Black History Month Observance
A
So
my
name
is
Andrea
Jenkins
and
what
it
honor
it
is
to
be
standing
at
this
podium
to
celebrate.
Black
History
and
a
lot
of
people
all
around
the
country
have
lifted
me
up
as
making
black
history,
and
let
me
tell
you
it
is
a
very,
very
weird
place
to
be
because
my
approach
to
this
work
is
I
just
get
up
every
morning
and
go
to
work
right.
A
It's
not
about
making
history,
it's
not
about
being
in
the
newspaper
it's
about
serving
our
community
and
I
want
to
share
a
couple
of
poems
with
you
guys
and,
as
you
know,
I
am
a
poet
and
I
write
a
lot
of
original
poetry,
but
I.
Think
the
job
of
a
poet
is
to
lift
up
other
poets,
sometimes
as
well,
and
so
I'm
gonna
lift
up
to
amazing
black
women
poets
and
the
first
poem
my
Lucille
Clifton
is
called.
Won't
you
celebrate
with
me.
A
A
A
A
A
We
encounter
each
other
in
Words,
Words,
spiny
or
mold
whispered
or
declaimed
words
to
consider
reconsider.
We
cross
dirt
roads
and
highways
that
mark
the
will
of
someone,
and
then
others
who
said
I
need
to
see.
What's
on
the
other
side.
I
know
there
is
something
better
down
the
road
we
need
to
find
a
place
where
we
are
safe.
A
We
walk
into
that
which
we
cannot
see
say
it
plain
that
many
have
died
for
this
day
sing
the
names
of
the
dead
who
brought
us
here,
who
laid
the
train
tracks,
raise
the
bridges,
picked
the
cotton
and
the
lettuce
built
brick
by
brick,
the
glittering
Oedipus's.
That
would
keep
that.
They
would
then
keep
clean
and
work
inside
a
praise
song
for
the
struggle
praise
song
for
the
day,
praise
song
for
every
hand-lettered
sign
the
figuring
it
out
at
kitchen
tables.
A
Some
live
by
love,
thy
neighbor
as
thyself
others
by
first
do
no
harm
or
take
no
more
than
you
need.
What?
If
the
mightiest
word
is
love
love
beyond
marital
figlio,
national
love
that
cast
a
widening
pool
of
light
love
with
no
need
to
preempt
grievance
in
today's
sharp
sparkle,
this
winter
air
anything
can
be
made
any
sentence
begun
on
the
brink
on
the
brim
on
the
cusp
praise
song
for
walking
forward.
In
that
light,
thank
you.