Contributors
Thank you to the writers and photographers that helped to create the initial articles and imagery for the launch of the Minneapolis Cultural Districts project. An emphasis was made on having a first-person narrative created by Minneapolis locals who have ties or are personally familiar with the districts they were exploring. Their work is instrumental in the storytelling of these diverse districts.
Writers
Ali Elabbady
Ali Elabbady is a food and music writer based in the Twin Cities. Currently, Ali writes about food for Eater Twin Cities and has written about food and music in the past for City Pages, The Current, and more. Ali is also the host and producer for the TV show Tacos & Tastemakers, which launched its pilot season in September of 2020 and is available to watch on YouTube.
Harry Colbert Jr.
Harry Colbert, Jr., an award-winning journalist, has contributed as a reporter, columnist/commentator and editor for such outlets as the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s The Village, Suburban Journals (St. Louis), St. Louis American, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Joplin Globe (Mo.), Metro Networks (St. Louis) and KDHX (St. Louis). A proud resident of the Cleveland neighborhood of North Minneapolis, Colbert enjoys spending time in his backyard grilling and entertaining for family and friends.
Jaida Grey Eagle
Jaida Grey Eagle is an Oglala Lakota artist, currently located in St. Paul. She is a photojournalist, producer, beadwork artist, and writer. She is a Report for America Fellow with the Sahan Journal covering communities of color in the Twin Cities and also is researching Indigenous photography at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts as an ongoing former Curatorial Fellow.
Michael Kleber-Diggs
Michael Kleber-Diggs is a poet, essayist, and literary critic. His debut poetry collection, “Worldly Things,” won the Max Ritvo Poetry Prize (Milkweed Editions, 2021). His essay, “On the Complex Flavors of Black Joy,” is included in the anthology “There’s a Revolution Outside, My Love: Letters from a Crisis,” edited by Tracy K. Smith and John Freeman. Among other places, Kleber-Diggs’ writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Great River Review, Water~Stone Review, Poem-a-Day, Poetry Daily, Poetry Northwest, Potomac Review, Hunger Mountain, Memorious, and a few anthologies.
Website
Natalia Mendez
Natalia Mendez (they/them) is a queer Latine writer with Lake Street roots currently living in North Minneapolis. They write about food, the outdoors, travel, and life on the margins. They can be found on a bike or motorcycle, behind a camera, in the kitchen, or snuggling with their two cats, Carl and Cosmo. For more of their work, check out their food project on Instagram @lengua.y.corazon, or their website, bynataliamendez.com.
Taycier Elhindi
Tay Elhindi (she/her) is a Black bi-racial writer currently living in Minneapolis. She's a food and culture journalist with a background in the hospitality industry. Tay is also a community organizer for social racial justice and works to build stronger, more diverse communities rooted in equity. Outside of community organizing, she can be found at school, where she studies graphic design and marketing, in the kitchen cooking for friends and family, or visiting a local coffee shop with friends. Follow along with Tay on Instagram, @tayelhindi.
Tiffany Bui
Tiffany Bui is a reporter focused on race and culture in Minneapolis. Her work has been published at MinnPost, Minnesota Public Radio, Sahan Journal, and Insight News. She is a recent graduate of the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities.
Photographers & Videographers
Annie Wang
Annie is a freelance photographer with a passion for food and Minneapolis history. Born in Taiwan and raised in Minnesota, she lives in Minneapolis with her husband and daughter.
Asha Belk
Asha Belk is a school social worker and photographer that lives in North Minneapolis. Her inspiration comes from the simplicity of nature, meeting new people, hearing their stories, and beautifully plated food. What she enjoys most about photography is capturing life unscripted because it's when true emotion and vulnerability come to life.
Jaida Grey Eagle
Jaida Grey Eagle is an Oglala Lakota artist, currently located in St. Paul. She is a photojournalist, producer, beadwork artist, and writer. She is a Report for America Fellow with the Sahan Journal covering communities of color in the Twin Cities and also is researching Indigenous photography at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts as an ongoing former Curatorial Fellow.
John Yuccas
John Yuccas is an award-winning photographer based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. With a passion for capturing candid, authentic moments, John blends documentary and fine art photography to tell compelling stories through his lens. Not only is John recognized for his artistic eye, but he also creates commercially and editorially for clients ranging from magazines to commercial brands. With a keen eye for capturing real-life moments, John is always on the lookout for new stories to tell with his images.
Mike Madison, BUMP OPERA
Mike Madison is freelance photographer and award-winning photojournalist from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has contributed to the multiple publications and photographed countless concerts and music festivals and has been the official photographer for RhymesSayers' Soundset Music Festival since 2015. In addition to concert photography Madison's portfolio includes protests, portraiture, fashion, wedding and event photography. "The most versatile photographer you know."
Paola Carlson-Sanchez
Paola Carlson-Sanchez is a bilingual communications specialist and a freelance multimedia story teller that lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota since 2016. She loves to photograph, write, read and explore the places she calls home. Paola comes from Ecuador but has lived in Germany and Russia and is interested in health, community engagement and social justice issues.
Rebecca Rabb
I am proud to be born and raised in North Minneapolis! I love documentary photography, and shooting all the beautiful things going on in my community. The best part of taking pictures is building relationships in different spaces. When not taking pictures, I enjoy spending my time with my husband and 5 children.
Ryan Stopera
Ryan is a mixed race, Chinese American, photographer, filmmaker, producer and educator based in Minneapolis. He's worked with community organizations for over 15 years including with individuals experiencing homelessness, children and families, and foster care youth, as well as in program development and affordable housing development. Ryan's background in social work and his relationships across communities make collaboration essential to his work, whether in creative projects such as filmmaking, or making space for connection, such as producing community events or program development.
Uche Iroegbu
Uche is a locally-based documentary photographer who has compellingly covered numerous aspects of the Black experience, including the protests and demonstrations arising from the murder of George Floyd and the killing of Daunte Wright. Dedicated to the creation of fine imagery. "I am happy to shoot in the street, happy to document social issues and happy to make photographic art for the foreseeable future. If any goal at all, it will be to help tell stories and capture beauty."
Vic Campbell
Originally from the UK, I first moved to Minnesota 9 years ago. After a few back and forths between the two countries, I now call Minneapolis home. I have built my career out of telling client stories through photography. From food & travel to brand and lifestyle photography, I'm passionate about the people behind every dish, craft or service and take great pride in being able to document the best version of that story. I'm drawn to images that aren't perfect - the ones that make you look twice or raise a question.
Yasmin Yassin
Based in Minnesota, Yasmin is an editorial and commercial photographer + director. Her work focuses on celebrating & highlighting community-based stories and subcultures. With a background in science, Yasmin brings her research experience along with her to build relationships & understand context before creating portraits and moving images. Her goal is to tell stories as authentically as possible to their essence, with integrity towards those that invite her into their lives — in the tradition of her East African oral-storytelling heritage — and recreate feelings in her imagery using the dynamic effect of light and color, while considering the lived experiences of those captured in relation to shared spaces and environments.
Illustrator
Jesús Li
Jesus Li, a Peruvian visual artist, offers a unique perspective on the complex experience of cultural and identity development. His work, inspired by his Latino indigenous heritage, uses contemporary vernacular visual culture to create a platform for interpretation. Through his typographic expression, immersive installations, evocative illustrations, and dynamic animations, Jesus presents his practice in a way that is both intriguing and thought-provoking. With over 15 years of experience in the advertising and media industry, Jesus Li has honed his skills in human rights advocacy, art education, and community work. Currently, he serves as a graphic designer at Carmichael Lynch and adjunct faculty at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design.
Website
In partnership with Meet Minneapolis and Greenspring Media
Meet Minneapolis is the accredited Destination Marketing Organization from Destinations International. At Meet Minneapolis, our mission is to positively impact the economic and social prosperity of our Minneapolis community by attracting visitors, meetings and events that directly support jobs and local businesses, and generate critical revenues.
This project is also in partnership with Greenspring Media, a multi-platform communications company in Minnesota that specializes in the creation and distribution of compelling content to connect readers and viewers to clients and partners.
