Strib, local content:
Coon Rapids nonprofit wants a vote on changing city's name
It contains a racial slur and doesn't reflect area's diversity, advocates say.
The nonprofit Transformative Circle launched an informal survey this month to gauge interest in changing the city's name. Founder and Director Lori Anderson said the survey is all about starting a conversation.
"I've been wanting to change the name since I moved here 33 years ago," she said. "I learned very quickly to say 'Minneapolis' when someone asks me where I'm from."
Coon Rapids' name is derived from Coon Creek, where landowners in the early 1800s hunted an abundance of raccoons for pelts, according to the city's website.
But the name also includes a racial slur. The Jim Crow Museum at Michigan's Ferris State University describes "coon" as a stock character in minstrel performances and "the most blatantly degrading of all Black stereotypes."
Derrick Biney, a minister at Kingdom Covenant International Fellowship in Coon Rapids, said that if you remove the word "rapids" the city's name is racist.
"As an African American male … 'coon' triggers a bad name," he said. "It's obviously meant for a raccoon, for sure, but it was used for African Americans. Obviously it's dehumanizing."
Transformative Circle's survey was open for five days, during which 464 people responded, with 38% in favor of changing the name and 62% opposed. Fewer than half of the respondents live in Coon Rapids, while about 20% shop or conduct business there and 8% work there.
Anderson said some respondents who shared why they are in favor of changing the name "spoke of embarrassment at the name, humiliation of having to explain the origin of the name knowing that the word … is also used as a racial slur."
Some commented that they didn't know the name included a disparaging term.
[...] Mayor Jerry Koch declined to comment on new efforts to change the city's name.
Newly elected City Council Member Kari Rehrauer is the only vocal supporter on the council for changing the name. The city's name should reflect its growing diversity, she said.
About 8% of Coon Rapids' population identifies as Black or African American, according to the U.S. census.
Okay, the easy: North Burbs, MN is fair and balanced, and has no chance.
Creekside, MN and Riverside, MN both are valid, and have no chance.
Politically Correct, MN - not a winner.
Looking to the Strib-mentioned organizations, "Transformative Circle" and "Kingdom Covenant International Fellowship," is there inspiration? Transformative, MN? No. Then, Kingdom and Fellowship are out as names. If the aim is to be politically correct, gender bias fails, clearly.What to do?
Reflect back a decade and a half or so. Gov. Jesse Ventura days. and Garry Trudeau had Doonesbury looking at mythical politics, in his chosen town in our state, Coon Rapids, with Duke running a campaign from there, Zonker to help -
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It is warm, it resonates, and Anoka County has pride in its trail system.
Show up at a city council meeting, and in citizen input, mention the naming question, and suggest Happy Trails. It might move council members off the dime. It might even get a response from the mayor.
UPDATE: ZeroHedge.
FURTHER UPDATE: YouTube.
FURTHER UPDATE: "Quaker said it sought input from customers, employees and external cultural experts as it developed the new brand name."