Katherine Raz
@therealkatraz.bsky.social
I own a flower shop in Tacoma called Fernseed. Opening in Centralia, Wa. in 2026. I also write a Substack called Storefront Revolt, exploring the practical economics of running an independent retail business. storefrontrevolt.substack.com
I still don’t see the right questions asked: *WHY* are BIPOC small business owners “often considered high risk” for lending? Underwriting defines risk, then you create programs to work around it. Look under the hood at the underwriting guidelines—ask better questions.
A Commercial Down Payment Program Is Saving Miami’s Small Businesses From Displacement
The Miami Foundation’s Collective Real Estate Ownership program has helped 30 small businesses owners go from renting their storefront properties to owning their own buildings.
nextcity.org
January 19, 2026 at 4:41 PM
I still don’t see the right questions asked: *WHY* are BIPOC small business owners “often considered high risk” for lending? Underwriting defines risk, then you create programs to work around it. Look under the hood at the underwriting guidelines—ask better questions.
I started a podcast—or really just an audio version of my Substack so I don't have to spend so much time writing. This first episode is pretty straightforward while I learn the tech. Future episodes I will yell more about how broken everything is.
Introducing Storefront Revolt: The Podcast
Practical conversations about storefront ownership and survival on Main Street
storefrontrevolt.substack.com
January 17, 2026 at 11:07 PM
I started a podcast—or really just an audio version of my Substack so I don't have to spend so much time writing. This first episode is pretty straightforward while I learn the tech. Future episodes I will yell more about how broken everything is.
Reposted by Katherine Raz
ICE observers in the Twin Cities are in need of dash cams to prevent further intimidation and frivolous claims.
Cams are $110, memory cards $35, and ship to us directly via this wish list: www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/...
If you've been looking for a way to help, we'd sure appreciate it!
Cams are $110, memory cards $35, and ship to us directly via this wish list: www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/...
If you've been looking for a way to help, we'd sure appreciate it!
January 6, 2026 at 3:05 AM
ICE observers in the Twin Cities are in need of dash cams to prevent further intimidation and frivolous claims.
Cams are $110, memory cards $35, and ship to us directly via this wish list: www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/...
If you've been looking for a way to help, we'd sure appreciate it!
Cams are $110, memory cards $35, and ship to us directly via this wish list: www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/...
If you've been looking for a way to help, we'd sure appreciate it!
Reposted by Katherine Raz
On Jan. 7, two days after Nick Benson (@ottergoose.net) put out his call for dashcam donations, ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot legal observer Renee Good in the face. Now, he’s received over 500 dashcams. @evystadium.bsky.social has more.
Story by @mjgault.bsky.social: www.404media.co/how-one-guy-...
Story by @mjgault.bsky.social: www.404media.co/how-one-guy-...
January 14, 2026 at 7:36 PM
On Jan. 7, two days after Nick Benson (@ottergoose.net) put out his call for dashcam donations, ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot legal observer Renee Good in the face. Now, he’s received over 500 dashcams. @evystadium.bsky.social has more.
Story by @mjgault.bsky.social: www.404media.co/how-one-guy-...
Story by @mjgault.bsky.social: www.404media.co/how-one-guy-...
Okay @cityoftacoma.bsky.social—I want a seat at the table when you're exploring this, especially as I may have influenced this sentence even getting included in the Community and Economic Development Strategic Plan 2026-2030. (Feel free to verify that on your own.)
January 13, 2026 at 6:04 PM
Okay @cityoftacoma.bsky.social—I want a seat at the table when you're exploring this, especially as I may have influenced this sentence even getting included in the Community and Economic Development Strategic Plan 2026-2030. (Feel free to verify that on your own.)
I'm no fan of Amex but get the money if you can. Small Business grants from @mainstreetamerica.bsky.social - applications due this Friday 1/16. mainstreet.org/about/partne...
January 12, 2026 at 4:45 PM
I'm no fan of Amex but get the money if you can. Small Business grants from @mainstreetamerica.bsky.social - applications due this Friday 1/16. mainstreet.org/about/partne...
They really bury the lead in reporting this everywhere. They’re returning to Tacoma—their first Tacoma shop closed when they were forced into internment camps during WWII.
The grocery launched in Tacoma nearly 100 years ago.
Popular Asian grocer returning to its hometown Tacoma with new store in 2027
The grocery launched in Tacoma nearly 100 years ago.
bit.ly
January 9, 2026 at 3:07 AM
They really bury the lead in reporting this everywhere. They’re returning to Tacoma—their first Tacoma shop closed when they were forced into internment camps during WWII.
Overdue post about my trip to our nation’s capital and what I learned meeting with senators for the first time about an issue no one knows about. Also WTF was I thinking dating Goldman Sachs?
Storefront Revolt Goes to Washington D.C.
How I ended up in D.C. with Goldman Sachs, and what I asked of my elected leaders
open.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 3:05 AM
Overdue post about my trip to our nation’s capital and what I learned meeting with senators for the first time about an issue no one knows about. Also WTF was I thinking dating Goldman Sachs?
Fuck you, Mitt Romney. You should’ve been saying this when you sold off ToysRUs for parts.
Opinion | Mitt Romney: Tax the Rich, Like Me
www.nytimes.com
December 20, 2025 at 1:12 AM
Fuck you, Mitt Romney. You should’ve been saying this when you sold off ToysRUs for parts.
After everything I’ve been talking about for 4 years I finally watched It’s A Wonderful Life for the first time. Wow!
December 14, 2025 at 5:24 PM
After everything I’ve been talking about for 4 years I finally watched It’s A Wonderful Life for the first time. Wow!
It's that heart-warming time of year again where I yell at everyone about how this whole #smallbusinesssaturday business is an ad campaign for the most evil credit card company in the industry.
Please stop celebrating Small Business Saturday
It's just an ad campaign for American Express.
storefrontrevolt.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:39 PM
It's that heart-warming time of year again where I yell at everyone about how this whole #smallbusinesssaturday business is an ad campaign for the most evil credit card company in the industry.
Tacoma lost one of our (if not THE) best and brightest last week. Mattice was everything you want a community focused small business owner to be. Please read the GoFundMe details to understand just how under-supported so many business owners area. Donate if you can.
Donate to Let's Rally One Last Time for our Mayor, Mattice, organized by Lauren S
Let’s rally to celebrate the life of one of Tacoma’s brightest lights.
You … Lauren S needs your support for Let's Rally One Last Time for our Mayor, Mattice
www.gofundme.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Tacoma lost one of our (if not THE) best and brightest last week. Mattice was everything you want a community focused small business owner to be. Please read the GoFundMe details to understand just how under-supported so many business owners area. Donate if you can.
Reposted by Katherine Raz
Trump's Chicago deportation blitz has hinged on aggressive and forceful policing tactics: Shootings, takedowns, chokeholds, car chases, chemical munitions, etc.
To get a better sense of the scope and the impact, we mapped incidents, spoke to those affected and analyzed policy.
tinyurl.com/3nrkaw55
To get a better sense of the scope and the impact, we mapped incidents, spoke to those affected and analyzed policy.
tinyurl.com/3nrkaw55
Tear gas, car crashes, rubber bullets: Risky tactics have driven Trump’s Chicago deportation ‘blitz’
Law enforcement experts say federal agents have displayed a lack of training and restraint. “They’re out of control,” ex-police Supt. Garry McCarthy says.
tinyurl.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Trump's Chicago deportation blitz has hinged on aggressive and forceful policing tactics: Shootings, takedowns, chokeholds, car chases, chemical munitions, etc.
To get a better sense of the scope and the impact, we mapped incidents, spoke to those affected and analyzed policy.
tinyurl.com/3nrkaw55
To get a better sense of the scope and the impact, we mapped incidents, spoke to those affected and analyzed policy.
tinyurl.com/3nrkaw55
What I miss having left Chicago: actual grit, then epic writing about it. Also do what Sinker says and donate to @icirr.bsky.social.
It’s being reported that Greg Bovino and 250 of his goons will be leaving Chicago. But it’s also being reported that he’ll be back, in larger numbers. But Chicago is a boxer, tired but unbowed. I wrote about how we’ll be ready. dansinker.com/posts/202…
November 14, 2025 at 3:21 PM
What I miss having left Chicago: actual grit, then epic writing about it. Also do what Sinker says and donate to @icirr.bsky.social.
Lots of businesses giving back right now during the SNAP crisis. Some good thoughts here on how to direct that to mutual aid / not charity + incorporating mutual aid approach into other parts of business.
Mutual aid as a business model
Waking Giants owner Sera Bonds shares how mutual aid compares with traditional charity and how Waking Giants builds it into the way they do business
www.healthyrich.co
November 13, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Lots of businesses giving back right now during the SNAP crisis. Some good thoughts here on how to direct that to mutual aid / not charity + incorporating mutual aid approach into other parts of business.
I will definitely be attending this webinar, though. Mark Fulop in PDX turned me on to public banking and now I'm all in.
Public Banking Coast-to-Coast Webinar ft. Senator Elizabeth Warren! - CA Public Banking Alliance
A national conversation exploring how cities and states are moving to reclaim public money for the public good.As the federal government cuts core funding for cities and states, people are organizing ...
capublicbanking.com
November 13, 2025 at 5:10 PM
I will definitely be attending this webinar, though. Mark Fulop in PDX turned me on to public banking and now I'm all in.
I would totally go to this if I had infinite time & resources. Go on my behalf and report back.
2026 Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference | Center for Community Progress
Join us in Pittsburgh, PA for the only national conference fully dedicated to tackling vacant properties and advancing revitalization.
communityprogress.org
November 13, 2025 at 5:00 PM
I would totally go to this if I had infinite time & resources. Go on my behalf and report back.
I've been writing about businesses getting access to capital to buy their buildings for 18+ months now. I started by connecting the economic stability of owning the real estate to success in small biz, then *how banks lend* to why it's harder for business owners to get loans to buy their buildings.
November 10, 2025 at 5:49 PM
I've been writing about businesses getting access to capital to buy their buildings for 18+ months now. I started by connecting the economic stability of owning the real estate to success in small biz, then *how banks lend* to why it's harder for business owners to get loans to buy their buildings.
Reposted by Katherine Raz
There is no excuse for giving in to a bad deal —
especially after voters turned out in record numbers last week to elect Democrats on the promise that they would stand up and fight for working families.
especially after voters turned out in record numbers last week to elect Democrats on the promise that they would stand up and fight for working families.
November 10, 2025 at 4:06 AM
There is no excuse for giving in to a bad deal —
especially after voters turned out in record numbers last week to elect Democrats on the promise that they would stand up and fight for working families.
especially after voters turned out in record numbers last week to elect Democrats on the promise that they would stand up and fight for working families.
Reposted by Katherine Raz
This is not what they actually say. This is what they used to say, in the long ago before times when Shaheen learned to do politics. There is no kumbaya median voter anymore. The question you get knocking doors is not "why can't you all just work together?" it's "why didn't / will you fight harder?
Shaheen: "When I talk to my constituents in New Hampshire, you know what they say to me? They say, 'Why can't you all just work together to address the problems that are facing this country?'"
November 10, 2025 at 3:15 AM
This is not what they actually say. This is what they used to say, in the long ago before times when Shaheen learned to do politics. There is no kumbaya median voter anymore. The question you get knocking doors is not "why can't you all just work together?" it's "why didn't / will you fight harder?
Rather, "AI is an easy excuse to trim a workforce and blame inevitability, not our desire for more profit during a downturn."
AI is reshaping retail downsizing and restructuring
Across all industries, AI was the second-most-cited factor by executives for layoffs this month, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
www.modernretail.co
November 10, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Rather, "AI is an easy excuse to trim a workforce and blame inevitability, not our desire for more profit during a downturn."
I finished this last week. Apologies in advance for talking about the smelter plume a lot for the next 6 months. I blame the arsenic in my soil.
Katherine's review of Murderland
3/5: Maybe the book’s title gives enough away, “Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers” has nothing to do with lead, arsenic, cadmium, or poorly designed bridges. I gave the first half of t...
www.goodreads.com
November 10, 2025 at 4:04 PM
I finished this last week. Apologies in advance for talking about the smelter plume a lot for the next 6 months. I blame the arsenic in my soil.
Lot of good stuff in this interview if you ever wondered why there aren’t local stock markets. (TIL there used to be.)
The Plumbing of Local Finance
My first writings on local finance, such as my 2007 Schumacher Lecture, were about the need for local stock exchanges.
open.substack.com
November 8, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Lot of good stuff in this interview if you ever wondered why there aren’t local stock markets. (TIL there used to be.)
Wins.
The Re-Shellacking
By: Main Street Alliance
open.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 2:21 AM
Wins.