Social Issues

Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center celebrates 40 years
The Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center celebrated its 40th anniversary this week in Minneapolis. The center was established in 1984 out of a need for addiction treatment centers that focused on care for Native women in Minnesota. 
Black Minneapolis residents bear heaviest mental health burden after George Floyd’s murder, new research finds
“Often in epidemiological studies, advantage, say, wealth or socioeconomic status will often serve as a buffer against health problems. But we don’t find that here,” said coauthor Ryan Larson, an assistant professor of criminology at Hamline University.
Watchdog finds Black girls face more frequent, severe discipline in school
The Government Accountability Office found that Black girls received nearly half of the most severe punishments, like expulsion, even though they represent only 15 percent of girls in public schools.
‘This is affecting a lot of people in my community‘: Haitians in Minnesota stand strong amid hateful rhetoric
Djenane Saint Juste is an author, dancer and the founder of the Haitian arts organization Afoutayi. She said that the political discussion around Haitians has deeply impacted her community here in Minnesota.
Gas pipeline approved near pipestone quarry sacred to Indigenous people, with conditions
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission approved a permit to Magellan Pipeline Company along a route near a pipestone quarry considered sacred by many tribal nations. Tribal input over the past year resulted in the commission requiring the pipeline company to consult with tribes.
Local lawmakers struggle with Duluth child care crisis
Lawmakers, parents and child care providers gathered for a roundtable to discuss possible solutions after the announcement of closures of three child care centers.
What to know about the two waves of deadly explosions that hit Lebanon and Syria
Just one day after pagers used by hundreds of members of militant group Hezbollah exploded, more electronic devices detonated in Lebanon Wednesday in what appeared to be a second wave of sophisticated, deadly attacks that targeted an extraordinary number of people.
Questions linger for adoptees after China ends international adoptions
Thousands are left wondering what’s next after China announced last week it has ended its international adoption program. Grace Shu Gerloff is one of more than 80,000 kids who were adopted from China and brought to the U.S. in the past three decades. She grew up in Minnesota and now studies transnational adoption.
Minnesota’s oldest Black-owned newspaper celebrates 90 years in print
MPR News host Angela Davis talks about the history and future of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. Minnesota’s oldest Black-owned newspaper just celebrated 90 years in print.
Rural Voice: How to build more civic-minded communities
MPR News host Kerri Miller took her Rural Voice series to Red Wing on Thursday to talk with community members and political scientist Brian Klaas about how to build a new spirit of civic engagement in rural Minnesota.