North Star Journey

George Floyd's murder in 2020 led to calls to end police violence and racism. Five years later, advocates say not enough has changed. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Medaria Arradondo, the retired Minneapolis police chief, about his book, “Chief Rondo: Securing Justice for the Murder of George Floyd.”Guest: Medaria Arradondo is the former police chief for the city of Minneapolis. He is president and CEO of Optimus Sui Consulting and he serves on the Board of Commissioners for the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority. He is also a member of the executive board of the Fentanyl Free Communities Foundation. And he is co-author of the new book, “Chief Rondo: Securing Justice for the Murder of George Floyd.”

When the norms and expectations of the workplace aren't working for you, what do you do?  If you're Alex West Steinman, you create your own workplace.  In 2017, West Steinman left a career in advertising and communications and joined three colleagues to found The Coven. Eight years later, The Coven has two coworking sites in the Twin Cities and another five franchise locations in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Along with desk space and professional development, the coworking network provides an inclusive community that lifts up its members. MPR News host Angela Davis talks to Alex West Steinman about her entrepreneurial journey and how to create workplaces that are welcoming.    This conversation was made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment's Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

Sitting on a frontage road perched above the interstate, hemmed by roads and nondescript government buildings near the Capitol, 12th and Robert streets in St. Paul isn't much to look at. But in 1903, this was the place to be if you loved baseball. There, the St. Paul Saints and the St. Paul Colored Gophers — two of the city's historic baseball teams — played at the Pillbox, sometimes called the “Downtown Ball Park,” a popular venue almost laughably small for baseball."It was a tiny ballpark,” said Stew Thornley, a local baseball historian who's seeking approval this year for a plaque to commemorate the Pillbox and its history in St. Paul."Even if you hit a ball over the fence, right down the line, it was worth only two bases,” he said. “There were another set of poles out to left and right center field. You had to get it more to center field and over the fence for it to be considered a home run."Home plate faced northwest, at what would be the site of the state Capitol, which was completed in 1905, two years after the Pillbox opened.While the Saints history is well-known, historians say the Colored Gophers were key to the history of Black baseball in Minnesota and across the country. They played a decade before the formation of the Negro Leagues."They are probably one of the greatest baseball teams, white or Black, in Minnesota history,” said Frank White, who wrote a book about Black baseball history in Minnesota. "And in terms of Black baseball, they are, for sure, the team.”  MPR News The history of black baseball in Minnesota Starting in 1907, the St. Paul Colored Gophers wrapped up a four-year run with a 380-89-2 record — winning more than 80 percent of their games — under legendary team owner Phil “Daddy” Reid, according to the Center for Negro League Baseball Research.Reid sought the fastest ball players he could find from around the country and paid them. The result was dominance, White said. The team beat the Saints in a 1907 unofficial state championship. In a series that was called the Black World Series by some, the Colored Gophers hosted Chicago's Leland Giants, one of the best Black baseball teams in the country, for a five-game series at the Pillbox, with Minnesota winning the series three games to two.Among the notable players on the Gophers were "Steel Arm” Johnny Taylor, William "Big Bill" Bill Gatewood and Bobby Marshall, who had played football for the Minnesota Gophers. Marshall happened to be one of the most famed Minnesota athletes at the time.Telling ‘the hidden history of Black baseball'After the 1910 season, Bobby Marshall bought the St. Paul Gophers. The team changed its name to the Twin Cities Gophers. The ballpark on Lexington Avenue near University Avenue became more popular and the Pillbox soon closed. It's such a distant memory that it has been forgotten by most.But not by Thornley. He has applied to put up a memorial plaque next to the Minnesota Department of Health laboratory where the park once stood."It's got greater significance than just to somebody like me who loves baseball, loves the old ballparks,” he said.“The chance to tell the story, the story of baseball, the story of the ballpark, but especially with the hidden history of Black baseball … many people here in Minnesota have been digging that history out and telling those stories. And this is one more way to do that,” Thornley said.He and others have worked to get plaques up at other baseball sites around the Twin Cities. But the application for the Pillbox site is more time-consuming than most. That's because it sits on the Capitol complex and has to go through the Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board. On top of that, it is the first application received since the board created a new multistep application procedure.The new process was put into place after the Christopher Columbus statue outside the Capitol was torn down by protesters in June 2020. The new process was put into place to make sure there is ample opportunity for public input on things being added or removed to the Capitol grounds. The staff at the Capitol architectural board say the application process for the marker for the Pillbox could take six to eight months, or longer."It's definitely a more involved process,” said Tina Chimuzu, a planning fellow at the CAAPB. She says the board considers many factors in applications, including whether it has public support.“Documented public support for the artwork, and the artwork has to have lasting statewide significance for Minnesotans,” she said. “And then the artwork has to be respectful of the diversity of Minnesotans. And then, does viewing the artwork provide a rich experience to broaden the understanding of Minnesota-shared history, heritage and culture?"Erik Cedarleaf Dahl, executive secretary for the Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board, said the team works to confirm and fact-check everything in the application. The goal is to learn as much as possible about it in their own research. "With limited space on the Capitol Mall, we want to make sure that what we're putting there is totally accurate, especially if you're going to go through this,” he said. “To ask taxpayers dollars to spend this time on this … we want to make sure that it is accurate and the process is effective."Public input on the application for the Pillbox field plaque is open until May 5.If all goes as planned, the plaque could be up this fall, although it still has several more fences to clear.

The Trump administration has proposed new executive orders and policies that are changing the lives of millions of immigrants. Dozens of international students have had their visas cancelled, birthright citizenship is being challenged and non-citizens — including those with authorization to work in the U.S. — have been removed quickly from the country without a court hearing. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Gloria Contreras Edin, an immigration attorney who has been has been following changes in immigration policy for years. They will talk about Gloria's journey, what inspired her to pursue law and what she's seeing on the ground as policies change.   Guests: Gloria Contreras Edin is an immigration attorney in St. Paul who has represented clients from more than 25 countries. She is also an adjunct professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law.  Here is a list of resources that were mentioned during the show:The Immigrant Law Center of MinnesotaThe Advocates for Human RightsThe International Institute of Minnesota

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated disparities within Minnesota's health care system that have existed for decades. Black, brown and Native Minnesotans died at a higher rate from the virus than their white neighbors, and it took them longer to get vaccinated.  As a result, health care and community leaders promised to renew their efforts to help all Minnesotans get access to quality, affordable care. Five years later, how's that going?North Star Journey Live, a event series from MPR News, took that question to Mandy's Coffee & Cafe in Red Wing on March 26 to get an honest assessment from community leaders who are doing the work every day. MPR News host Angela Davis talked with a county public health leader and the founder of a nonprofit clinic that's stepped into many of Minnesota's health care gaps. Together, they paint a picture of how health equity in rural communities has gotten better — and how they now fear it could get worse. Guests: Julie Malyon is the executive director and founder of CARE Clinic.Kristin Johnson is the deputy director of Goodhue County Health and Human Services.

In a Minneapolis rehearsal room, a group of Somali musicians gathers in a circle, playing music rooted in the cafés of Mogadishu. The sound is emotional, rhythmic and steeped in memory. It's called “Somali blues.”“The lyrics are just showing you what it means,” says Ahmed Ismail Yusuf, the group's leader. The style is similar to what you might have heard in Somalia before the civil war.“It is this lugubrious, lamentation [of] love not returned.”Yusuf and the small outfit — called Araa — are rehearsing for an upcoming concert, “Meet You at the Crossroads.” The concert is co-produced by the University of St. Thomas' Jay Phillips Center for Interreligious Studies and the Cultural Fluency Initiative.“This is really about the life of the city. There are more cultural groups in the Twin Cities than ever,” said David Jordan Harris, who works with the Jay Phillips Center and curated the concert. “Yet, do we know each other? How do we learn about each other? And you know, no better method than our musical traditions.” “Meet You at the Crossroads” will bring together Somali blues and songs inspired by Black gospel music. The idea came from a previous experiment Harris developed with Beck Lee, who runs the Cultural Fluency Initiative. “We did sort of a proof of concept concert salon a little while ago where we where we juxtaposed Sephardic music and Somali music,” Lee said. “It was just interesting to be able to experience those two musical cultures and juxtaposition and talk about it.”This time, Lee and Harris invited Yusuf to lead the Somali music, and JD Steele to bring the Black soul repertoire.“I love cross-cultural, cross-genre projects, because I've been doing them my entire career,” said Steele, known for his long career in the performing arts, and as a member of the well known family band, The Steeles. “Combining multicultural communities, it just excites me.”Steele will perform with his own band and the MacPhail Community Youth Choir, which he directs. Steele and Yusuf are also collaborating on a new song that the youth choir will sing at the concert. During rehearsal with the choir, Yusuf said it had been a long time since he'd taken part in something like it.“The last one that I was [in], was in Somalia,” Yusuf said, adding praise for Steele's work with the choir. “Seriously, you can see the master in hand.”As the performances approach, Steele said the goal is simple: to leave people feeling better than when they arrived.“Because right now, the need for uplifting, encouragement and inspiration is very palpable in our communities. So you know that's our responsibility as artists — is to uplift and inspire and encourage,” Steele said. The first concert takes place April 6 at the University of St. Thomas, launching the school's Culture of Encounter Ideas Festival. Another performance is set for April 27 at St. John's University in Collegeville.Correction (April 4, 2025): This story has been updated with the correct name of the concert series.

Patrick Kruse is a member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and a descendant of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. He lives and works along the shore of Mille Lacs Lake and has been creating birchbark art since the late ‘80s.  As a young adult, he says his mother had a dream where he worked with birchbark.  “My mom, kind of, not scolded, but warned me of the cultural significance of birchbark and not to be wasting it, because it's sacred,” he said.  He creates wall hangings and baskets, with scenes and images of nature. Kruse has even made birchbark cradles with colorful Ojibwe floral designs. Kruse says birchbark has always been used to tell stories. A prominent figure in several of his pieces is the Thunderbird, a spiritual figure in Ojibwe culture. He depicts the Thunderbird, using birchbark of various tones, surrounded by florals to show the changing of seasons. “When Native Americans hear the first thunder and lightning coming, they understand that it's the change of season — spring, flowers and rain. So, everything, instead of frozen ground, frozen tundra, everything starts growing,” Kruse said.  Melissa Fowler is a birchbark artist from the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. She began working with birchbark 14 years ago after becoming more involved in learning cultural traditions.  She fears that working with birchbark could become a lost artform someday.  Fowler has created elaborate pieces, including contemporary ones. She hopes to inspire younger people with pieces, such as earrings and a crossbody handbag. “I know that we don't preserve our food in it [birchbark] anymore but maybe wearing it as an adornment is something that really excites people and makes people feel good about themselves as a way to push that forward into our contemporary society,” Fowler said.  Kruse shares those sentiments. He says he doesn't know many other people who work with birchbark. Alongside his work as an artist, he shares the knowledge of birchbark with those wanting to learn. “I'm trying to teach a better way about the birch and the forest, the water and the rice, different things I promote them things because it's important,” Kruse said. “I'm not going to be here, but these children, and the children's children are going to be here.” According to Fowler, the Ojibwe word for birchbark is “wiigwaas.” She says the wiigwaas and birch tree are referred to as the tree of life, an important part of the survival of Ojibwe people.  “We would use birchbark on a daily basis, from gathering to preserving our food and water, our canoes, our shelter.  We'd use it for medicine. We'd even use it to record our teachings and stories on birchbark scrolls,” she said.   Not a single piece of bark goes to waste either. Kruse says he uses leftover pieces to create smaller artworks or to make baskets.  “I learned that even the most smallest birchbark can be used to make a nice little piece of art,” Kruse said. “So, we try not to waste nothing.” He says learning about culture and participating in traditional crafts gives people strength.  “It brings hope, and it gives you better strength, because you're actually doing some work in whether it's small, big, medium." Fowler currently has an exhibit at the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids, titled, “Endazhi-Dabendaagoziyaan - The Place Where I Belong.” She says her artwork will be at the Dr. Robert Powless Cultural Center in Duluth in August.  Kruse's artworks are featured in various collections and locations, including but not limited to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, the Science Museum of Minnesota and Minnesota Historical Society in downtown St. Paul and the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post in Onamia.  

On a corner in the center of St. Cloud, next to a former Wells Fargo bank, Abdikadir Bashir can view bustling cultural malls in three directions.There's a restaurant, a cafe, retail shops, a halal market, a health clinic — all started by East African immigrants who now call St. Cloud home.This busy hub is the heart of the recently arrived immigrant community in St. Cloud. Bashir, executive director of the Center for African Immigrants and Refugees Organization, said it challenges stereotypes of immigrants as a drain on the community.“This neighborhood is a testament to the contrary — that immigrants come here and do make the new communities better, economically, socially and culturally,” Bashir said. “And that's what we also intend to continue.”St. Cloud-based CAIRO provides services and support to immigrants and refugees, including education, health programs and workforce training. Those efforts have expanded to include helping address the shortage of housing in St. Cloud, one of multiple local efforts led by people of color.CAIRO bought the nearly 4-acre property on 33rd Avenue and Third Street North last year. It plans a mixed-use development with commercial, office and event space, and 70 rental apartments. “We came to realize that housing anchors everything,” Bashir said. “It is the foundation to human development. It is the foundation to community progress. Without a roof over your head, children will not be able to go to school. You will not be healthy. You will not be prospering economically.”The project is named Iskufilan Village. The Somali word means sufficient, whole or complete. Its supporters envision a thriving community hub that fosters a sense of belonging, with local businesses and essential services conveniently close by.Most of the 70 apartments will have three or four bedrooms. Bashir said that space is crucial for larger immigrant families that often include six or more people, compared to the U.S. average of 2.5.“We hear of moms that tend to hide their pregnancies, sometimes out of fear of growing out of their current apartment, or getting kicked out by a landlord,” he said. “I have heard stories of a family living in two adjacent apartments because one apartment is not (large) enough for them.”   The housing will be open to anyone, not restricted to immigrants or any certain demographics. Bashir said the project is driven by a belief in East African culture of a collective responsibility to solve problems.“It is led by the community,” he said. “It's coming from the community, because we have that lived experience.”At least 10 percent of the units will be designated as affordable, and the rest targeted toward middle-income working residents. Nearly half of St. Cloud's renters are cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.CAIRO is putting together the private financing for the project. They're also asking the Legislature for $5 million in state funds.At a recent Senate housing committee meeting, Farhiya Iman spoke in favor of the project. She's an educator and social worker who's lived in St. Cloud for 20 years.Iman said she frequently sees families working full time, but still unable to find affordable housing.“Housing isn't just about walls and roof. It's about stability. It's about dignity. It's about opportunity,” she said. “And for far too many families in St. Cloud, that opportunity does not exist.”St. Cloud's need for apartments is just the start. A recent study estimated the city needs 17,000 new housing units over the next 15 years.Mayor Jake Anderson, who took office in January, said the city also needs single-family homes, senior housing and low-income housing. Without adequate housing, it's difficult for the city to attract new businesses, and it risks losing workers and talent to other places, Anderson said.“If you're not adding housing and then families are beginning to expand, they're going to move,” he said. “So you may see migration out of the city to either other cities in the region or other regional centers.”Another St. Cloud group wants to make the dream of home ownership a reality for more people.Dreamliner Estates LLC was founded by three community leaders of color who come from different professional backgrounds: public transit, community engagement and finance.“We see the struggles when it comes to underrepresented communities, people of color and we see the struggles, how hard it is for them to even attain housing,” said co-founder Ryan Daniel, who is also CEO of St. Cloud Metro Bus, the city's transit service.Owning a home is important for families to build generational wealth, Daniel said. But statistically, home ownership rates in St. Cloud are lower for people of color.Daniel's partners are Eunice Adjei and Emmanuel Oppong. The siblings are originally from Ghana, West Africa, and have both lived in St. Cloud for more than a decade.Adjei is director of multicultural services for St. Cloud Financial Credit Union. She said the application process often deters people in underserved communities from buying a home.“We really want to make sure that they understand all the rules when it comes to housing, so that that wouldn't deter them from being part of the solution,” Adjei said.Dreamliner Estates secured a $3.4 million state grant from Minnesota Housing for the first phase. Daniel said they hope to complete four homes on St. Cloud's south side by the end of the year. Eventually, they plan to build a total of 34 homes.The plan calls for twin homes, each with four bedrooms, to accommodate large families or several generations living together, which is common in collectivist cultures.“Some demographics prefer to have not just Mom, Dad and kids,” said Oppong, who also serves as the city's community engagement director. “They want to have Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandad, nephews and cousins all living closely.”An Islamic prohibition on paying or earning interest can make it challenging for Muslims to buy a home. Adjei said St. Cloud Financial Credit Union, Stearns Bank and other area lending institutions currently provide or plan to offer Sharia-compliant alternatives to traditional mortgages.Both organizations say they know their projects are only a first step toward meeting the community's housing shortage.“Like they say, a journey of 1,000 miles starts with one step,” Bashir said. “This is that one step.”

In south Minneapolis, the sound of cars driving by is like white noise. Blue bags hang from maple trees that line the sides of city streets.  The Native American Community Development Institute, or NACDI, has been busy collecting sap from neighborhood trees in recent weeks for the purpose of sugar bushing.Sugar bushing is the process of collecting and boiling down sap into syrup or even pure sugar. Gloria Iacono works with NACDI as the Four Sisters Urban Farm manager. She is leading the project this spring.  “You go into hibernation in the winter and then you get that nice, like, first spring day, and it's just something that you can gather around. It's a practice that you can build community around,” Iacono said. She has had the support of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, since it's the first time NACDI is leading an urban sugar bush.  Forest Hunt is a plant scientist with the East Phillips Neighborhood Institute and is a direct descendent of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians in North Dakota. They say sugar bushing is a springtime tradition in Native communities. “It has been happening in Woodland Native tribes for over a millennium,” Hunt said.  NACDI has been collecting sap from Center School, Bii Di Gain elder housing, and South High School, where a demonstration was held. Hunt showed students how to properly identify when a tree can be tapped and how to tap a tree.  “You can always tell that it's time to tap when the snow starts to melt and when you start to see little patches of dirt or dead grass. That's around when you should start tapping your maples,” Hunt explained. Hunt then drilled a small hole into the tree before using a hammer to lightly tap a metal spile, like a spout, in the rest of the way until water-like sap began to drip out. Several stepped up to try the sap straight from the source after being invited by Hunt. The taste? They say it was sweet.  Iacono has been boiling the sap into syrup right at the organization's urban farm in East Phillips. Community members were invited to watch the process of how sap turns into syrup.  “We have a steel drum, with the top cut off, that fits pans in the top. And you build a fire within the drum, and then that boils the sap,” Iacono said. She says five gallons of sap will boil down to about a mason jar's worth of syrup.  At one community boil, Turtle Mountain Band member Tyra Payer demonstrated how to turn maple syrup into candies. They say although they tap trees outside of the metro, there is cultural value to be had in urban sugar bushing. “There are teachings that only happen at this time of year,” they said. “The teachings that we have around maple, and making maple sugar and what our community looks like and how we support each other.”  Hunt says maple syrup has been a significant food historically alongside wild rice.  “It's really important for us to continue practicing these traditions, because it allows us to continue to have that, that sense of self, that sovereignty that we really need,” Hunt said.  With the amount of sap that the community has collected over the course of a few weeks, Iacono says they will produce about one gallon of pure maple syrup. The syrup will be distributed to those who helped collect the sap.Correction (March 20, 2025):  A previous version of this story incorrectly identified Forest Hunt's affiliation. The story has been updated.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with the president and CEO of the Women's Foundation of Minnesota about investing in women and girls to ensure their safety, health and economic success.

Through the hard work of Minnesota genealogists, Minneapolis' oldest cemetery has a new designation by the National Park Service. Pioneers & Soldiers Cemetery, located just southeast of downtown, is now considered part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. The new designation comes after the discovery of three African American Freedom Seekers and one African American abolitionist buried there.“I just feel like I'm the spokesman, and I'm very happy to do it,” said St. Paul native and genealogist Elyse Hill on Friday's Morning Edition. Hill specializes in African American genealogy and said the process of unearthing this history was difficult. Many stories of enslaved people are passed down orally and, when their stories are written, it's rare to find them preserved, she said. “It takes a lot of digging, many hours of searching,” Hill said. “It's not easy.”Hill's research provided “the basis” for the National Park Service Designation, according to a press release from cemetery board president Susan Hunter Weir. Hill spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about her work and the freedom seekers buried in the cemetery. The transcript below has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Click on the player above to hear the conversation.One of the formerly enslaved people buried at Pioneers & Soldiers Cemetery is Hester Patterson. She seemed like a very interesting person.Yes, she was. She was an enslaved individual in Mississippi, and there was a Minnesota unit during the Civil War down in that part of Mississippi, and apparently Hester had become a cook for one of the officers of that unit.He ultimately facilitated her escaping from slavery, sending her up to Minnesota, where she later lived with that family, cooked for that family.How hard is it to find information about folks like Hester Patterson?It can be very challenging, because you'd like to have — as much as possible — documented sources. You know, of course, we have a lot of oral histories, but to be able to get documented sources can be a challenge.Some events were documented, and those that were, where do they end up? Where do you find them? It takes a lot of digging, many hours of searching and and, yes, it's a challenge. It's not easy.I did not know much at all about William Goodridge. I know he was an abolitionist, but I did not know he was a conductor on the Underground Railroad in Pennsylvania. How did he wind up buried in this little south Minneapolis cemetery?He was actually a formerly enslaved person. He was freed by his owner and as an apprentice under his former owner, he learned different business-type activities.He ended up being a successful businessman that owned some railcars, and he would use his railcars to move enslaved people from one city to another in Pennsylvania. But ultimately, what happened to him was his businesses went bad. The Fugitive Slave Act came into place, so William moved to Minnesota. He had a daughter who was living in Minneapolis. She and her husband were also abolitionists, and he lived with them and then passed away and was buried in the cemetery.What spurs you to do this work?I just kind of feel like I'm kind of the spokesman for individuals such as Hester and William and so many of these other formerly enslaved persons in telling their story. They didn't have the opportunity to.And I just feel like to get the story out about them and what they went through and what their lives were like, versus just having a title “escaped slave” or “U.S. colored troop soldier” — to put a name to that, and also to put information about their lives to that — I'm very happy to do it.You can find upcoming Pioneer & Soldiers Cemetery events and learn more about African American genealogy here.

How did your family end up in Minnesota? Do you know the story of your ancestors' journey? In the 1800s, immigrants to our region primarily came from Scandinavia and Germany. More recently, major populations have come to Minnesota from Laos, Somalia, Mexico, Liberia, Ecuador, Afghanistan and India. In fact, almost 500,000 people who live in Minnesota today were born outside of the United States. But behind the where is also a why. And over time, those narratives can get lost if not recorded. North Star Journey Live: Immigrant Stories That's why MPR News, together with Sahan Journal, presented a collaborative North Star Journey Live and Sahan Community Live conversation at St. Paul Neighborhood Network on Feb. 20. Hosted by immigration reporters Sarah Thamer and Katelyn Vue, this in-person event focused on how immigrant communities in Minnesota preserve their histories and pass them on to new generations. Panelists shared their own arrival stories and tips for recording your own family's journey. Immigration stories Mu Performing Arts Real immigrant stories, told with puppets At Wellstone International High Students, Swedish-Americans swap immigrant stories How this Minneapolis street Grew from immigrant neighborhood to culinary hotspot You can listen to and watch more immigrant and refugee stories at the Minnesota Historical Society's Becoming Minnesotan online archive and the Immigrant History Research Center at the University of Minnesota. Panelists: Diego Guaman is the interim director of Movimiento Comunitario Minnesota and cofounder of the Aztec dance group Kalpulli Tlaloctecuhtli. Julie Vang is program manager at Green Card Voices — a nonprofit that uses storytelling to build community connections between immigrants and their neighbors.Marian Hassan is an educator and author helping to preserve Somali oral histories.Saengmany Ratsabout is an independent scholar and community advocate who studies Southeast Asian history and is helping to document the history of the Lao diaspora. He's also one of the founders of the Immigrant Stories project at the University of Minnesota's Immigration History Research Center. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan starts on Friday. During this time, Muslims observe a strict fast from dawn until sunset. That means the breaking of the fast at sunset, known as iftar, is a special event. The fast is usually broken with dates and a drink, depending on the culture. Since August, Muslim deli Holy Land in northeast Minneapolis has been prepping for an influx of customers. The deli has imported more than 26 kinds of dates from at least eight different countries. Majdi Wadi is the CEO of Holy Land. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini in studio to talk about Ramadan and preparations for the holiday.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks about the power of poetry with Junauda Petrus, the newly appointed Poet Laureate for the city of Minneapolis. She says poetry is “soul medicine” that can unite us in our shared humanity. Guest:Junauda Petrus is the recently appointed Poet Laureate for the city of Minneapolis. She is an author, playwright, filmmaker and co-founder of the experimental artist collective, Free Black Dirt. She is the author of the Coretta Scott King Award- winning young adult novel, “The Stars and the Blackness Between Them,” and the children's book, “Can We Please Give the Police to the Grandmothers?” Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.    

During the era of Jim Crow laws and racial segregation, 87 locations in Minnesota were listed in the Green Book, a guidebook that helped Black travelers find lodgings, businesses and gas stations that would serve them. But less than a quarter of these sites in Minnesota remain standing today. Most of the state's Green Book sites were in the Twin Cities and many were demolished to make way for the construction of I35-W and I-94. Nieeta Presley is a native of the historic Rondo neighborhood, which was one of those demolished by highway construction. She published research on Rondo Green Book sites with the Ramsey County Historical Society and joins MPR News host Nina Moini to share what she found.

On Feb. 19, 1942, shortly after Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order that enabled the forced removal and incarceration of 120,000 Japanese Americans in camps located mostly in the western United States.Many were citizens. Those camps closed a few years later and those who were detained resettled around the country. Vinicius Taguchi, president of the local chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League, said he sees parallels between this troubling history and the present.Particularly, the rhetoric used by the current Trump administration.“[During World War II] there was a lot of scapegoating and wartime hysteria,” Taguchi said. “That some people have to be kept on a registry, potentially needing to be locked away, if necessary. That's very frightening language for us.”The Minnesota chapter was founded in 1946 and has worked for decades to raise awareness about what the Japanese American community experienced to prevent history from repeating itself.As the group marks 83 years since Executive Order 9066, Taguchi believes this work is as urgent than ever.“If your rights can be taken away with the flick of a pen, are they truly rights or are they privileges? That's something we need to be aware of, and that's something we need to fight for — to secure rights for the strongest and the weakest among us.”For the full interview with Taguchi, use the audio player above.

Despite the freezing temperatures, the farmers at Route 1 Farms are already deep into harvesting lettuce and herbs this winter. They are growing food through a new creative way of indoor farming. The organization specifically focuses on supporting emerging farmers of color in the state. Route 1 Farm's executive director Marcus Carpenter joined Minnesota Now to talk about the project.

In celebration of Black History Month in February, MPR News is highlighting Black history throughout the state. From a fur trader believed to be one of the first African descendants in territory that is now Minnesota, to streets and parks renamed in 2024 after Black community leaders, these sites span the state and the centuries. Click to explore Black history sites throughout the stateSouthern Minnesotagibbs divGibbs Elementary School, RochesterGibbs Elementary School in Rochester is named after George W. Gibbs Jr., the first known Black person to set foot in Antarctica.Gibbs was serving in the U.S. Navy when he sailed to the continent as a member of Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd's third expedition.In January 1940, after almost 40 days at sea on the U.S.S. Bear, he was the first person to step off the ship.Gibbs moved to Rochester and became a civil rights activist and small business owner. He spent almost 20 years working at IBM, co-founded the Rochester Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, and founded an employment agency he operated until 1999.— Alex Haddon, radio reporter interndiv rushfordUnderground RailroadAlthough not much is known about Minnesota's role in the Underground Railroad due to its secrecy, the Rushford Area Historical Society believes the city was part of the network to help enslaved people to freedom. The area was home to abolitionists at the time and is about 16 miles from the Mississippi River, an escape route north to Canada. Secret rooms have been discovered in at least three homes in Rushford, which are all currently private residences. One home was built in 1859 for abolitionists George and Harriet Stevens and is thought to be a safe house in the 1860s. In a different house, a secret room was found downstairs after the flood of 2007. It's an 18-room, two-story house built in 1861 for Roswell and George Valentine. It is on the National Register of Historic Places.A third home was built in 1867 for Miles Carpenter, an early Rushford banker, and is also thought to be a safe house. The Rushford Area Historical Society also believes limestone caves were used to hide people escaping to freedom. — Lisa Ryan, editorCentral Minnesotadiv msrMinnesota Spokesman-Recorder, MinneapolisAs the oldest Black-owned newspaper and one of the longest standing family-owned newspapers in the country, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder is a point of pride in the Twin Cities. The paper was started in August 1934 by civil rights activist Cecil E. Newman with a split publication: the Minneapolis Spokesman and the St. Paul Recorder. In its first issue, Newman made a prediction and promise to readers, writing, “We feel sure St. Paul and Minneapolis will have real champions of the Race.” Today, Newman's granddaughter Tracey Williams-Dillard serves as the CEO and publisher for MSR and continues the paper that has been a trusted news source in the Black community for almost a century. As a weekly paper, MSR has tackled topics like local Ku Klux Klan activities, Brown v. Board of Education, the Civil Rights Movement, Minneapolis' first Black woman mayor, and George Floyd's murder. In 2015, its building at 3744 4th Ave. in Minneapolis became a state historic landmark.— Kyra Miles, early education reporterdiv penumbraPenumbra Theatre, St. PaulFounded in 1976, Penumbra Theatre was created by Lou Bellamy. Over the years, Penumbra has had the distinction of being the only Black professional theater in Minnesota. The name Penumbra means “half-light” or “partial eclipse.” It was founded using a Comprehensive Employment Training Act grant from the federal government. Its first production, Steve Carter's “Eden,” explored diversity of ethnicities within the African American community. In a 1977 interview with MPR News, Bellamy described the theater as being inadvertently political, with its focus on giving Black actors opportunities to perform at the professional level.  “The roles that you generally see — and it's because of the people who choose the shows — are waiters, butlers, things that if not debilitating, at least are not allowing them to show the extent of their capability,” Bellamy said.Penumbra has had a number of company members that are recognizable, both locally and nationally. Perhaps its most famous alumnus is playwright August Wilson, who developed some of his earliest plays at Penumbra. In a 2023 interview, Bellamy noted that the character Levee in “Ma Rainey's Black Bottom” was influenced by his brother Terry's portrayal in early readings. In 2021, under the direction of Lou's daughter Sarah Bellamy, the theater received a $5 million grant to build on its work in racial equality. — Jacob Aloi, arts reporter and newscasterdiv leeArthur and Edith Lee House, Minneapolis In June 1931, Arthur and Edith Lee, a Black couple, purchased the modest craftsman-style home in Minneapolis' Field neighborhood and moved into the predominantly white neighborhood with their young daughter, Mary.Several years earlier, property owners in the area signed a contract with the neighborhood association to not sell or rent their homes to anyone who wasn't white.When the Lees moved in, community members tried to force them out.Their home became the site of an urban riot in July 1931, when an angry mob of 4,000 white people gathered in their yard and spilled out onto the street, demanding the family leave the neighborhood.A U.S. postal worker, World War I veteran and NAACP member, Arthur Lee said he had a “right to establish a home” in the neighborhood of his choosing.Many individuals and organizations came to the family's defense, including local and national chapters of the NAACP and the prominent civil rights attorney, Lena Olive Smith. (see Lena O. Smith House below)The Lees stayed in their home until the fall of 1933. According to the National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, the family slept in the basement because of safety concerns, and their daughter Mary was escorted to kindergarten by the police.The Arthur and Edith Lee House became a designated historic property in Minneapolis in 2014.The Lee protests remain some of the largest and most widely publicized race-related demonstrations in Minnesota's history. The city of Minneapolis' local historic landmark designation similarly finds the Arthur and Edith Lee House to be associated “with broad patterns of social history, particularly in regard to African American history in Minneapolis, race relations and historical trends of housing discrimination.”— Erica Zurek, senior health reporterdiv floydGeorge Floyd Square, Minneapolis On May 25, 2020, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd outside of a convenience store at the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue on the south side of Minneapolis. The community transformed the intersection into a memorial and protest site. It's also become a point of contention over how to remember Floyd's murder and the protest movement that started here. Local protesters maintain that the site should be community-led, until the city meets a list of demands for justice. For a year after Floyd's murder, protesters kept the streets closed to traffic; city workers took down the barricades in 2021. Now, the city is locked in an ongoing debate over the square's future. City officials say the streets are overdue for reconstruction. They're pushing for a plan to rebuild the intersection, supported by some local residents and businesses on the block. But local activists, who still maintain the ongoing protest, say it's too soon for the city to take a role in the street design. Instead, they say they want the city to invest in neighborhood services, like housing and substance abuse programs.— Estelle Timar-Wilcox, general assignment reporterdiv hiawathaHiawatha Golf Course, MinneapolisAt a time when African American golfers were barred from participating in white-only tournaments and golf courses, the Hiawatha Golf Course became a popular gathering spot for Black golfers.The course opened in 1934 in south Minneapolis, and was the spot, a few years later, where African American golfer James “Jimmie” Slemmons created what's now the Upper Midwest Bronze Amateur Memorial — a tournament that welcomed Black golfers.Despite being a popular course for African Americans, the Hiawatha Golf Course clubhouse barred non-white golfers from entering. That is until 1952, when that rule ended, largely because of the efforts of golf legend and trailblazer Solomon Hughes Sr.“Hughes was an excellent golfer, recognized nationwide, yet still could not golf at white golf courses, which is why Hiawatha golf course is so important to us,” said Greg McMoore, a long-time south Minneapolis resident and historian.Although once only allowed to play with the United Golfer's Association, a league formed by Black golfers, Hughes was among the first Black golfers to tee off in a PGA event at the 1952 St. Paul Open.In 2022, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board officially named the clubhouse the Solomon Hughes Clubhouse. The golf course was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2023.— Cari Spencer, reporterdiv smithLena O. Smith House, MinneapolisCivil rights leader and trailblazing attorney Lena O. Smith lived in this Minneapolis home on 3905 Fifth Ave. S. While working in real estate, Smith witnessed up close the discriminatory practices that excluded Black families from certain neighborhoods of the city. She took that experience to law school and in 1921 became the first Black woman to practice law in the state of Minnesota.As an attorney, Smith took on several high-profile cases fighting segregation and defending the rights of Black residents of Minneapolis. She worked to desegregate spaces in the city including the Pantages Theatre and protected a Black family from a campaign to oust them from their home in a mostly white neighborhood of south Minneapolis. (see Arthur and Edith Lee House, above)Smith founded the Minneapolis Urban League and led the local chapter of the NAACP as its first woman president. She worked inside and outside of the courtroom to advance civil rights until her death in 1966. Her home was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. — Alanna Elder, producerdiv spiral‘Spiral for Justice' memorial, St. PaulOn the south lawn of the State Capitol grounds is the ‘Spiral for Justice' memorial for Roy Wilkins.Wilkins, who grew up in St. Paul's Rondo neighborhood, was a civil rights leader. He worked in various roles at the NAACP from 1931 to1977, leading the organization for 22 years.The memorial has 46 elements that are positioned in a spiral, getting higher and higher as they extend out from the middle and out beyond two walls that surround the main parts of the sculpture. Each element represents a year of his work at the NAACP, and the elements breaking through the wall represent progress breaking through barriers of racial inequality. The memorial, designed by sculptor Curtis Patterson, was dedicated in 1995.— Peter Cox, reporter div wigingtonClarence Wigington, St. PaulThe Highland Park Water Tower was designed by Clarence “Cap” Wigington, the first African American municipal architect in the United States.Wigington designed or supervised the creation of over 130 buildings throughout his decades-long career, with most located in St. Paul and designed during his tenure at the city architect's office between 1915 and 1949.He designed a number of city projects including fire stations and park buildings, as well as ice palaces for the St. Paul Winter Carnival. (He also designed my old stomping grounds, Chelsea Heights Elementary School, and an addition to my alma mater Murray Middle School.)Some of his other landmark structures include the Harriet Island Pavilion (since renamed after him), Roy Wilkins auditorium and the Holman Field Administration building at the St. Paul Downtown Airport.The Highland Park Water Tower, built in 1928, is one of three Wigington structures listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The others are the Harriet Island Pavilion and the Holman Field Administration building.— Feven Gerezgiher, reporter and producerNorthern Minnesotadiv gomerStatue of Tuskegee Airman Joe Gomer, DuluthA statue in the Duluth International Airport terminal honors a Minnesotan who was a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen during World War II.Joe Gomer was among the country's first Black fighter pilots, flying 68 combat missions in Europe. He and his fellow Tuskegee Airmen were tasked with protecting bombers from German fighters. The unit's success helped the push to end segregation in the U.S. military.Gomer stayed in the military after the war and later worked for the U.S. Forest Service in Minnesota. He lived in Duluth for 50 years and stayed active into his 90s. The Duluth News Tribune reported that Gomer shared the history of the Tuskegee Airmen and talked about the importance of education with school groups.Veterans' groups in Duluth worked to raise money for the statue to honor Gomer's service to his country; it was dedicated at the airport in 2012, on Gomer's 92nd birthday. Gomer died the following year at age 93; he was Minnesota's last living Tuskegee Airman.— Andrew Krueger, editordiv mosleyHattie Mosley, HibbingIn 1905, 23-year-old Hattie Mosley moved from Decatur, Ill., to the up-and-coming mining town of Hibbing, Minn. Twelve years prior, the town was established by a German miner. At the time, 50 percent of Hibbing residents were born in a foreign country. Yet Mosley, a Black woman, remained a minority, as it was still uncommon for Black people to live in northern Minnesota as long-term residents. This is according to history expert Aaron Brown, who was featured in an Almanac interview with Twin Cities Public Television about the resident. Mosley came to Hibbing as a widow, and did not have any children. She spent the next 30 years as a single woman caring for the mining town as its residents faced the Spanish Flu, the effects of World War I and other daily ailments. She often volunteered in poor immigrant communities and checked in on the sick, using her homemade cough syrup and homemade remedies to nurse most of the town back to health.She was known to help with the worst cases other medical professionals wouldn't dare to touch, including the most severe quarantined cases of the Spanish Flu. Because of this, she is described as a heroine and often called the Florence Nightingale of Hibbing, according to Brown.She died in 1938 and is buried in Maple Hill Cemetery. The beloved nurse and midwife's obituary said her greatest joy in life was helping those who could not afford care. “Her acts of charity, so freely given, numbered a legion and among the poor her death will be keenly felt,” read her obituary in the Hibbing Daily Tribune.Mosley was elected to the Hibbing Historical Society's Hall of Service and Achievement a decade ago.— Sam Stroozas, digital producerdiv st markSt. Mark AME, DuluthSt. Mark African Methodist Episcopal Church is in the Central Hillside area of Duluth. The church was built in 1900 and was added to the National Register in 1991. W. E. B. DuBois spoke at St. Mark in 1921 before a gathering of the Duluth chapter of the NAACP, which had recently been founded after the lynching of three Black men in downtown Duluth. DuBois founded the national organization in 1909.— Regina Medina, reporterdiv bonga pembinaFort Pembina, near present-day Pembina, N.D.Pierre Bonga and his family are well known in Minnesota's early Black history, before it was even a state. His son George Bonga was one of the first Black people born in what later became the state of Minnesota, according to MNopedia. George was born in the Northwest Territory around 1802, near present-day Duluth. His mother was Ojibwe, as were the two women he married in his lifetime. George was a guide and translator for negotiations with the Ojibwe for Territorial Governor Lewis Cass. While the Bonga family has connections to many locations in present-day Minnesota and the Great Lakes region, they spent time in Fort Pembina, according to the University of North Dakota. Pierre Bonga was also a trapper and interpreter. He primarily worked near the Red River, as well as near Lake Superior. He died in 1831, in what is now Minnesota. — Lisa Ryan, editorClick here.

MPR News host Angela Davis and her guests continue the conversation about the Minneapolis Police Department and an ambitious effort led by the Police and Black Men Project.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with retired professional soccer player, Tony Sanneh, about the programs his foundation has developed to empower young people to become the best version of themselves. Guest: Tony Sanneh is a retired professional soccer player and the founder and CEO of The Sanneh Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in St. Paul that aims to create positive social change through soccer, education and health. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.     

2025 marks 50 years since Hmong people started immigrating to Minnesota. Today, the state is home to a vibrant community of at least 95,000 Hmong Minnesotans. Through the Minnesota Historical Society and the state Legislature, the Hmong Cultural Center in St. Paul and the Hmong Studies Journal received a grant of nearly $25,000 to publish a special issue of the journal that will commemorate 50 years of Hmong people residing and contributing to life in Minnesota.It may be the first scholarly book collection to be solely dedicated to the range of Hmong experiences in Minnesota. Txongpao Lee is the executive director of the Hmong Cultural Center. Mark Pfeifer is the director of programs at the Hmong Cultural Center and the co-editor of the Hmong Studies Journal. Lee and Pfeifer joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about the importance of marking 50 years of Hmong people in Minnesota with a book.

A Pew Research study finds that 34 percent of U.S. adults who listen to podcasts say they regularly listen true crime podcasts. A Minnesota-made podcast is taking that genre in a different direction. Minnesota high school debate coach and wedding photographer Celisia Stanton noticed many wildly popular true crime podcasts seemed to ignore some of the systemic issues plaguing the criminal justice system, mainly when it's related to race. Stanton learned firsthand what the “justice” in “criminal justice” really meant when, in the middle of the pandemic she became the victim of a huge financial scheme that defrauded her of tens of thousands of dollars. Her podcast, “Truer Crime” aims to tackle some of the systemic issues related to race, victims and sexuality in the criminal justice system. The second season launched on Monday. Stanton joined Minnesota Now to talk about the podcast's success and the season two launch party, which is 7 p.m. on Thursday at Plymouth Congregational Church in Minneapolis.

Traducción Léelo en español A coalition of Minnesota Latino organizations called the Minnesota Latino Leadership Alliance held a press conference at the capitol Jan. 14. The group was advocating for initiatives for the upcoming legislative session, one of which is the proposed Minnesota Latino Museum, which would be a center for Latino arts, culture and heritage.“We are looking to build the first museum that is focused on the Latino community in the upper Midwest,” executive director Aaron Johnson-Ortiz said.The museum, which has existed as an organization for several years, has launched a $20 million capital campaign to build and operate a physical space. The proposed location is the West Side Flats area of Harriet Island Regional Park in St. Paul.“Since at least 1928 there's a historical record of people on the West Side wanting a Mexican and Latino Cultural Center,” Johnson-Ortiz said. “So this request goes back at least 100 years, and so we know that this work has been ongoing from multiple generations.”Jessica Lopez Lyman, an assistant professor of Chicano and Latino Studies at the University of Minnesota and a longtime advocate for the museum, also spoke. “We are excited for this museum to serve our entire state, to be a space to display, learn, teach and exchange ideas about our arts and culture,” Lopez Lyman said. She added that the museum would be in the historic St. Paul neighborhood “where the first Mexican immigrants established a barrio over a century ago, and later Chicano, Puerto Rican Boricua and other Latine people migrated to build community.”Lopez Lyman said that the museum has been a dream of hers since she was a kid, noting, however, that the community seeded the idea long before she was born, pointing to Luis Garzón, the first Latino person to permanently relocate to Minnesota in 1886.Garzón, who is now buried in the Minneapolis Lakewood Cemetery, was an artist and musician who lived in the West Side Flats.“He created a store that functioned as a community center. People came to not only purchase dulces or ingredients they couldn't find anywhere else,” Lopez said, “But they also came for convivencia, to feel connected, to coexist with others after a long day on the railroad or working in the fields or cleaning houses. Garzón's space, due to the people who interacted with it, became a space for arts and culture.”Johnson-Ortiz said the museum efforts began around 2015 with the local artist group (Neo)Muralismos de México. They have hosted mural and art-making events and workshops around the state, from Duluth to Worthington.The museum building “is something that will likely take a couple years to develop, but that doesn't mean that we're not going to be doing activities and exhibits and public art,” said Johnson-Ortiz. In 2022, the museum group led the creation of the State Capitol's first-ever ofrenda, or a traditional altar for the Mexican celebration of Día de los Muertos. He said this prompted Gov. Tim Walz to officially recognize Day of the Dead in Minnesota. Johnson-Ortiz, who is also a co-founder of the national group Mexican Cultural Arts Alliance, said that Minnesota is likely the first state to have done this.Johnson-Ortiz predicts if they meet their fundraising goals, the museum will open in 2029.In October 2023, Minnesota Rep. María Isa Pérez-Vega, DFL-St. Paul, stated her support for the museum at a press conference for National Latinx Heritage Month. “Latino artists have made significant contributions to Minnesota's art and culture, but their work is often underrepresented in museums and galleries,” Pérez-Vega said in a statement. “We must establish Minnesota's first Museum of Latino Arts to fill this gap and give Latino artists the recognition they deserve. Pa'Lante siempre!” In January 2024, Pérez-Vega sponsored a bill that would earmark $10 million to acquire property, design and construct the museum. Johnson-Ortiz said the museum secured $6.425 million in the proposed 2024 infrastructure package, but the bill failed to pass.He expects the museum bill will be reintroduced this session once the power struggle in the Legislature between Republicans and Democrats is resolved.Johnson-Ortiz, who is also an artist and muralist, said there are approximately 25 Latino-focused museums in the U.S. At last count in 2014, the Institute of Museum and Library Services estimated that there are 35,000 active museums in the U.S.  According to census data, the Latino population is Minnesota's third-largest demographic group. It has grown by more than 200,000 people in the last 25 years. “We feel that we're not just behind in terms of culture representation, but radically behind,” said Johnson-Ortiz. “We're behind the white community, and behind most communities of color in the United States. We feel that it's time now to give voice to this, to tell our stories and to be part of the broader conversation in Minnesota about arts and culture, about history and how we fit in as a community with the broader society.”In February, the museum will announce its most ambitious programming yet, a months-long public art exhibition along the Mississippi in St. Paul.Correction (Jan. 22, 2025): An earlier version of this story misidentified Jessica Lopez Lyman. The story has been updated.

“Strawberry shortcake, blueberry pie. Rondo Double Dutch got a team, and we know why,” a group of young voices chant on a track the St. Paul organization made with artist Bionik.Rondo Double Dutch is the brainchild of Mercedes Yarbrough, an educator who wanted to bring Double Dutch to a new generation in her community. She joined up with Jelahn Prentiss, who goes by Coach Twist, to expand her vision for the program.Rondo Double Dutch now includes a class at 825 Arts in St. Paul as well as a team that participates in events around the metro. They are booked Monday for Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association's Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration in south Minneapolis.Mizz Mercedez and Jelahn Prentiss joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini to talk about the event and their passion for getting people of all ages on their feet.

One year ago, St. Paul made history when it became the first major city in the U.S. to install an all-female city council.Just as remarkable: This group also makes up the youngest and most racially diverse council since St. Paul incorporated in 1854. Six of its seven members are women of color. All are 40 or younger. Related Links From Talking Sense: Two St. Paul council members reveal how they overcame deep divisions to pass cease-fire resolution In 2024 Historic, all-woman St. Paul City Council sworn in and ready to work On Jan. 9, 2025 — exactly one year to the day that the council was inducted — MPR News host Angela Davis hosted a North Star Journey Live conversation with all seven St. Paul council members. They reflected on their groundbreaking first year in office and what it's like to be a woman in politics today. They also talked about how they work together, despite differences, and how they are facing the upcoming political headwinds. North Star Journey Live with the St. Paul City Council St. Paul City Council: Council member Anika Bowie, Ward 1Council member Rebecca Noecker, Ward 2Council member Saura Jost, Ward 3Council president Mitra Jalali, Ward 4Council vice president Hwa Jeong Kim, Ward 5Council member Nelsie Yang, Ward 6Council member Cheniqua Johnson, Ward 7Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

A new children's book by a Twin Cities author is out Tuesday. It's called “Saturday Morning at the ‘Shop” and it's the debut book for Keenan Jones, who is a middle school English teacher in the metro. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about the book and how it came to be.Jones has several book launch events coming up, including one Jan. 11 in downtown Minneapolis and another Jan. 18 in Duluth.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with a Twin Cities rapper and mindfulness instructor who says yoga saved his life.

We revisit a conversation with Rose McGee, president and founder of the Sweet Potato Comfort Pie organization, and her daughter, Roslyn Harmon, the mayor of Golden Valley, Minn.

The first night of Hanukkah is on Dec. 25, which means Cecil's Deli in St. Paul will fry up thousands of latkes in the next couple of weeks. The Jewish institution is Minnesota's oldest deli and this year it is celebrating 75 years in business.MPR News host Nina Moini talks with two people who are part of the family business that spans four generations: Becca Kvasnik, the granddaughter of Cecil and Faye Leventhal, Cecil's founders, and Becca's daughter, Evana Hershkowitz.To see photos of the family and their restaurant, visit mprnews.org.

The weekend of Dec. 21-22 will be Minnesota's last chance to experience the longstanding and beloved holiday show, A Christmas Celebration with The Steeles.After 40 years, the Minnesota gospel group is wrapping up their run of Christmas concerts. Siblings J.D., Fred, Jearlyn, Jevetta and Billy Steele have brought their joyful holiday harmonies to Minnesota audiences since 1984 and plan to do so one last time at the Pantages Theatre Saturday and Sunday.The Steeles are an integral part of the Minnesota sound and have recorded and performed with Prince, Donald Fagen, Morgan Freeman and others throughout their career. The family traveled the world in the acclaimed musical The Gospel at Colonus and contributed to several soundtracks. Jevetta Steele takes a break from rehearsals to talk with MPR News host Nina Moini about the band's final Christmas shows.

Rachel Hardeman and Simone Hardeman-Jones are identical twins who share more than DNA. They also share a commitment to addressing racial inequities.Rachel Hardeman is a professor at the University of Minnesota whose research is used nationally to show how racism affects health. Her work illuminates the disparities between the experiences of Black mothers during pregnancy and childbirth and their white peers. This year, she was named one of TIME's 2024 most influential people in the world.Simone Hardeman-Jones has spent most of her career in education policy, including four years at the federal level working in former President Barack Obama's administration. Now she heads GreenLight Fund Twin Cities, which is changing how philanthropy can better listen to communities to identify unsolved problems and introduce solutions.MPR News host Angela Davis talks with the two sisters about their work and how they support each other as part of our MPR News Power Pairs series. Do you know a Power Pair? We'd love to hear your ideas for Power Pairs to interview in 2025. We're talking with prominent Minnesotans who you may know of separately but who reveal something new when we sit them down together. Maybe they're married or siblings or best friends. They could be business partners or a parent/adult child dynamic duo.Check out previous previous Power Pair conversations. And, send us your suggestions for Power Pairs.Guests: Rachel R. Hardeman is a professor in the Division of Health Policy & Management at the University of Minnesota's School of Public Health. She is also the Blue Cross endowed professor of health and racial equity and the founding director of the Center for Antiracism Research for Health Equity. She serves on an advisory committee to the director of the Centers for Disease Control.Simone Hardeman-Jones became the founding executive director of GreenLight Fund Twin Cities in 2020. Her previous work focused on education policy. She was a national director of policy and partnerships at the nonprofit Educators for Excellence and served as a deputy assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Education in the Obama administration. Simone also worked as a policy advisor to two U.S. senators, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.    Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.     

Every year Forbes comes out with its prestigious 30 under 30 list. It highlights people making a change across various industries who are under the age of 30. In total, 30 people are selected across 20 industries. This year's list includes Caitlin Clark and singer Noah Kahan. And it also includes a Minnesotan.Angeline Dukes, an assistant professor in neuroscience at the University of Minnesota was named in the category of Social Impact. Dukes founded the organization Black In Neuro, which empowers Black scholars in neuroscience-related fields. She joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini to talk about the honor and her work.

Newcomers to America — be they immigrants, refugees or even international students — have access to a variety of social services to help them begin a new life.But do they feel like they belong?That was the topic of discussion at the North Star Journey Live conversation recorded in Moorhead, Minn., on Nov. 21. MPR News senior reporter Sarah Thamer traveled to Concordia College for the international student potluck to talk with people who are dedicated to making the Fargo-Moorhead area welcoming. The founder of the Fargo Moorhead International Potluck shared how food can be used as a bridge to cross cultures. Community leaders who work with the growing immigrant population in northwest Minnesota agreed that simple things like being able to find spices to replicate food from home goes a long way to making newcomers feel seen.A trio of international students studying at Concordia also shared their experiences and offered advice on how to cultivate belonging amidst diversity. Pro tip: Don't be afraid of discomfort. It's a necessary part of the process. Guests: Peter Schott is the founder of the Fargo-Moorhead International Potluck.Fowzia Adde is the executive director of the Immigrant Development Center in Moorhead.Zoë Absey is a board member at the New American Consortium for the Fargo-Moorhead region.Siam Shimul, Timea Vrabcova and Alecious Togbah are international students studying at Concordia College.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.     

A Minnesota author has put out a new book about her life with pieces from her grandparents' orchard in Somalia, her teen years in a refugee camp and her adulthood in the U.S. and Minnesota. In “My Dear Loving Sisters: Tea and Stories from an Audacious Life,” Fatoun Ali lays out how she survived poverty and abuse to raise four children and start a nonprofit. Ali created the piece in a workbook format, with strategies and questions for overcoming all kinds of challenges. Her nonprofit, Somali Youth and Family Development Center, turns 15 this year and has a gala on Wednesday to celebrate. Fatoun Ali joined Minnesota Now host Nina Moini in the MPR News studio for a conversation about her work and life.

The Pohlad family announced last month that they were looking to sell the Minnesota Twins after owning the team for 40 years. Well, for almost that long, the Pohlads also have had a private family foundation. It gives away millions of dollars every year to nonprofit organizations around the Twin Cities. In recent years the foundation has focused on two priorities — giving money to ease the housing crisis and address racial inequality. One of the foundation's goals is to increase the number of Black homeowners. Coming up at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, MPR News host Angela Davis talks with the president of the Pohlad Family Foundation, Susan Bass Roberts, about how and where the Pohlads give away their money and about her own career in corporate and community philanthropy, We want to hear from you, too. What questions do you have about the Pohlad Family Foundation or about how foundations give away their money? Call us during the 9 a.m. hour at 651-227-6000 or 800-242-2828.Guest: Susan Bass Roberts was named president of the Pohlad Family Foundation in 2024, after joining the foundation in 2016 and serving as its vice president and executive director. She previously served as executive director of the Best Buy Foundation, vice president of communications and community relations for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons and director of community affairs and philanthropy for Limited Brands, Inc.

An initiative in St. Paul is connecting and celebrating two of its largest minority populations, Hmong and Black. Aptly named “FRONDO,” the initiative is bringing together the Frogtown neighborhood which has a large Hmong population and the historically Black Rondo neighborhood in a way that's never been done before.May Lee-Yang and Nicole M. Smith are the organizers behind the project. Lee-Yang is a performer and educator and Smith is the founder and CEO of Neuvo Soul productions. They joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about FRONDO.

It was a Friday night in 1964, recalls Greg McMoore. A line of men stretched out the Young Brothers barbershop on Fourth Avenue in south Minneapolis. McMoore was just a kid then, but he could tell they were there for more than just haircuts.He remembers seeing a group head to the backroom and begging his father to let him sneak a glimpse. “It was all in fun,” he reminisced with a laugh. “They were back there cooking soul food, playing cards and having a good time in the backroom.”Now 71, McMoore carries vibrant memories of the southside with him each day — scenes from when it was a bustling and tight-knit middle class African American community. His brain is such a warehouse of southside knowledge he was recruited to help preserve the city's African American history. “I'm viewed as an elder now,” McMoore said. “And there aren't very many of us left to be able to talk about what was here.”Through May 2025, he'll be part of the African American Heritage Work Group — a 15-person advisory board guiding the city in efforts to research and document sites of significance, ultimately narrowing in on three to nominate to the National Register of Historic Places.It's a group with artists, educators and historians from the northside to the southside, including familiar names like documentarian Daniel Bergin and health advocate Beverly Propes.Each member brings their own passion to the table, and for McMoore that's serving as a voice for the southside, where his family has called home for over a century.A child of the 50s, McMoore is among the eldest in the group. His family escaped slavery in Virginia, making their new home in Hastings between 1865 and 1870 — one of the first Black families to settle in the area. In 1912, his grandmother moved to south Minneapolis after graduating high school, and his family has been here ever since.For McMoore, honoring history is more than just marking spots with remembrance.“I'm always thinking about where we came from as developing an understanding of where we're going to go,” he said. “You have to know where you came from if you want to talk about who you are and how you can move forward with it.”The hub of the southside communityOn a crisp fall day, McMoore pointed out some of those roots, starting with the former hub that had it all: the intersection at 38th Street and Fourth Avenue. Though he calls that intersection a flyover street now, he can quickly recall how it used to buzz. “When you came into this community, especially when you went across 38th Street, you know, there was something in the air,” he said. “You felt that you belonged to something, and it was a sense of strength and vitality.”Between the 1930s and 1970s, more than 20 Black-owned businesses stood tall along the corridor. One of the earlier gems was Dreamland Café. That was the social club opened in 1937 by Anthony B. Cassius, a civil rights activist and the first Black man to obtain a liquor license in Minneapolis.Cassius's bars were some of the first integrated spaces in the city and few places where African Americans could safely gather and socialize. Another Cassius-stamped staple — the Nacirema Club (that's American spelled backwards) — was a couple streets over. It's a church now, but McMoore amusedly remembers his father ushering him in when he came of age. Both Dreamland and the Nacirema, as well as Cassius's house, are on the heritage group's research list. Most of the iconic landmarks at the intersection of 38th and 4th are now gone, but still standing is the Minnesota Spokesman Recorder, the Black-owned newspaper which recently celebrated its 90th year. A bright blue mural covers the brick, decorated with notable names and portraits, from Cecil Newman to Norma Jean Williams. “You can go along [the mural] and all of us, all the families, we all knew each other, too,” McMoore said. “In many ways, it's the families that drove this community and protected it.”‘It feels like I'm driving through my living room'As McMoore got in his white “retro Chevy,” driving beyond the intersection, the power of southside names was apparent. He pointed out their old homes. Willie Mays, baseball legend. Lena O. Smith, Minnesota's first African American woman lawyer. The Bowman house, where Earl Bowman, the first Black president at a Minnesota community college, resided; and the Hughes home, where the trailblazing golfer Solomon Hughes Sr. and legal scholars lived. Then, McMoore approached a bridge over I-35W. He looked down at the trail of cars, rushing 60 miles per hour over concrete — once green lawns in the old predominantly African American community.“Whenever I head to downtown Minneapolis on the freeway, I know exactly where the house was, and it feels like I'm driving through my living room,” he said. “Many folks talk about 94 going through St. Paul and destroying Rondo, but over here it was 35 going through South Minneapolis, and it dismantled our community.”Freeway construction in the 60s wiped out homes where over 80 percent of the Twin Cities Black population lived, destroying the opportunity to build wealth. To this day, the racial homeownership gap in Minneapolis remains one of the highest in the nation.“Things like that aren't just coincidental,” McMoore said, a hard glint to his eye. In his neighborhood, the freeway trench marked the start of a shift, as families were displaced and residents east and west were literally divided. The community's vitality dulled as pressures from crime rose, then took another turn when Central High School — the neighborhood's castle-like “pride and joy” on the hill — was demolished in the 80s. With the local high school gone —  a place that produced the likes of Prince, the city's first Black mayor Sharon Sayles Belton and the state's first Black woman judge Pamela Alexander — more families left.Marking history as a guideBut McMoore, who spent some years working in D.C. and South America, has always come back. He said the community in which he grew up — the foundation for his values, his home —doesn't have to remain a still life from the past. He says it's a guide to what makes communities livable, of how strength can be found in getting to know your neighbors and looking out for one another. “We have to learn from the past and how all of us can come together to revitalize the neighborhood,” he said. “And it starts with things like the cultural corridor, understanding the history of it, and honoring the history with markers.”There's more for people to learn from one another, he said, in order to collaborate and create together. There's more work to be done there, too, he said.On the steps of the Sabathani Community Center, McMoore punctuates his southside tour: “So let's do something about that.”

For immigrants to America, so much is new. New culture, new language, new systems, new opportunities.The learning curve is steep. But eventually, someone pushes through to a new level and becomes the first in their community to achieve a goal. Maybe they become the first in their family to graduate from college, or the first to start a small business. Maybe they are the first to purchase farmland or the first to publish a book that integrates their culture into the American story.On Oct. 17, MPR News' North Star Journey Live partnered with Sahan Journal to host a conversation about firsts. What do these trailblazers from immigrant communities have in common? What are the unique rewards and challenges that come with being the first to embark on a new journey?The celebration was hosted by MPR News' Nina Moini, who herself is the first American journalist in her immigrant family, and Sahan Journal digital producer Alberto Gomez. North Star Journey Live: The Firsts Panelists included Chenue Her, the first Hmong man to become a TV news anchor; Rodrigo Cala, who is the first in his family to buy a farm in the U.S.; Michael Vang, one of the first Hmong soccer players to play professionally in the U.S.; Sen. Zaynab Mohamed, the first person under age 26 to win a seat in the Minnesota Senate; Remona Htoo, one of the first Karen children's book authors in the U.S.; and Abenezer Merdassa, an Ethiopian-American comic who found his way into the stand-up world thanks to procrastinating his finals.

The St. Paul and Minneapolis Audubon chapters have dropped the contentious naturalist's namesake from their titles, rebranding their organizations as the St. Paul Bird Alliance and Land of Lakes Bird Alliance, respectively. It follows an evolving, countrywide trend after the National Audubon Society leadership voted down removing the association with John James Audubon from its name last year. Born in 1785, Audubon was a groundbreaking artist, naturalist and ornithologist whose work is still widely used today, but was funded by the slave trade. He's also accused of plagiarism, academic fraud and other “despicable things,” the society says. “The name might not have been a barrier for the current members, but as an organization that wants to grow and really serve the birds and protect the habitat, we needed to incorporate more people into the organization,” Latina photographer Monica Bryand, who joined the St. Paul Bird Alliance's board about a year ago and identifies as queer, told MPR News. “In Minnesota, with the growing number of BIPOC and LGBTQ folks, we needed something different… [to] grow the organization.”Currently its co-chair, Bryand has served on the alliance's conservation committee for a decade. But it took the National Audubon Society rejecting a name change and a nudge from St. Paul's chapter president for her to accept a spot on the board and to be part of a local solution. President Greg Burnes “knew and understood that it was more than just a name change, that we had to work inside the organization to make it more welcoming and inclusive, and I wanted to be in there. And if I wanted this, I needed to be in it with them,” Bryand said. Black, Native and queer people have long felt like there was no place in such societies or out in nature for them, according to Bryand. A birder now for more than 20 years, she long felt like she didn't see herself reflected in the organization. Six years ago, she decided to change that and create a safe space for people of color and LGBTQ+ people with the Urban Bird Collective. The group helps these communities get out and explore nature while redefining who is considered an expert in birding and conservation. “And what I tell people, what I tell outdoor organizations — and organizations like Audubon — is that while I created this space, BIPOC and LGBT folks shouldn't need to find me. They might not find the Urban Bird Collective, and they shouldn't have to,” Bryand said. Organizations like nature centers and Audubon “have all the resources. And I want BIPOC folks to feel comfortable and welcomed in all of those spaces.” Meanwhile, there's an effort underway by the American Ornithological Society to change the names of bird species associated with people, racism and colonialism. That, too, has gotten pushback similar to that experienced by Audubon. Bryand believes it's a step in the right direction. She also hopes those who didn't support a societal name change understand why some members wanted it and are willing to learn why, thus opening the door for more people of various backgrounds and demographics to be welcomed into organizations like the St. Paul Bird Alliance.

One of the greatest gifts you can give any leader is the time and money to become even more effective at the change they want to make in the world. That idea is at the heart of the Bush Fellowship.Every year, up to 30 people across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and in 23 Native nations receive this prestigious fellowship from the Bush Foundation, along with grants of up to $150,000 to pursue their own personal and professional development. The application for next year's cohort is open through Oct. 15. On Monday, MPR News host Angela Davis talked with three Bush Fellows about their work and how deepening a connection to their own culture is helping them make Minnesota a better place. Guests: Irma Márquez Trapero is a 2024 Bush Fellow and co-founder and CEO of LatinoLEAD, a nonprofit organization that is working to advance Latino Minnesotans into positions of leadership through advocacy and professional development. Michelle Goose is a 2024 Bush Fellow and an Ojibwe language instructor and faculty program coordinator for American Indian Studies at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College in Cloquet. She is also a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.Vayong Moua is a 2020 Bush Fellow. He is the director of racial and health equity and advocacy at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota.  Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.    

What happens to us when we're very young children can set us up for life. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with the CEO of the nonprofit Way to Grow about what we can do to nurture kids' development.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Tonya Allen, the president of the McKnight Foundation. The Minnesota-based family foundation grants approximately $100 million dollars every year and is focused on advancing climate action and racial equity — two deeply connected issues.Find out what's driving the foundation's priorities, how Allen shifted from working on education policy to climate change and racial justice and how she aims to center people who are farthest from power.

Carla Vernón didn't think she'd go into business.She was inspired to do good in the world by a father who emigrated from Panama to become a college math professor and by her mother who was one of the real-life “Hidden Figures,” the Black women mathematicians who helped develop the U.S. space program.After studying ecology and biology at Princeton, she worked for a nature conservation nonprofit organization and as a U.S. Senate staffer. Then, she decided she could have a bigger impact from within corporate America.Today, she's CEO of The Honest Company, which sells baby, skincare, bath and beauty products. And she's one of the first Afro-Latina chief executives of a publicly traded company. Before that, she was a vice president at Amazon and spent more than two decades at General Mills, rising to division president of its natural and organic business.MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Vernón about the experiences that shaped her and what it means to be a corporate leader while staying true to yourself.Guest: Carla Vernón has been CEO of The Honest Company since January 2023. She previously spent two years as the vice president of Consumables Categories at Amazon. Before that, she spent more than two decades in various leadership positions at General Mills, most recently serving as the operating unit president of the Natural and Organic Division. She holds an undergraduate degree from Princeton and a master's degree in business administration from the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas.This show was previously scheduled to air in July, but was rescheduled due to breaking news.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.    

Bernadette Anderson — a community leader, an outspoken advocate for African American civil rights in Minnesota, and a tough-love mother to many northside youth — was honored Friday afternoon with a renamed street in north Minneapolis.Bernadette Anderson Way now runs along Russell Avenue North between Plymouth Avenue North and 12th Avenue North. Anderson, who died in 2003, lived in the 1200 block of Russell.The block was blocked off from traffic on Friday for an event celebrating her life with family friends, and other community leaders.Minnesota Senate President Bobby Joe Champion said she also helped many local musicians when they were younger.“Her contributions are those that you enjoy right now today, when you think in terms of the greatness of Prince or even Andre Cymone, or the greatness of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis,” Champion said. “When you think of that Minneapolis music sound, she was like the grandmother right, or the mother.”Anderson is musician Andre Cymone's mother, and Prince lived in her Russell Avenue house for a period of time in the mid-1970s. Champion said she is also the mother of the civil rights movement in Minneapolis. The civil rights leaders that often were covered by the mainstream outlets were men: Ron Edwards, Mahmoud El-Kati and Spike Moss. Anderson was well known in the community, but she didn't get much news coverage.Moss spoke to the gathered crowd.“I know no soldier like Bernadette from day one,” he said. Anderson thought those in the fight were out of their minds and needed to stop, Moss recalled.“I said to Bernadette, ‘Come on one march, one time, and maybe that'll change your mind. And when Bernadette stood up that first time, she never stopped fighting for you,” he said.Her activism was profound.“The door opened for Black teachers, Black principals, all the different things we fought for, to drive that bus, to be police, to be firefighters, everything you could think of fighting over working on the freeway,” Moss told the crowd.“This woman stood up for you, step by step, every time we turned around, she'd be one of the first to come and stand up on behalf of our people.”Moss himself was honored in July when the city renamed part of Plymouth Avenue north, Spike Moss Way. During his speech when he was honored, he said Anderson had also mentored him. Anderson's family gathered for the block part and each relative stood out. They each wore “Queen Bernie” t-shirts featuring a black-and-white picture of the honoree.Bernadette Anderson's third born — Patricia Anderson — said her mother empowered women in the community through her mother's YWCA programs.“My mother embodied the epitome of what the village mentality is, should be, and I pray continues on. We need more of the Bernadette Andersons,” she said.Anderson's grandson Cymon Payne and his wife Chandra were also at the celebration. Chandra remembers the soul food every Sunday at her house. Everybody was fed.“I'm asking my husband, shouldn't we give her some money? No, she had it. She had it all,” Chandra Payne said. Anderson was “just showing love with her cooking. She could throw down.”

In August 1934, Cecil E. Newman founded the Minneapolis Spokesman in the midst of the Great Depression and 30 years before the Civil Rights Act. A few years later, he founded a second newspaper called the St. Paul Recorder. He used his role as a newspaper publisher to fight racial discrimination and earned the attention of every major politician, including Hubert H. Humphrey.The two papers merged about 25 years ago. And last month, the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder celebrated its 90th anniversary. It's the longest running Black-owned and family-owned news outlet in the state.Guests:Tracey Williams-Dillard is publisher and CEO of the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, founded in 1934 by Cecil E. Newman. She is the granddaughter of the late Cecil and Launa Newman.Al Brown is the assignment editor at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Join Angela Davis at the Minnesota State Fair for a North Star Journey Live recording to celebrate the music, the man and the mischief of James “Cornbread” Harris. Cornbread is now 97 years old, which means he's been playing his beloved piano at gigs all over the Twin Cities for more than 70 years. Music journalist Andrea Swensson recently released a book chronicling Cornbread's remarkable life. “Deeper Blues: The Life, Songs and Salvation of Cornbread Harris” recounts Minnesota music history — like what happened when Cornbread's band, the Augie Garcia Quintet, opened for Elvis, and how Cornbread's musical stylings helped create the Minneapolis Sound. The 'Deeper Blues' of Cornbread Harris But it also touches on a more personal story: Cornbread's reunification with son and music producer Jimmy Jam after decades years of estrangement, which was largely made possible by Swensson as she researched her book and became a fixture in Cornbread's life. Don't miss the fun, the stories and the music from this North Star Journey Live conversation, recorded Monday, Aug. 26, with Cornbread, Swensson and special guests at the Minnesota State Fair. And if you want more Cornbread, check out the “Anthology“ of essential Cornbread hits that Swensson put together, in both digital and vinyl form. Guests:Cornbread Harris is a legendary musician, whose career spans more than 70 years in the Minnesota music scene. He still plays a weekly gig at Palmer's Bar each Sunday night. Andrea Swensson is a journalist with a passion for music. Formerly a DJ at MPR's The Current, these days Swensson hosts the official Prince podcast, does deep dives into the Minneapolis music scene and writes books. Her latest is “Deeper Blues: The Life, Songs and Salvation of Cornbread Harris.” Jayanthi Rajasa is multidisciplinary artist and archivist songstress in the Twin Cities. North Star Journey Live (formerly known as In Focus) is a live event series and reoccurring topic on MPR News with Angela Davis centered around what Minnesota's diverse communities need to thrive.Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation

A group of teens cuts cardboard with X-ACTO Knives. They will soon shape this cardboard into architectural models of their bedrooms. Behind them in a classroom at the Dunwoody College of Technology, large windows frame the Minneapolis cityscape — a sampling of building types through the ages, from the early 20th-century Basilica of St. Mary to the IDS skyscraper built in 1973.“It's my first time doing something in architectural-related study,” says Dominic Stewart of Burnsville.“I'm excited to get that hands-on experience,” says Carsyn Johnson of Elk River.They are here for the weeklong Indigenous Design Camp, the first camp of its kind in the U.S. The goal is to teach Indigenous teens about career options in architecture and design, a field where Native Americans are underrepresented.Indigenous architects Two of the founders of the new camp — architects and friends Mike Laverdure and Sam Olbekson — estimate that there are only about 30 Indigenous architects total in the U.S.Laverdure is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and a partner at DSGW Architects as well as the president of First American Design Studio. Olbekson is a citizen of the White Earth Nation and founded the firm Full Circle Indigenous Planning and Design. They are the only two practicing Native architects in Minnesota.  Renovated Minneapolis American Indian Center reflects urban Indigenous identity“The need for creating a space for kids to become designers, Indigenous designers, is great,” says Laverdure, who has wanted to start this camp for years. “Representation matters for these kids to see us as architects and designers. A lot of us who grew up in reservations or urban Indigenous communities only see a few career types.”“This is the first time anyone has ever done this in the U.S.,” Olbekson adds. “It's the right time for Indigenous communities, tribal communities, nonprofits, to really take a self-initiated approach to design, to hire architects to understand the value and the importance of designing and operating a project from an Indigenous lens.”The campersThe campers are Indigenous teens ages 14-18 from the metro area. They will be constructing architectural models all week. Campers will also tour the University of Minnesota School of Architecture and local architecture firms.They will also visit the American Indian Cultural Corridor on Franklin Avenue, where both Laverdure and Olbekson have designed buildings, as well as another Olbekson project, the recently completed expansion of the Red Lake Nation College downtown.Olbekson says, “to actually go and see [the buildings] and see the impact that they're having on the community, not only as individual buildings, but how they're forming an identity for the American Indian Cultural Corridor and how these projects are supporting education, economic development, community building, cultural development, and youth and elder spaces, I think is going to be a great way for them to understand the impact of what design, urban design, interiors, landscape, can have on creating a healthy, Indigenous urban community.”The camp began Monday morning with a welcome from Laverdure, Olbekson and University of Minnesota assistant architecture professor Jessica Garcia Fritz, a citizen of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Fritz also helped start the camp.“If you think about your home reservations, or your urban communities, you think about all the buildings that are there,” Laverdure told the class, “Ninety-nine percent of all the buildings built that Indigenous people sit in are not designed by indigenous designers. They're designed by other people who don't have a stake in the game, who don't really have a connection to that community.”Laverdure continued, “When you have Indigenous designers be a part of that process, what happens is that those buildings have a special kind of connection to the communities and that makes those buildings extra special.”Indigenous architecture, past and presentNext came a presentation on Indigenous architecture, past and present, by Tammy Eagle Bull, who did a video call from her home in Arizona. Eagle Bull is a member of the Oglala Lakota Nation of Pine Ridge, South Dakota. In 1994, she became the first Native woman in the U.S. to become a licensed architect. Camper Carsyn Johnson says this fact caught her by surprise.“I was surprised about it, though, a little disappointed, because I feel like as a society, we should move further ahead a little bit,” Johnson says.For the remainder of the first day of camp, Jessica Garcia Fritz guided campers in a design exercise to create their sleep space or bedroom. First, they taped 10 by 10-foot squares on the classroom floor to help them visualize the scale. Then they sketched blueprints of their bedrooms. Finally, they cut and scored cardboard to build shoebox-size models. As the week progresses, the campers will join their models to create collective spaces as well as design larger communal spaces as a group.“One of the things Tammy Eagle Bull had said this morning was, ‘I wish that a camp like this had existed when I was young.' I think that's the sentiment among many of us,” Garcia Fritz says.”Part of the motivation behind this is to be able to show Indigenous high school students what those pathways are, to bring them into the environments so that we can have more representation. I think that many of us can maybe speak to the fact that we may have been the only Indigenous people in our classes at the time. Our instructors probably didn't know how to work within what we may have wanted to do. I think that's changing.”Garcia Fritz, Laverdure and Olbekson hope this camp is the first of many. One of the goals is to expand the camp to greater Minnesota.“Right now, it's in the Twin Cities, but there are so many Indigenous communities regionally, up north and even in other states that could really benefit from this,” Olbekson says. “Long term, we want to create a space where five to 10 years from now, we've got 10, 15, 20, Native designers that are out there and being a force for change,” Laverdure says.The camp ends Friday when campers present their final architectural models.

Community activist Harry “Spike” Moss, 78, and Plymouth Avenue North share a historic connection in the struggle for civil rights of African Americans in Minneapolis. When Plymouth Avenue erupted in turmoil in the late 1960s, Moss was there to decry the racial oppression and discrimination that sparked the flames. Moss was also heavily involved with The Way and an alternative school called The City Inc., two organizations on and near Plymouth Avenue that helped improve the lives of African Americans. On Tuesday, Moss was back on the avenue in front of 400 people on hand to watch the city honor Moss by renaming a stretch of Plymouth Avenue as “Spike Moss Way.” “I need to publicly say thank you for everybody that stood up with me; everybody that marched with me; everybody that's fought side by side with me,” Moss said. Speaking from a covered stage located not far from where The Way once stood — a site which is now the 4th Precinct Police Station — Moss singled out a few people who helped him throughout his life. He gave credit to his cousin, Richard Harris, who traveled from Davenport, Iowa, for being “the first person that directed me as a little boy.”Harris and Moss spent summers together in Missouri when they were youngsters.“No matter what I did, he told me what was right and what was wrong. He never let me make any mistakes,” Moss said.When Moss moved to Minneapolis, he would find new mentors like boxing coach Ray Wells. He told Moss' mother he would train and take care of her son.Wells didn't just train Moss to box, he taught Moss valuable life lessons, namely, no smoking, no drinking, no drugs. “I have lived that life that Ray Wells gave me,” Moss said of his days protesting on the streets. “When I started marching, he would always take the right side of my shoulder to protect me, and he would physically protect me. And he did that my whole life.”Artists, activists, elected officials and close friends took to the stage to honor Moss.Most highlighted how Moss served the community and inspired its members. That list included northsiders such as Terry Lewis who would go on to co-found Flyte Tyme Studios with Jimmy “Jam” Harris; musician Andre Cymone whose mother Bernadette Anderson not only took in Cymone's bandmate Prince but also mentored Moss and other young activists.  “I'm telling you that Spike Moss was the leader, the valiant, brave brother that inspired me and a whole generation,” said Attorney General Keith Ellison. “Your Minnesota president of the Minnesota Senate is Bobby Joe Champion, a disciple of Spike Moss. Your Minnesota attorney general grew up listening to Spike Moss.”While Moss spoke out against discriminatory police practices, Ellison said, Moss also criticized community violence.“So Spike has always been ready to call everybody to account, the government, our own community, everybody,” he said. “He's calling us all to be better all the time.”Ellison thanked Moss for everything he's done for the community.“This whole community owes you a debt of gratitude. This nation owes you a debt. This world owes you a debt,” he said.The attorney general had one last anecdote. “I was in London, England, talking about the George Floyd case, and somebody asked me, ‘How is Spike Moss doing?'” Ellison said. “That's a true story.” The city doesn't usually name streets after people who are still alive — but the city council made an exception and approved the application submitted by Council Member Jeremiah Ellison.“We were able to get it done for Spike now so he can see it,” said Moss' close friend Tyrone Terrill, president of the African American Leadership Council. Terrill said efforts by Sen. Bobby Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, Council Member Ellison, Mayor Jacob Frey and others made the street renaming possible.Spike Moss Way is located between Newton and Lyndale Avenues along Plymouth Avenue.Moss began his advocacy for civil rights in the 1960s and over the decades has focused on violence prevention, including brokering a truce between gang members in the 1990s. He's pushed successfully for Metro Transit to hire Black bus drivers. “This is a bigger victory for the community than [it] is for Spike,” Terrill said. “What it does say to our young people is we should respect Plymouth Avenue even more now.”The community's youth need to understand Moss' personal sacrifice to serve all people, he said.“When you have these jobs as community leaders, community activists, as nationalists, it takes away from your family, from your wife, from your children,” Terrill said. He credited Moss' wife Sharron.“Many times you should be home, but when somebody calls and says, ‘I need help,' then you go.” Moss told the people gathered Tuesday that love was his guide.“To this community, everything I did for you was love. I love my people. I often say in my speeches, ‘I love my people.' I love you when you're up, I love you when you're down,” Moss said. “I might not love all that you do, but you can damn sure bet I love my people.” 

After two years of drought-dried fields, Minnesota farmers are facing the opposite problem — extremely soggy soil and flooding following several inches of rainfall that washed out roads and continue to push up river levels this week. “All I'll say is uffdah,” Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen said. “A lot of the crop in Minnesota didn't get planted [yet]. We'll get some of the final acreage here later this month … this week is going to kind of put a nail in the coffin for some of the farmers who are trying to get in,” Petersen said Thursday. Marcus Carpenter, founder of Route 1 — an organization working for greater racial and ethnic diversity in farming — agrees. “It has been a tough season,” Carpenter said. Among the several hundred farmers involved in Route 1, many have had their crops washed out. “When you have farmers of color who have very little acreage to deal with in the beginning, having an entire washout can be detrimental for them, both economically … and from a community perspective.” Overall, the median Minnesota net income for farms was $44,719 last year — down more than 76 percent from 2022, according to data and analysis from the farm financial database FINBIN and the University of Minnesota Extension. Carpenter said farmers of color in the state make somewhere around $20,000 annually and are challenged by limited access to finances and market entry. Listen The changing face of Minnesota farming Delayed planting also contributes to food access and availability and health equity, according to Carpenter. One in four Black Minnesota households experiences food insecurity, according to Second Harvest Heartland — that's compared to 4 percent of white households. “Farmers of color most of the time are not only growing for their families, but they're growing for their communities,” he said. Farming and climate changeAddressing climate change, Petersen says, has been a top priority for the Walz administration. “As we see these extremes … really, a lot of it comes down to soil and so we've been working very hard on soil health,” he said. To support cover crop usage, conservative tillage equipment and other methods of cultivating and maintaining rich soil, the state Legislature has prioritized funding loans for farmers. State grants, Petersen says, are popular too. The state also partners with the USDA for outreach. “We see farmers adapting quickly to soil health practices and also showing good profitability on those,” Petersen explained. “There's a lot going on, but it almost has to” with a changing landscape. Route 1, too, prioritizes education, especially around soil health, Carpenter said. The organization also supports green infrastructure like rainwater collection and cover cropping and is actively finding ways to feed communities despite climate change. ‘Farmers are the largest gamblers ever' Scientists and ag representatives plan for climate uncertainty Listen Farming on the frontlines of the climate crisis “As we're dealing with the elements outside, we're also teaching practices of sustainable farming on the inside that can have an impact on these emerging farming communities, Black and brown communities,” he said. Earlier this year, Route 1 acquired the first Black-owned freight farm in Minnesota, KARE 11 reported. The modular, hydroponic farm inside a shipping container can grow more than 200 pounds of produce per week, year-round. Learn more about Route 1's community-supported agriculture, hyperlocal produce production, emerging farmer programs and more on their website, route1mn.org.

V3 Sports will hold its grand opening on Saturday. The aquatics and recreation center is one of the largest private investments ever in north Minneapolis at $126 million.MPR News host Cathy Wurzer spoke to the executive director of V3 Sports, Malik Rucker, and Ayanna Rakhu, who planned all of the swimming programming.

In many ways, Lee Hawkins' childhood in Maplewood was typical for families in the 1980s. He rode bikes, spent hours exploring the landscape, played rudimentary video football games. He and his sisters were raised by two loving parents and spent hours at Mt. Olivet Baptist Church each week. But in other ways, Hawkins' experience was unique. His family was Black in a mostly white suburb, part of the “integration generation.” He found community both with his peers at North St. Paul High School and at the barbershop he frequented in the Rondo area of St. Paul. And his parents, especially his dad, could be volatile, wrestling with the effects of intergenerational trauma that had roots in Alabama, where Hawkins' father grew up. North Star Journey Live: What Happened in Alabama? Ending cycles of trauma in Black AmericaReconciling those two truths led Hawkins to dive into his family's history. The result is his new podcast, What Happened in Alabama? It's an honest look at what 400 years of unaddressed trauma can do in individuals, in families, in communities. It's also a nuanced narrative of Hawkins' own life. How could the father he idolized also be violent? How could he break the cycle of trauma so that future generations would know their history and be able to heal from it? Hawkins lives in New York now, but he came home to Minnesota in May to talk with MPR News host Angela Davis about his journey for a special North Star Journey Live. On stage at the Minnesota History Center the night of May 22, before a crowd of several hundred people, they discussed the significance of exploring family history and intergenerational trauma, highlighting the lasting impact of Jim Crow on America and the power of truth-telling as we seek to understand our past and break cycles of trauma. You can listen to What Happened in Alabama? wherever you get your podcasts. Hawkins is also the author of the forthcoming book, “Nobody's Slave: How Uncovering My Family's History Set Me Free,” which is available for preorder now.What Happened in Alabama? on Apple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-happened-in-alabama/id1743990592