August 21, 2002 - Mainstreet Radio’s Tom Robertson reports on Organizers of the Anishinaabe Coalition, a new spiritual-based group, formed to fight racism in Bemidji. Includes various interviews with residents and coalition members.
September 3, 2002 - For several years, Americans of Arab and Middle Eastern heritage have struggled to separate themselves from the stereotype of the Arab terrorist. That stereotype has become particularly troubling since September 11th, as Arab Americans find themselves the targets of discrimination, harassment and abuse. In this report, part of our series "understand Ameica after 9/11," Michigan Radio's Matt Shafer Powell takes a look at how one U-S group -- the Chaldeans (kal-DEE-unz) of suburban Detroit -- have sought refuge in those things that distinguish them from the terrorists of 9/11.
September 17, 2002 - The University of North Dakota plans tougher policies against discrimination and harassment. The new policies are the result of a Federal investigation at U-N-D. Some American Indian students say the changes don't go far enough. They want the Universities Fighting Sioux nickname changed. Mainstreet Radios Dan Gunderson reports.
September 25, 2002 - Mainstreet Radio's Tim Post profiles Jane Gray Swisshelm, a St. Cloud newspaper editor of the 1850s-1860s with strong opinions. She used her position to fight against slavery and for advancement of women's rights…but while she wrote articles advocating more freedom for some, she also pushed horribly racist views toward Native Americans, such as the complete extermination of the state's Dakota Indian population.
December 10, 2002 - Minnesota's colleges and universities are about to go online with a new federal electronic database designed to track the state's nearly 9 thousand international students. The idea for a system to track foreigners emerged after terrorists bombed the World Trade Center in 1993. The project was a low priority for years. But, post-September 11th anti-terrorism legislation put the database on the fast track. International students say they don't mind the increased scrutiny, as long as it doesn't lead to discrimination against them. Minnesota Public Radio's Marisa Helms reports.
December 10, 2002 - MPR’s Cathy Wurzer interviews W. Harry Davis, prominent local civil rights activist and educator, about his autobiography, entitled "Overcoming." In it, he describes growing up in poverty, helping found the Minneapolis Urban Coalition, running a local Golden Gloves Boxing organization and serving on the Minneapolis School Board for 20 years.
January 2, 2003 - The civil rights sit-ins and voter registration drives of the 1960's were dangerous, sometimes deadly. Martin Luther King, Jr., Day is Monday, Jan. 20th, and in a "Voices of Minnesota" broadcast, we hear from Chuck McDew and Willie Mae Wilson. McDew is a founder and the first chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee or SNCC. Wilson was one of the thousands of people who marched with SNCC organizers to end segregation in southern cities.
February 17, 2003 - MPR’s Laura McCallum reports on bills that ratify contracts for state workers clearing legislative hurdles. The bills include pay and benefit provisions agreed to by state employee unions and the Ventura administration. But they're missing another provision -- health benefits for same-sex domestic partners. Gay and lesbian groups say removing the benefits is a slap in the face.
March 6, 2003 - MPR’s Laura McCallum reports on more than a thousand gay and lesbian Minnesotans appearing at the Minnesota State Capitol to protest a proposal to remove sexual orientation from the state's human rights law. They called the bill mean-spirited. The bill's author says he wants to prevent homosexuality from being taught in the schools.
March 11, 2003 - Republican House Speaker Steve Sviggum says he'll expedite an ethics hearing on Republican Arlon Lindner. House DFLers filed a complaint today against the Corcoran Republican for allegedly making inappropriate comments about homosexuals and African Americans. They say Lindner's comments have harmed the reputation of the Minnesota House. Sviggum says the Republican caucus also denounces the comments but says he's not sure if the comments rise to an ethics violation. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...