December 12, 1997 - A Hennepin County judge denied a request from a Hmong woman who wanted to peform a traditional ceremony in the courtroom. Ilean Her, executive director of the Council on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, talks about traditional acts in Hmong culture. Her says these ceremonies can take different forms, but often include drinking a ceremonial beverage.
December 9, 1997 - A survey by the StarTribune and Harvard University finds a majority of Minnesota doctors have a lower opinion of managed care than patients. In the survey, doctors gave HMOs an average score of C, whereas patients gave their managed care plans a B-average. The survey comes as the American Medical Association is holding its annual meeting in Dallas, where managed care was supposed to be at the top of the agenda. Dr. Andrew Smith, a Minneapolis neurosurgeon, is a delegate to the AMA. I asked him why many doctors have negative feelings about managed care.
November 5, 1997 - MPR’s Lorna Benson interviews Philip Blackburn and Chris Strouth about the creative world of electronic music. Blackburn is with the American Composers Forum in St. Paul, which promotes the work of avant-garde, jazz, classical and new age composers. Strouth works for Twin/Tone records, the label associated with Minneapolis' most famous rock bands, like The Replacements and Soul Asylum. Strouth also runs his own experimental electronica label, called "Ultramodern."
September 30, 1997 - Grand Forks and East Grand Forks residents who say buy-out offers from the federal government for their flood-wrecked homes are insufficient may get another chance. Today a class-action suit was filed on their behalf in federal courts in Minnesota and North Dakota. The suit aims to force local officials to use eminent domain to buy-out homeowners. The hope is that eminent domain--a legal concept that allows government buy property for the civic good--would offer homeowners a better deal: more money, relocation benefits, and a smoother process. Though few property owners are named on the suit, hundreds are eligible, and could join later. Cheryl Phelps is one East Grand Forks homeowner who's already on board:
September 26, 1997 - The Hennepin History Museum is re-opening to the public this weekend. It's been closed for sixteen months, while board members scurried to secure a future and funding for the 39-year old museum. Susan Larsen-Fleming is one of the board members who rolled up her sleeves during those months and took care of the collection. She says the shutdown had one benefit.
September 26, 1997 - The Immigration and Naturalization Service is staying open til midnight Tuesday to accomodate the flood of illegal aliens trying to beat the deadline to apply for permanent residency. Illegal aliens with a current visa number must apply for permanent residency by the end of the month and pay a thousand dollar penalty. Otherwise, they must return to their home country, and apply through the U-S consulate there. Many of the people in this situation are in the country illegally, but are married to U-S citizens, or green card holders. Karen Ellingson is an attorney with Officino Legale, a non-profit legal office that serves the east metro area. She says she's been advising her clients to apply before the deadline and pay the thousand dollar penalty:
September 23, 1997 - No representation of England would be complete without The Union Jack, horse racing, and soccer. And, fittingly, British artist Mark Wallinger's exhibit at the Fiterman Gallery in Minneapolis includes these symbols, but not exactly like you'd expect. The jockeys are faceless, the Union Jack has "Mum" scrawled across it, and a model soccer field sits atop a tomb. Another prominent symbol: a pantomime horse, which Wallinger says has its origins in children's holiday plays.
September 22, 1997 - Tomorrow, state lawmakers hold a special hearing on child protection and how to prevent another case like the death of three-year-old Desi Irving. This past February in Minneapolis, Desi was beaten to death by her mother. Mildred Irving said she was angry with her daughter for taking some candy. Desi was known to the child protection system, and autopsy reports show she likely suffered a lifetime of torture and abuse. Her mother pleaded guilty, and is currently serving a forty-year sentence. Many of the details of Desi's short life became public in her mother's criminal case, but Desi's juvenile file is still protected by the state's privacy laws. DFL Representative Wes Skoglund, who chairs the House Judiciary committee and called tomorrow's hearing, asked Hennepin County to grant lawmakers access to Desi's file to understand where the system failed to protect her. But a Hennepin County judge gagged all involved, so tomorrow's testimony won't include specifics about Desi's case from juvenile file. Still, Skoglund says it's the kind of case that demands a response from public officials.
September 17, 1997 - President Clinton today called for sweeping changes in the proposed national tobacco settlement, including industry penalties of up to a $1.50 per pack if teen-age smoking fails to fall sharply over 10 years. In making his first detailed comment on the $368-billion tobacco settlement reached in June, Clinton effectively refused to endorse the agreement, outlining so many changes that it was certain to serve as little more than a starting point for any legislation that Congress may ultimately fashion. Minnesota's lawsuit against the industry is set to go to court in January. State Attorney General Skip Humphrey, who has been highly critical of the tobacco companies and the settlement, says the original settlement is dead. It's not, he says, just a bargaining tactic by the President.
September 17, 1997 - President Clinton today announced the U.S. will not support an international treaty calling for a total ban on land mines. Clinton says he can't sign on because it doesn't allow enough time to phase out mines in Korea, where U.S. troops are stationed. Susan Walker is the director of Handicap International, and head of the Minnesota campaign to ban landmines. She is in Oslo, and witnessed the signing of the treaty today.