When Minnesota was a new state, thousands of settlers arrived, many of them from Europe. But in recent decades, the state has attracted large numbers of Hmong and Somali refugees. There are also thousands of people from India, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Mexico and the People’s Republic of China living in Minnesota.
The state has become more racially diverse in the last 10 years, and demographers said that's especially true among children. About 83 percent of Minnesotans were white, non-Hispanic for the 2010 census, compared to 88 percent in 2000.
February 27, 2004 - A delegation from the St. Paul is heading to Thailand today to visit the camp just north of Bangkok where thousands of Hmong refugees have been living for more than a decade. The group includes St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly and other government officials, as well as representatives from human services agencies and the St. Paul Public Schools. Minnesota Public Radio's Toni Randolph reports.
March 5, 2004 - The strike by Metro Transit bus drivers is now in day two. On day one, the work stoppage didn't produce the major traffic headaches that had been anticipated, but there was a big impact for some bus riders. Minnesota Public Radio's Toni Randolph reports. (The walk-out by bus drivers didn't stop classes at the Ronald M. Hubbs Center in St. Paul. Adult basic education and English language classes went on as usual yesterday.
March 12, 2004 - Over the past year several Minnesota theaters have closed their doors. Others are struggling to stay open, but the outlook is bleak. Artists say they're victims of what they call "the perfect storm." Minnesota Public Radio's Marianne Combs reports: {Minnesota Citizens for the Arts Director Sheila Smith says artists are suffering now more than ever in her 15 year career as an arts advocate. After the attacks of September 11th 2001 the various funding sources for arts organizations - ticket sales, foundation support and state funding - simultaneously tanked. But yet, Smith says, the crisis isn't getting the attention it deserves:
March 12, 2004 - Jerry Battle, the central character in Chang-rae Lee's new novel "Aloft," loves to fly alone. It's the way Jerry gets away from his problems, and he's got a lot of those. He's nearing 60, and neither his dad, nor his grown children are doing well. His long-term girlfriend left him. He's worried a co-worker may be suicidal. Somehow he manages to maintain his emotional distance, but as the story progresses that gets harder and harder. Lee's first two novels "Native Speaker" and "A Gesture Life" were about immigrants. Jerry Battle is an Italian-American living on Long Island. Chang-rae Lee told Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr he began writing the book because he was intrigued by Jerry's character.
March 18, 2004 - Mainstreet Radio’s Annie Baxter reports on a Long Prairie radio program that is reaching out to the town's burgeoning Hispanic population.
March 26, 2004 - A new play at the Children's Theatre Company (CTC) portrays the tension and occasional conflict between Somali immigrants and Black-Americans. "Snapshot Silhouette" examines this cultural clash through the eyes of two 12-year-old girls, one Somali, one Black-American. One of the CTC's goals is to help launch a dialogue between the two communities in the Twin Cities. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Roberts reports.
March 30, 2004 - Development is well behind schedule for a new national system to screen airplane passengers, known as "CAPPS II." The acronym stands for "Computer Assisted Passenger Pre-Screening." Homeland security officials say it's a critical tool to prevent a repeat of 9-11. But airlines are reluctant to even help test it, citing concern about passenger privacy. Some experts see an emerging battle between security and civil liberties that can only be settled in the courts. Minnesota Public Radio's Jeff Horwich has the second in our two-part look at the stalled attempt to get CAPPS II off the ground.
April 1, 2004 - MPR’s Elizabeth Stawicki reports that members of minority bar associations, area law schools, and law firms will launch a website to dispel some of the myths about Minnesota that they say discourage people of color from moving here. The site will feature profiles of noted legal professionals of color and offer information about such things as where to live and shop.
April 2, 2004 - Somali leaders appeared at the State Capitol Thursday to announce the formation of a statewide Somali leadership council. The council is being touted by Somalis and government officials alike as a way to bridge communication gaps between Somalis and the broader community.
April 6, 2004 - A new study reports alarmingly high rates of torture survivors are living in Minnesota's African immigrant communities. The Minneapolis-based Center for Victims of Torture conducted the study. It found 44 percent of immigrants from Somalia and from a part of Ethiopia known as Oromia experienced torture in their homelands. More than eleven hundred people participated in the study, making it the largest of its kind in the country. Previous studies had estimated the rate of torture among recent African immigrants at no more than 35 percent. Dr. David Johnson was on the team that conducted the study. He says torture among Oromo men was higher than among the women, but the opposite is true in the Somali community.