May 22, 2011 - MPR’s Tim Nelson reports that after nearly six hours of emotional debate, a proposed constitutional amendment that would define marriage as between a man and a woman was approved in the Minnesota House. It was the last legislative step needed to put the question on the statewide ballot in November 2012.
August 23, 2011 - MPR’s Tom Weber reports that two lawsuits over the treatment of gay students in the Anoka-Hennepin School District offer something old and something new for legal observers.
September 20, 2011 - Gays and lesbians can now serve openly in the military. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," a policy that's been on the books since 1993 and nullified by Congress in December 2010, has officially ended. MPR’s Sasha Aslanian talks with a few service members about their experiences with the policy.
October 4, 2011 - Midday presents an American RadioWorks documentary titled Don't Lecture Me, which looks at how some are rethinking the way college students learn.
November 8, 2011 - MPR’s Dan Gunderson reports on creation of four Native American radio stations in Callaway, Nett Lake, Cloquet and Cass Lake. Gunderson interviews tribe members behind the efforts to provide service to American Indian audiences in the northern Minnesota area.
November 8, 2011 - Native American activist Winona LaDuke speaks about the importance of Native American radio stations. LaDuke is one of the individuals behind starting station for White Earth reservation.
November 14, 2011 - MPR’s Elizabeth Baier reports on the struggles Latino immigrants have with various health conditions and healthcare access. Like most people who immigrate to the U.S., Latino immigrants are usually healthier when they first arrive in the U.S. than U.S. born residents. But within a generation, many Latino immigrants lose that health advantage. And they are almost twice as likely to develop diabetes and other chronic diseases, compared to people who are born here.
November 28, 2011 - Morning Edition’s Cathy Wurzer interviews James Hormel, the first openly gay U.S. ambassador, about his memoir "Fit to Serve." Hormel details the fight to become U.S. Ambassador was a long and ardous process but he says it was worth it.
December 21, 2011 - MPR’s Sasha Aslanian talks with members of a Catholic family about their take on upcoming marriage amendment vote. Maureen Scallen, a lesbian in a long-term relationship, wonders whether the loyalty of her siblings will be tested by a proposed Minnesota constitutional amendment that would define marriage as only being between a man and woman.
January 16, 2012 - Midday marks Martin Luther King Jr. Day with a discussion about race and religion in America with guest Keith Ellison (D-MN), U.S. representative for the Minnesota 5th District.