May 28, 1997 - More than a hundred outraged veterans came to the capital today to voice their opposition to the balanced budget agreement passed by Congress last week. As part of the budget, more than two BILLION dollars is being cut from the Veterans Administration...which is mostly for health care. As Minnesota Public Radio's Lorna Benson reports, some veterans fear the cuts will do irrepairable damage to a medical system already struggling to compete in today's health care market. Initially, the V.A. thought Congress would freeze its spending for the next five years. But, in what some veterans describe as back room politics, Congress and the President decided at the last minute to cut more t
May 28, 1997 - MPR’s Mariann Sullivan interviews Twin Cities singer Lucia Newell, who discusses her passion for Brazilian music. Newell also demonstrates the different vocal and rhythmic styles.
May 28, 1997 - Minnesota's first Mexican-American school principal is out of a job. The St. Paul Board of Education last night voted to fire Humboldt High School principal Larry Lucio (LOO-see-oh). The move came after several hours of testimony from Lucio's supporters - mostly Hispanics from St. Paul's West Side. Minnesota Public Radio's Jon Gordon reports. Lucio's backers came out in force to convince the school board he's a good principal who's raised test scores, cut the dropout rate and made Latino students feel better about themselves. But it did no good: the Board voted 6-to-1 to support Superintendent Curman Gaines recommendation NOT to renew Lucio's contract after his two-year probationary period.
May 28, 1997 - Little if ANY progress was made today, when Governor Carlson met with legislative leaders again (wed) in an effort to find common ground over their differences for K-12 Education funding. Lawmakers passed a bill this session, but the Governor says he'll veto it unless 150-million dollars in tax credits and deductions gets added to the mix. As Minnesota Public Radio's Karen-Louise Boothe reports, the two sides are as far apart as they were the last night of the session: The Carlson Administration pulled out all the stops for it's hour long presentation, to lay the groundwork for the Governor's proposal. The Governor talked at length about his concern for children's success in school BITE: :15-secs "and who are failing: red 4
May 29, 1997 - Mainstreet Radio’s Rachel Reabe profiles Minnesota's Linda Eder, who is wowing Broadway audiences as the female lead in the musical version of Jekyll and Hyde. 36-year-old Eder, who grew up outside Brainerd, has an exceptional, powerful voice, according to the theater critics and fans singing her praises.
May 29, 1997 - Mainstreet Radio’s Rachel Reabe visits a correctional facility in Faribault. Secure behind high chain link fences topped with coiled razor wire, the oldest prisoners in the system live out their remaining years.
May 29, 1997 - Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone will tour several towns in the Mississippi Delta today ... in the first part of what he's billing as a nationwide poverty tour. Over the coming weeks, Wellstone plans to retrace the steps of Robert Kennedy... who visited some of the country's poorest regions in 1967 and '68. Minnesota Public Radio's John Biewen reports on how poverty has... or has not... changed... in the past thirty years. When Senator Robert Kennedy traveled to the Mississippi Delta in 1967... he found children in tattered clothing... with no access to a doctor and, in some cases, not enough to eat. Their parents had lost their cotton-plantation jobs to mechanization. A few months later... Kennedy found similar conditions among displaced coal mining families in eastern Kentucky. Georgetown
May 29, 1997 - Try this for a good time: Join a group of strangers who disagree with your politics. Well, believe it or not, hundreds of Twin Cities residents have voluntarily participated in community circle dialogue groups this spring. They talked about eliminating racial barriers in education, housing and the workplace. Participants meet in St. Paul (tonight) Thursday evening at Macalaster College for a wrap-up event. A national figure in renewing civic participation says the popularity of citizen discussion groups is rising because of mistrust of experts. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson has more. --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 4151 | TIME: 3:48 | OUTCUE: "...soc --------------------------------------------------------- Lynelle Charay (sha RAY) was the lone African American in her community circle dialogue group. She grew up in a segregated Mississippi town before moving to Minnesota. Charay, a Minneapolis public schools social worker, says if
May 29, 1997 - The Minneapolis school board has ended its contract with a private, for-profit management company. Public Strategies Group, and its president Peter Hutchinson, took over administration of a troubled school district three and a half years ago. Board members say the company has completed its mission. But the change comes at a time when the district is being criticized by state officials and minority groups for not measuring up. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... The Minneapolis school board decided in 1993 to look outside traditiona
May 30, 1997 - Midday examines the ways segregation is affecting life in the Twin Cities with guests George Latimer, former St. Paul mayor and former official with the Department of Housing and Urban Development; and Vivian Jenkins Nelson, president and CEO of Inter-Race. Topics include Listeners call in with questions.