March 27, 2000 - On this Midday program, Nick Hayes, history professor at Hamline University, gives an analysis of the Russian elections in which Russia's new president-elect Vladimir Putin won a majority of the vote in presidential election.
April 1, 2000 - American culture has shaped powerful myths about the war - and some of the most powerful ones surround the Vietnam-era veteran. This American RadioWorks documentary, “Revisiting Vietnam: 25 Years From Vietnam,” presents various reports and interviews from an American perspective.
April 12, 2000 - Hmong veterans who served in special forces in Laos may get what they've wanted for two decades: an exemption from the English language requirement for U.S. citizenship. A bill waiving English language skills for Hmong veterans is headed for the house floor in Congress and is in committee in the Senate.
April 14, 2000 - Minneapolis and St. Paul police officers will soon start tracking the race of people they pull over for traffic stops. African American citizens have long said the police pull them over *because* of their race. Now, the two biggest police departments in the state will collect data to see for themselves if it's true.
April 17, 2000 - Justice in Black and White: The Justice Gap The news last week that both Minneapolis and St. Paul police departments will start keeping track of the race of people pulled over in traffic stops is part of a much broader look at racism in Minnesota's criminal justice system. The study examines a state report which shows black men in Minnesota are sent to prison at a rate more than three times the national average. In fact, Minnesota's imprisonment ratio of blacks to whites is twenty-five to one - the highest of any state in the country. Some say racism is behind the disparity. Others say the causes are more complex.
April 19, 2000 - The recent exposure of a multi-state prostitution ring based in the Twin Cities focused the political spotlight on preventing exploitation of homeless and vulnerable teenagers. The Minnesota legislature is considering several measures this year to enhance the safety net for at-risk kids. But at the county level, the situation is getting worse instead of better. Financially strapped counties can offer few options for homeless teens, and youth shelters are struggling to keep their doors open.
May 12, 2000 - First there was the fish-cam, then the bear-cam…now visitors to the World Wide Web can see "Lake Superior Cam." A team of inventors have dropped a gadget into 30-feet of Lake Superior water just off Duluth. It will show anyone who's interested what's happening down there, 24 hours a day.
May 12, 2000 -
May 12, 2000 - Hmong veterans will have to wait to hear about legislation that would allow them to take the US Citizenship test in their own language. The US Senate has set aside the bill until at least next week. Hmong veterans were pleased when the House passed the legislation last week. But things have gotten bogged down in the Senate, where there is disagreement over details of the bill. Democrat Paul Wellstone supports the House bill, while Republican Rod Grams has introduced a slightly different one. Senator Grams joins us now.
May 12, 2000 - A wide-ranging collection of mostly minority groups is gathering behind a vigil in St. Paul on Mothers Day. Organizers want to call attention to the victims of a horrific crime found in Rochester last fall. They say public attention and the police investigation has languished because the victims aren't white.