North Star Journey

North Star Journey is a celebration of communities in Minnesota and the champions who are doing the work that we should be bringing a voice to. We hope to bring new understandings of our state and what brought us to today. About | Credits

MPR News also hosts North Star Journey Live, an event series discussing topics about what Minnesota’s diverse communities need to thrive. Check it out here.

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This coverage is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment's Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

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More than 4,000 people are released from Minnesota prisons each year. What happens next? MPR News senior editor Brandt Williams co-hosts a special Sahan Community and North Star Journey Live conversation about how to rebuild a life after incarceration.
Former police chief reflects on five years after George Floyd's murder
MPR News host Angela Davis talks with former Minneapolis police chief, Medaria Arradondo, about his book, “Chief Rondo: Securing Justice for the Murder of George Floyd.”
Creating work community with Alex West Steinman
If you work for yourself or a small organization, how do you find office space, inspiration and community? MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Alex West Steinman, CEO of the coworking network, The Coven. 
Minnesota baseball lovers make a pitch to honor bygone ballpark, 2 historic St. Paul teams
The St. Paul Saints and St. Paul Colored Gophers played ball in the early 1900s at a tiny ballpark near the Capitol called the Pillbox. The Colored Gophers were a vital piece of Black baseball history nationally. A local historian is lobbying now for a public commemoration of the site.
Tell us a story we are missing
MPR News is dedicated to telling stories for Minnesota communities, by Minnesota communities. Have you seen something missing in our coverage? Have thoughts on how we should be approaching certain stories? We want to pass you the mic.
Representing immigrants in a time of policy changes
MPR News host Angela Davis talks with immigration attorney Gloria Contreras Edin about what inspired her to pursue law and what she’s seeing on the ground as immigration policies change.  
Has health equity in Minnesota improved since the pandemic? We took that question to Red Wing for a North Star Journey Live discussion and asked health care workers on the front lines to assess what they’ve seen since 2020.
Cross-cultural concert series blends Somali memory with soul music's joy
A new concert series called “Meet You at the Crossroads” brings together Somali blues and Black soul music in a cross-cultural collaboration led by Ahmed Ismail Yusuf and JD Steele, highlighting the Twin Cities' diversity through shared musical traditions.
Two Ojibwe artists practice culture and tradition with birchbark 
Working with birchbark has been a long tradition for tribes in the Midwest, however, there are concerns that it has become a rarity. For two Ojibwe artists, they share the significance of what birchbark means to them and their art.   
In St. Cloud, leaders of color aim to fill community's housing need
Several organizations in St. Cloud led by people of color are working to address local housing needs. A recent study found the city will need 17,000 new housing units over the next decade and a half to meet anticipated demand.