Race: Conversations around race and racial justice

Here are the latest on the fight against racism, voices calling for racial justice and in-depth stories on communities of color and other racial issues from MPR News.

Voices of Minnesota Calls for change across the state

Protests and pain The killing of George Floyd

Call To Mind Spotlight on black trauma and policing

Amplifying voices Share your experiences and hopes for the future

Community rallies around Bloomington mosque after imam assaulted on the way to prayer
Bloomington police are investigating an attack on the imam, Mohamed Mukhtar, who was walking to the nightly prayer service around 10 p.m. Thursday when two people approached and assaulted him outside of the Dar Al Farooq center.
Meet Minnesota's Teacher of the Year, first Somali American to win honor
Qorsho Hassan was selected out of 134 nominees for her willingness to trust her students and let their own questions guide their learning. “They run the classroom with me,” she said. “I refuse for anyone to dim the light of my students.”
Minneapolis leaders push ahead with efforts to change police
A city commission on Wednesday blocked a November vote on the issue. So now, although political will for change may be on their side, city leaders face a more incremental and challenging path to rebuilding the oft-criticized department. But they're not giving up.
After taking tough measures, Fond du Lac band has first COVID-19 cases
After months of trying to keep the coronavirus at bay, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has confirmed the first two positive COVID-19 cases on its reservation in northeastern Minnesota.
Parks in nonwhite areas are half the size of ones in majority-white areas, study says
Amid high temperatures and a pandemic, green spaces are a lifeline. But new data shows parks in low-income and nonwhite areas are smaller and more crowded than those in high-income and white areas.
It's more than racism: Isabel Wilkerson explains America's 'caste' system
In “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist examines the laws and practices that created a bipolar caste system in the U.S. — and how the Nazis borrowed from it.
'If not now, when?': Black women seize political spotlight
Black women have long been the Democratic Party’s most reliable and loyal voters, but for generations that allegiance didn’t translate to their own political rise. There have been zero Black woman governors, just two senators, several dozen congresswomen. But now Black women are mobilized and demanding an overdue return on their investment. 
Journalists of color at the Star Tribune call for newsroom changes
In an open letter to management, they are demanding their employer address inequities in recruitment and retention of non-white staff, improve community outreach, and broaden coverage of communities of color.
El Paso marks Walmart shooting anniversary amid pandemic
Events to mark the anniversary of the shooting that claimed 23 lives in El Paso have taken on a new look amid the pandemic: parks lit with lanterns that people can walk or drive through, and private tours for victims' families at a museum exhibit of items preserved from a makeshift memorial.