Stay Curious. Stay Connected.
MailNewsletters♡Donate Now

Stories from March 20, 2026

Advocates want access to lawyers for Whipple detainees

Legal advocates were back in federal court in Minneapolis today, asking a judge to order better access to lawyers for people detained at the Whipple federal building. And State Senator John Hoffman recently authored two bills that increase criminal penalties for people who impersonate a police officer and also require any former law enforcement vehicle sold to be stripped of all law enforcement insignias.
by Elena See

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Hundreds gather in White Bear Lake to honor Master Sgt. Nicole Amor

Hundreds gather in White Bear Lake to honor Master Sgt. Nicole Amor

Master Sgt. Nicole Amor was laid to rest Friday. She was one of six U.S. soldiers killed in a drone strike in Kuwait — the first U.S. casualties of the war with Iran.
by Feven Gerezgiher

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
At this Minnesota mosque, Eid al-Fitr is a time for joy after a difficult year

At this Minnesota mosque, Eid al-Fitr is a time for joy after a difficult year

Friday is Eid al-Fitr, a celebration marking the end of the month of Ramadan. At the Nusrat Mosque in Coon Rapids, the day was an opportunity for joy after an especially tough few months.
by Clay Masters and Gretchen Brown

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
More Marines are headed to Middle East as Iran war reaches the 3-week mark

More Marines are headed to Middle East as Iran war reaches the 3-week mark

The USS Boxer group of three ships, carrying thousands of Marines from the 11the Marine Expeditionary Unit, has left California and will reach the Persian Gulf in about three weeks, NPR has confirmed.
by NPR Staff

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Judge orders Homeland Security to open Whipple to clergy

Judge orders Homeland Security to open Whipple to clergy

A federal judge in St. Paul on Friday ordered the Department of Homeland Security to develop a plan to ensure that clergy are able to visit immigration detainees at the Whipple Federal Building. Judge Jerry Blackwell’s decision comes amid a lawsuit that a group of Minnesota religious leaders filed in February.
by Matt Sepic

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
MN Shortlist, March 20–26: Crossing forms, holding histories

MN Shortlist, March 20–26: Crossing forms, holding histories

The throughline this week isn’t just performance, it’s transformation — artists moving across forms, histories surfacing in new contexts, and institutions quietly reshaping what they contain.
by Jacob Aloi, Anika Besst, Alex V. Cipolle and Max Sparber

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Morning Announcements for March 20

Morning Announcements for March 20

These are the Morning Announcements for Friday, March 20. Tell us what you’re celebrating!
by MPR News Staff

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Politics Friday: Consumer safeguards gain bipartisan support at the Capitol

Politics Friday: Consumer safeguards gain bipartisan support at the Capitol

MPR News politics editor Brian Bakst talks about proposals to protect consumers from scams and other ways Minnesotan’s might be swindled. Plus, a check-in with the state’s economic development commissioner.
by Brian Bakst and Matthew Alvarez

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Back-to-back winter storms followed by wave of warmth

Back-to-back winter storms followed by wave of warmth

Blizzards punctuated the end of winter and warmth will kick-off the beginning of spring.
by Cathy Wurzer

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Whipple building detainees, lawyers ask federal judge to order better access to legal counsel

Whipple building detainees, lawyers ask federal judge to order better access to legal counsel

Legal advocates and people who have been detained at the Whipple building testified in court this week that the federal government has violated detainees’ rights to talk to lawyers. They’re asking the court to extend an injunction ordering improved legal access.
by Estelle Timar-Wilcox

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Looking for grace in ‘The Glorians’

Looking for grace in ‘The Glorians’

Environmentalist and divinity school professor Terry Tempest Williams is back with a book about the tension of living in a world of undeniable beauty and climate chaos. She points us to “The Glorians,” those moments of hope that can anchor us in a world awash with uncertainty.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Bedard scores, Blackhawks hang for first win over Wild in seven years

Bedard scores, Blackhawks hang for first win over Wild in seven years

Connor Bedard scored a goal and defenseman Alex Vlasic made a game-saving stop as time ran out as the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Minnesota Wild 2-1 to snap the NHL’s longest active point streak for one team against another.
by The Associated Press

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Two dozen states, 10 cities sue EPA over repeal of ‘endangerment’ finding central to climate fight

Two dozen states, 10 cities sue EPA over repeal of ‘endangerment’ finding central to climate fight

Two dozen states, along with more than a dozen cities and counties, sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday, challenging the Trump administration’s repeal of a scientific finding that had been the central basis for U.S. action to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change. 
by The Associated Press

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Chuck Norris, martial arts master and actor whose toughness became internet lore, dies at 86

Chuck Norris, martial arts master and actor whose toughness became internet lore, dies at 86

The martial arts grandmaster and action star Chuck Norris has died. His roles in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and other television shows and movies made him an iconic tough guy, sparking internet parodies and adoration from presidents.
by The Associated Press

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Very mild first couple days of spring

Very mild first couple days of spring

Temperatures will be warmer Friday with widespread 50s. Saturday will be even warmer with a run at 70 degrees or warmer for many in southern Minnesota. Seasonable temperatures return Sunday. 
by Sven Sundgaard

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!

Friday memorial service will remember fallen White Bear Lake soldier

A memorial service will be held Friday in White Bear Lake for a fallen soldier killed earlier this month in Kuwait. And 11 former military lawyers are challenging the Justice Department’s assignment of active duty military attorneys as federal prosecutors.
by Phineas Pope

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Hidden in the grooves: A new book maps Native music's overlooked legacy

Hidden in the grooves: A new book maps Native music's overlooked legacy

A new book by Minneapolis-based artist and publisher Ryan Nelson archives and shares a rare Native American music collection and the collector Justis Brokenrope’s work to introduce the music to new audiences.
by Melissa Olson

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!
Pension shortfall leaves many Minnesota Catholic school, church employees in limbo

Pension shortfall leaves many Minnesota Catholic school, church employees in limbo

Current and retired employees of some Catholic schools and dioceses in Minnesota learned that their pension fund operated by Illinois-based Christian Brothers Services is facing a massive shortfall. In St. Cloud, it’s causing worry and uncertainty.
by Kirsti Marohn

Go Deeper.

Create an account or log in to save stories.

Like this?

Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories.

Show me!