Morning Edition

The starting bid for Minneapolis artist seangarrison’s “Walking on Air,” which he painted outside the Hennepin County Government Center, is $150,000. The sale will benefit Youth Link MN and the Minnesota African American Heritage Museum and Gallery, as well as the Equal Justice Initiative in Alabama.

A new Minnesota Poll shows fewer than a third of voters think the 20-year long United States war in Afghanistan was worth it. Forty-five percent say they support leaving Afghanistan but didn't like the way Biden handled the withdrawal. Fifty-three percent say they would support Afghan refugees in their communities.

Hoping to make things a little lighter for everyone, MPR News associate producer and working comedian Aron Woldeslassie has been serving up his observations on life during these unusual times.

It’s been a little over a month since refugees fleeing Afghanistan started arriving at Fort McCoy, one of eight United States military bases tasks with housing the more than 50,000 Afghans seeking refuge from the Taliban.

As hospitals hit capacity with COVID-19 patients for the second time in the pandemic, health care practitioners are once again facing exhaustion and heartbreak. But this wave has also brought frustration and anger for front-line workers as many of the people they’re treating have refused vaccination.

Results of a new Minnesota poll from MPR News/Star Tribune/FRONTLINE/KARE 11 show fewer than a third of Minnesota voters think coronavirus restrictions have gone too far, and a majority supports requiring teachers and students to wear masks in schools. 

It's still too early to see the most vibrant shades, according to the state Department of Natural Resources. But portions of northwestern Minnesota are between 25 percent and 50 percent peak.

The Minnesota DNR says Enbridge pierced a groundwater aquifer in Clearwater County during construction of the Line 3 oil pipeline, causing an estimated release of more than 24 million gallons of groundwater from the aquifer, posing a risk to rare wetlands.

Adventure sports like mountain biking and climbing are all the rage right now. In Duluth, the city has invested in new bike and ski trails and an ice climbing park. Even as the state grows more diverse, however, those sports remain overwhelmingly white. But groups in Duluth are working to change that. 

“What’s Out There Weekend” offers walking tours to explore the culture and design of public spaces in the Twin Cities, Opera Afuera fills Allianz Field with music by Latino artists and the McKnight dance fellows premiere their solo dance videos.