Social Issues

Legislators say Minnesota should stop marriages under 18
A group of DFL state legislators say they want to change Minnesota state law this year to keep anyone under 18 from marrying, even with parental consent.
Black Minnesotans say they’ve faced pressure to change their hair
A bill that would prohibit employers and schools from targeting African Americans who wear dreadlocks, braids or twists drew testimony Thursday from people who said they’d felt marginalized for wearing their hair in a natural, textured style.
The Anti-Defamation League has found that some white supremacist groups are using gauzier language about "patriotism" to mainstream their message of discrimination that has targeted Jews, LGBT people and other minority communities.
Redefining beauty: Advocates work to make skin lightening a public health issue
The Minnesota Department of Health doled out four grants to two nonprofit groups and two counties to help educate communities of color about the potential health risk of using cosmetics that lighten skin.
Missteps lead publishing industry to review diversity effort
Diversity in publishing has been an industry issue for years. But the current controversy over Jeanine Cummins' novel “American Dirt" has intensified the debate. Flatiron Books admits it was caught off guard by the objections of Mexican American writers to Cummins' story of a mother and child fleeing to the U.S. border.
 What you need to know about Trump's plan to deport Hmong, Lao immigrants
The Trump administration is in talks with the government of Laos to allow for the deportation of Lao and Hmong immigrants with criminal records from the United States, federal State Department officials confirmed Monday.