Social Issues

Hear the MPR News Top Coast Festival speakers
Hear the voices of many of the speakers coming to the MPR News Top Coast Festival, presented May 30-June 1, 2014 by the University of Minnesota College of Continuing Education. "Big Ideas, New Solutions."
Civil Rights leader Mathew Little dies at 92
Little served as president of the Minnesota chapter of the NAACP for many years before retiring in 1993.
Church leaders used hidden funds to cover for abusive priests
Internal financial reports show the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for years spent millions of dollars dealing with clergy misconduct. It created a system that allowed church leaders to remove priests accused of misconduct without attracting attention. But it also left the church vulnerable to embezzlement.
The owner of a Duluth store that sells goods from around the world is getting some heat over a Martin Luther King Day sale that offered a discount for black colored merchandise.
Brazile thanks King for her 'head start'
The veteran Democratic political strategist, columnist and television commentator Donna Brazile delivered the keynote address at 24th annual Martin Luther King Holiday Breakfast in Minneapolis, and thanked the slain Civil Rights leader for paving the way for her success.
St. Paul march, ceremony to mark MLK Day
Events started Monday morning at the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul with a discussion of the upcoming legislative session sponsored by the Council on Black Minnesotans.
Virginia is quickly emerging as a key in the same-sex marriage fight
This purple state was once perceived as unfriendly and even bordering on hostile to gay rights. That's changed after a seismic political shift in the top three elected offices, from conservative Republicans to liberal Democrats who support gay marriage.
February is national Children's Dental Health Month, and the Minnesota Dental Associate will hold its annual "Give Kids a Smile" event Feb. 7-8.
Report: Minnesota's employment gap between races is 'intolerable'
In addition to employment disparities, the report also notes discriminatory lending practices have shut out minority-owned businesses from obtaining loans.
Pope's Harley up for auction to help Rome soup kitchen
The Vatican plans to auction off one of Pope Francis' two Harley-Davidson motorcycles and donate the proceeds to a soup kitchen that feeds the homeless in Rome.