Social Issues

A new report by the Centers for Disease Control provides first-of-its-kind data that may depict sexual violence more accurately than previous studies,
Why do Twin Cities people say home is 'Minnesota'?
Here and around the country, 'Minneapolis-St. Paul' is falling out of use.
Revisiting the Constitution
The debate over the nature of the U.S. Constitution goes back to the framers. Jefferson thought it should be updated every few years, while John Adams considered it a sacred text. Into this debate comes Christopher Phillips, who's been asking people across the county to view themselves as framers of our founding document. With faith in our government at an all-time low, he says maybe it's time to make some changes.
Surveillance Software: Where do we draw the line?
From individual identity theft to national repression of government dissidents to tracking terrorists, the use of computer surveillance equipment is fraught with political and ethical issues. How do we weigh the risks and benefits of computer surveillance equipment? And what legislation could help us monitor its use?
Facebook's new suicide prevention efforts
Facebook just announced a new service aimed to help prevent suicide among its users. How does it work and is it likely to be more effective than their previous effort?
Clergy and community leaders in north Minneapolis are calling on five major banks to halt home-mortgage foreclosures this winter.
Journalist Isabel Wilkerson on the Great Migration
Isabel Wilkerson was the first African American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize, for her reporting on the Midwestern floods of 1993. She speaks about her new book, "The Warmth of Other Suns," about the migration of 6 million black Southerners who moved from to the North over a period of six decades beginning around 1915. Wilkerson spent 15 years researching the book and interviewed more than 1,200 people.
Recently the head of American Airlines resigned because he didn't agree with the company's decision to file for bankruptcy. When he walked out the door he left his lucrative bonus package on the table. It's a rare story and it got us wondering -- what makes some leaders forego the perks of the job while others become the face of corporate greed.
A new service launching today is designed to make it easier for people who express suicidal thoughts on Facebook to get help. Users will be able to make instant connections with crisis counselors through Facebook chat. “One of the big goals here is to get the person in distress into the right help as soon…