Minnesota Now

An 11-year-old boy is dead after a shooting at a Minneapolis park. It's the second deadly shooting at a city park this month. We talk to the Minneapolis Park Police chief about what he thinks is behind the violence and what he's doing to keep parks safe.

The entire CDC vaccine advisory panel was fired by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The new members meet for the first time today. We hear how this panel's desicions could impact vaccine access.

Plus, federal checks on unaccompanied minors are putting immigrant families on edge. We dive deeper into that story from Sahan Journal.

Meteorologist Sven Sundgaard joins us with a look at flooding threats for today.

And a new podcast is collecting stories of queer mutual aid through a hotline.

Today’s Minnesota Music Minute was “Don’t Come Crying to Me” by Cindy Lawson. The Song of the Day was “The Great American Outrage Machine” by Dante DeGrazia.

A local podcaster is creating an oral history project built on stories from the LGBTQ+ community.

It’s called the We Help Us hotline and the phone lines are open to collect the stories of queer mutual aid in Minnesota. The stories sent in will then turn into a narrative podcast and will also be archived at the Tretter Collection at the University of Minnesota.

Chris Stedman is the founder of Good Judy Productions and creator of the We Help Us hotline. He joined Minnesota Now to talk about the project.

You can call 1-844-WE-HLP-US (1-844-934-5787) to submit a story.

Lawyers and advocates in the Twin Cities and southwestern Minnesota say federal agents are making home visits to interview unaccompanied minors. That’s according to a recent story by Sahan Journal.

Unaccompanied minors are children and teens who moved to the United States without guardians or legal status. Many are staying with sponsors, who are usually family members, while their cases go through court.

The Trump Administration has told national news organizations that agencies are making “wellness checks” to look for signs of exploitation and human trafficking. But immigrant advocates are raising concerns.

Joining Minnesota Now to explain is Sahan Journal’s immigration reporter Katelyn Vue.

We are finally cooling down after some extreme heat. But now we're tracking multiple rounds of rain and the potential for flooding.

Joining Minnesota Now with a detailed forecast, and a look at rainfall totals and how the start of tornado season is shaping up is Meteorologist Sven Sundgaard.

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices meets Wednesday and Thursday. A once-obscure board, its work was thrust into the spotlight after Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 of its members earlier this month.

He named eight replacements, some of whom have been outspoken about their mistrust of COVID-19 vaccines and lockdowns.

The board wields enormous influence, deciding on who gets vaccines in the U.S. and when.

Michael Osterholm, the Director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy and the leader of the Vaccine Integrity Project at the University of Minnesota, joined Minnesota Now to talk about the impact the committee’s decision could have on vaccine access.

Minneapolis police are still looking for a suspect in the deadly shooting of an 11-year-old boy at a park in north Minneapolis.

MPD says the shooting happened at Folwell Park Monday afternoon. First responders tried to save his life, but the boy, Amir, died from his injuries.

It’s the second deadly shooting at a Minneapolis park this month. In early June, one person died, and five others were injured after a shooting at Boom Island Park in northeast Minneapolis.

Minneapolis Parks Police Chief Jason Ohotto joined Minnesota Now to talk about park safety.

Nurses and health care workers in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports voted this morning to clear the way for a strike. We talk with the union about why they are considering that step and what's changed since their last strike in 2022.

The shooter who attacked two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses in their homes was allegedly dressed as a police officer when he came to their doors. That's raising questions about how officers identify themselves to the public.

Plus, the U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld a ban on gender-affirming care in Tennessee. The ruling won't affect Minnesota law, but it could bring more families to the state seeking care.

And we meet the host of a radio show that's all about rural Minnesota cooking!

Today’s Minnesota Music Minute was “Company” by Alica Thao. The Song of the Day was “500 Dollars'“ by the Lamont Cranston Band.

There’s a lot of media about food out there, but not much about the complexities and passion that fuels home cooking in rural Minnesota. That's what James Beard award winning chef Amy Thielen is taking on in her new project.

Thielen hosts “Ham Radio,” a radio call-in show that takes us inside the kitchens of cooks all over the state. It airs on KAXE based out of Grand Rapids. She said her goal is to make it sound like a community cookbook translated into radio. She joined Minnesota Now to talk about the show.

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors. In recent years, 27 states have enacted laws that restrict access to gender-affirming care for youth.

The ruling could doom lawsuits brought by transgender rights groups in states that have restrictions on gender-affirming care.

While the ruling won’t affect Minnesota’s law protecting gender-affirming care, clinics could see a surge of new patients coming from out-of-state.

Aaron Zimmerman is the executive director of PFUND, an organization that provides resources for LGBTQ+ plus people in the upper Midwest. He joined Minnesota Now to talk about the ruling’s impact.

More than 15,000 nurses and health care workers across 22 hospitals and clinics in the Twin Cities and Twin Ports have voted to authorize a strike amid contract negotiations.

While it doesn’t mean a strike will happen, it’s one step closer to health care workers going to the picket line.

Chris Rubesch is the president of the Minnesota Nurses Association, the union representing the nurses and health care workers involved, and an RN at Essentia Health in Duluth. He joined Minnesota Now to talk about the vote.

Minnesota Now reached out to the Twin Cities Hospital Group for an interview, but they were unavailable. They provided this statement:

“Today’s announcement of a strike vote puts the union’s “strike first, patients second” mentality on full display. It is disappointing that the union has chosen this path instead of working collaboratively to find solutions. While today’s vote tally does not mean a strike is imminent (a 10-day notice must be provided), if the union decides it is preferable for our nurses to leave their patients at the bedside, our hospitals will be fully prepared to care for patients. As they must be, our teams are focused on concluding these negotiations, reaching a fair settlement, and serving our patients.”