Minnesota Now

If you were a devoted theater fan in 1940s Minneapolis, you would have come across a rising star named Hilda Simms, born Hilda Moses. She went on to star on Broadway, appear on magazine covers, perform in Europe and act in Hollywood movies and TV shows.

Throughout her career, Hilda Simms dedicated herself to speaking out against poverty and racism. But according to a new book out Tuesday, her talent and hard work were constrained by the limited roles available to Black women. Plus, her career and those of other Black actors involved in civil rights work suffered from the impact of the Hollywood Red Scare. The Red Scare was a period when artists accused of having Communist ties were shut out of roles.

JoJo Bell is the author of “Red Stained: The Life of Hilda Simms” and she joined Minnesota Now to talk about Hilda’s beginnings at the Phyllis Wheatley House in north Minneapolis, the theater roles available to Black women during Hilda’s life and the impact she left on her communities.

In her book “The Orchid Thief” about obsessive flower hunting, Susan Orlean wonders if “the reason it matters to care passionately about something is that it whittles the world down to a more manageable size.”

Twin Cities broadcasting legend Diana Pierce knows something about that. After retiring from her role in front of the camera as a KARE 11 news anchor, Pierce started a new endeavor: traveling around the country to capture stunning landscape photographs.

She eventually narrowed her focus to flowers. Now she’s writing a newsletter, called Blooming, with stories about flowers and people who tend to them. Diana Pierce joined Minnesota Now to talk about her project.

The driver who plowed into a group of people in downtown Minneapolis over the weekend is facing second-degree murder and second-degree assault charges following a concerning increase in driving tragedies over the last few months. We’ll look at the data and put it all into context.

Minnesota’s charter schools are struggling as they face rampant mismanagement, administrative misconduct and dismal test scores. A reporter behind a sweeping three-part series from the Minnesota Star Tribune looked at where it all went wrong. She joined host Cathy Wurzer to discuss possible solutions.

In a new Minnesota Now and Then segment, we heard the Minneapolis origin story of Hilda Simms, a Broadway and Hollywood actor who spoke up against poverty and racism. The author of a new book on Simms joined the show to explain how the Red Scare affected her career.

Early voting begins Friday. Listen to learn about efforts to raise voting numbers in the county with some of the lowest participation in the state.

Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Blonde” by Rafaella and our Song of the Day was “Simply Days” by Andrea Lyn.

Minnesota’s charter school experiment is failing. That’s the conclusion of a sweeping three-part report from The Minnesota Star Tribune looking at dismal student test scores and administrative mismanagement and misconduct.

Mara Klecker is the K-12 education reporter for the Minnesota Star Tribune and one of the reporters behind the series.

She joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the popularity of charter schools in the state, the idea of “outcome based” schools, what we know about student performance at charter schools and how lawmakers are talking about charter schools today.

On Tuesday, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced one count of second-degree murder and five counts of second-degree assault charges against the woman who plowed a car into a group of people in downtown Minneapolis, killing a 16-year-old girl and injuring five others.

On Monday, Moriarty’s office announced new charges against Derrick John Thompson who last year sped through a red light in Minneapolis and smashed into a car, killing five young women.

These incidents, along with the drunk driving crash at Park Tavern earlier in September, are a string of worrisome tragedies involving cars that turn into lethal objects.

Mary Moriarty has said she is seeing an increasing number of driving tragedies in recent months. The director of the Minnesota’s Office of Traffic Safety, Mike Hanson, joined Minnesota Now to provide context for the string of crash incidents.

A board in Washington state canceled a use of force training with former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter, who killed Daunte Wright in 2021. MPR News host Cathy Wurzer heard from the former prosecutor who was set to present with Potter.

We learned about one effort to shake downtown St. Paul out of its pandemic slump — and heard from the owner of a neighborhood restaurant that could soon close.

Duluth parents are hard-pressed for childcare after losing two large daycares.

Paralympian Mallory Weggemann is back home in Minnesota. Weggemann talked about how she’s recovering after medaling in Paris.

It was a fantastic weekend for Minnesota sports! Our sports guys recapped whatever you missed.

Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold led the Minnesota Vikings to a 23-to-17-point win against his former team — and the defending conference champions — the San Francisco 49ers.

Across football, baseball, basketball and soccer, it was a winning weekend for Minnesota teams.

MPR News host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson about it.

Eagan native Mallory Weggemann has just returned to Minnesota after another amazing Paralympic run. And she’s added some hardware to her collection.

She took silver in the women’s 50-meter butterfly and gold in the women’s 200-meter individual medley.

Weggemann spoke with MPR News host Cathy Wurzer about her wins.

Kim Potter, the former Brooklyn Center police officer who shot and killed Daunte Wright in 2021, was scheduled to lead a training workshop on use-of-force for a law enforcement board in the state of Washington in September.

Potter was released from prison last year after serving a sentence for shooting Wright, a Black motorist, after mistaking her gun for her Taser.

The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis board canceled the “Remorse to Redemption: Lessons Learned” after learning Potter was tapped to lead it and tell her side of Daunte Wright’s killing during it the event.

An organization created to rejuvenate downtown St. Paul will soon include all commercial and residential buildings in the area. The Downtown Improvement District provides services like street cleaning and security.

Saint Paul’s city council voted this summer to double the size of the district and include residences — not just businesses — for the first time. The district is funded by property owners, who had until this month to reject the measure.

They did not, so the new boundaries will take effect in January. This comes as Minnesota’s capitol city deals with spaces sitting empty, office workers staying home and restaurants closing.

MPR News host Cathy Wurzer talked with Downtown Alliance President Joe Spencer and Tim Niver, owner and operator of restaurants Mucci’s and Saint Dinette, about the state of downtown St. Paul.