Imagine walking through a festival and to your right, you smell sambusas from Somalia. And then to your left you hear the music of a Mexican Mariachi band. That is the multicultural experience you can have this weekend at the International Festival of Minnesota.

If you grew up here or had kids here, you may remember attending its former namesake, the Festival of Nations. It ran nearly 90 years, and was the Midwest’s oldest and longest-running annual multicultural celebration. It drew 30,000 people to the RiverCentre when it was last held in 2019. Due to the pandemic and rising costs, the event came to an end. But now it is back and it kicks off Friday.

Steve Heckler is the executive director of the International Festival of Minnesota and he joined MPR News host Emily Bright to talk about this weekend’s celebrations.

An effort is underway to redistribute $500,000 of funds raised following the murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020. In total, Black Visions — along with an off-shoot organization Reclaim the Block — received some $30 million following the killing of George Floyd. Black Visions said more than $9 million have been redistributed already to other Black-led efforts across the state.

Now, Black Visions is creating a new grant to share more of that money. Working in partnership with Headwaters Foundation for Justice, the goal is to provide immediate cash relief to Black Minnesotans facing hardship. Individuals can apply for one-time funding of $1,500, $2,000 or $5,000.

Black Visions formed in August 2017 and was at the center of an effort to replace the Minneapolis Police Department in the wake of George Floyd’s murder.

Tiffany Dykes, director of development at Black Visions, shared more about the fund.

State lawmakers have begun to discuss a bill to help address the financial crisis at HCMC. The Hennepin County hospital is the state’s busiest trauma center. It’s also a teaching hospital and part of the healthcare safety net. It treats patients regardless of insurance.

The hospital faces a $50 million projected shortfall this year. It slashed programs and positions in January. But Hennepin County commissioners have said that without action from state lawmakers, the hospital could begin closing in June.

Lawmakers have responded with a proposal to use sales tax money to help cover the hospital’s costs. During a House taxes committee meeting Thursday, former patients and healthcare providers testified in support of the bill, including Dr. Tom Wyatt, the hospital’s emergency medicine chair.

Rep. Danny Nadeau, R-Rogers, is a co-author on the bill and he spoke with guest host Emily Bright about his legislation.

In the last three months, a coalition of foundations have distributed millions of dollars in donations to support communities impacted by the federal immigration operation. We learned how they worked to quickly distribute money to those who needed it most.

Minneapolis Public Schools students are all back in-person, with the district ending e-learning for students that were too scared to leave their homes. A district leader shared how staff are making sure kids are coming back to class.

Plus, Minnesota is celebrating 75 years of Wildlife Management Areas, lands the Department of Natural Resources says have played an important role in protecting habitat.

And we went “Out to Lunch” with a domestic violence advocate who is making sure African immigrant communities aren't left behind.

A group of philanthropic leaders say they have managed to raise and give out millions of dollars to organizations across the state in the span of just a few months.

The Immigrant Rapid Response Fund will wrap up its final round of grantmaking this week. In total, nearly $14 million dollars will be distributed to more than 140 organizations.

Ambar Hanson, the executive director of the Mortenson Family Foundation, shared more about their work on Minnesota Now.

On Minnesota Now, we hear from many different people in Minnesota over the phone and in the studio. But we don’t often meet them in the community, where news and life happens. In our “Out to Lunch” series, MPR News host Nina Moini sits down for a meal with people from Minnesota news and culture to get to know them better.

Comfort Dondo has spent her career supporting women who have experienced domestic violence in the Twin Cities and beyond. She founded the nonprofit Phumulani in 2017 and has had her hands in community anti-violence and empowerment projects throughout the twenty years she's lived in the Twin Cities, after moving here from Zimbabwe as a teen. She met MPR News host Nina Moini at a restaurant that she said reminded her of home, Bolé Ethiopian Cuisine in St. Paul.

The “Land of 10,000 Lakes” is also the land of 10 million acres of wetlands. That may sound like a lot, but it is just about half the wetlands that existed in Minnesota before European settlement, according to the Department of Natural Resources.

In the mid-20th century, government policies incentivized farmers to drain or fill wetlands, and crops spread across areas that were critical to birds and other wildlife. A movement to protect and recover wetlands grew into a system of state lands called Wildlife Management Areas.

This year, the DNR is celebrating the 75th anniversary of this conservation strategy, which now includes about 1,500 WMAs across a variety of habitats.

DNR Wildlife Section Manager Dave Trauba joined MPR News host Emily Bright to talk about the history and future of these areas.

Minneapolis Public Schools students returned from spring break this week as the district ended a temporary virtual option it launched in January. The purpose of that option was to sustain learning for students who were afraid to leave their homes during the surge of federal immigration agents to the state. More than 6,000 students used the virtual option at one point or another, according to the district.

As they worked to support learning, educators raised concerns that immigrant students and students of color could experience a repeat of the academic losses and absenteeism that followed the COVID-19 pandemic. MPS Director of Student Retention and Recovery Colleen Kaibel joined MPR News host Emily Bright to reflect on the surge’s impact on attendance and talk about her office’s work moving forward.

President Donald Trump issued new threats against civilian infrastructure in Iran Tuesday. He's set an 8 p.m. EST deadline for the country to agree to a deal. We'll talk with the leader of one group in Minnesota's Iranian community.

A viral video gives a glimpse into the lives of kids in Minneapolis who are bearing the impacts of events like the Annunciation shooting and the ICE surge. We'll talk with a therapist about how trauma impacts children and how to help.

A plan to expand a dairy operation in West Central Minnesota is getting pushback from some neighbors and environmental advocates. We'll talk with a reporter who's been covering the proposal and the controversy.

We’ll get the latest on Minnesota sports from our sports contributors.

Our Minnesota Music Minute was “Who’s This?” by Ber. Our Song of the Day was “Cut Your Hair” by Pavement.

A Minneapolis woman went viral for sharing her experience at a playground - she said her story illustrates the trauma children in Minnesota are living with after the ICE surge and after the Annunciation school shooting in 2025.

MPR News host Kelly Gordon talked with Ana Mariella Rivera, a therapist in St. Paul about how children are processing the impact of both traumatic events.