🚨 Was Kamala Harris a progressive prosecutor or tough on crime? She’s been criticized for being both. We examine her record as a district attorney and California attorney general.
🏃🏿 As the Olympics open in Paris, one group of Minnesotans will be proudly carrying the Liberian flag. As Peter Cox reports, four of the five members of Liberia's men's track and field team have a local connection. And our Kyra Miles sends us a postcard from outside the Louvre ahead of the Opening Ceremony.
Coming up at 11 a.m.
🖊️ Novelist Claire Messud plumbs ancestral photo albums, diaries and a huge memoir for her new novel, “This Strange Eventful History.”
📚 Join MPR News host Kerri Miller and Messud on this week’s Big Books and Bold Ideas to take a journey into memory, time and the longing for home.
Jabez Reeves, Emmanuel Matadi, Akeem Sirleaf and Joseph Fahnbulleh are representing Liberia in the 2024 Olympics, but they all have close ties to the North Star state. Minnesota is home to one of the largest Liberian populations in the U.S., estimated at around 30,000 people.
“When we all talk, we’re all like ‘Yeah, I’m from this part of Minnesota, I’m gonna do what I gotta do to represent this part of Minnesota,’” Sirleaf said. “But when we all come together on that relay, none of that matters. We just focus on the goal, which is to make it to the final and get a medal.”
The St. Paul hospital hopes to inspire others to help build recreational spaces for all with a “day of play” at its inclusive playground.
The hospital encourages families to advocate for inclusive playgrounds in their area. They’ve also created a map that shows inclusive playgrounds across the state and hopes people get out and play this summer.
💚 Listen: State of Democra-Z: Kamala Harris, ‘brat’ and Gen-Z. For Gen X and Boomers, they’re just trying to understand how the album of the summer, “brat” by Charli XCX, has anything to do with Kamala Harris. But for Gen Z its garnering excitement and momentum.