Elizabeth Shockman

'For the girls': New film tells a coming-of-age story of Somali American women in Minneapolis A new short film by Minneapolis filmmaker Yasmin Yassin follows two Somali American sisters running a social-media matchmaking business as they move through Lake Street, exploring friendship, feminini...

A new short film by Minneapolis filmmaker Yasmin Yassin follows two Somali American sisters running a social-media matchmaking business as they move through Lake Street, exploring friendship, femininity and the in-between world of first-generation Somali life.

Greater Minnesota schools felt the fear as ICE presence surged While the surge of federal agents in the Twin Cities grabbed much of the attention the past few months, stories of children hiding at home, crying in class and being detained have quietly gripped some...

“In my classroom, students frequently become emotional, crying due to stress or fear. Many appear increasingly agitated and reluctant to engage in class activities,” a teacher wrote. via @eshockmanwrites.bsky.social

www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

Iran school and nearby military base struck multiple times, satellite image reveals Iranian authorities say the attack, which took place on Saturday, killed 168 people.

BBC Verify has pieced together verified videos, satellite imagery and expert views after a deadly attack near a primary school in Minab, souther Iran, which suggest the area was hit more than once "by multiple simultaneous or near-simultaneous strikes".

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

So please support your public radio and newspapers! We're the source of whatever Claude is summarizing anyway. And we do it better.

BREAKING:

A Jan. 6 defendant pardoned by Trump was just sentenced to life in prison for sexually abusing two middle-school aged children.

He tried to bribe his victims by saying he would share Jan. 6 restitution money from the Trump administration, according to police.

Greater Minnesota schools felt the fear as ICE presence surged While the surge of federal agents in the Twin Cities grabbed much of the attention the past few months, stories of children hiding at home, crying in class and being detained have quietly gripped some...

While the surge of federal agents in the Twin Cities grabbed much of the attention the past few months, stories of children hiding at home, crying in class and being detained have quietly gripped some Minnesota small towns since January.

More from MPR News reporter @eshockmanwrites.bsky.social

ICE surge meant thousands of extra calls, canceled time off, lots of OT for MPD officers The Minneapolis Police Department will update city council members Tuesday on how the federal government’s surge into Minnesota affected public safety.

Police fielded 50,000 calls during the surge, canceled over 1,000 days off and extended 500 shifts. The department says that more than $5 million was spent on policing between Jan. 7 and Feb. 1.

The U.S. shuts some Gulf embassies and warns of a prolonged war with Iran The United States evacuated diplomats across the Middle East and shut down some embassies as war with Iran intensified Tuesday while President Trump signaled the conflict could turn into extended war.

The United States evacuated diplomats across the Middle East and shut down some embassies as war with Iran intensified Tuesday while President Trump signaled the conflict could turn into extended war.

Colin Gray, father of accused Georgia school shooter, found guilty of murder Colin Gray, 55, faces a maximum of 180 years in prison after a Barrow County jury found him guilty of 29 counts, including two counts of second-degree murder.

Breaking news: The father of a teenager accused of killing four people at a Georgia high school in 2024 was convicted of second-degree murder.

It’s a landmark victory as prosecutors attempt to bring charges against the parent of an alleged shooter.

Thread from @msepic.bsky.social who has been following court proceedings in MN associated with the surge of DHS agents in the state:

Elite Doctors Served Jeffrey Epstein While Treating His ‘Girls’

ICYMI over the weekend: My colleagues and I reviewed 15,000 documents to put together a detailed account of how Jeffrey Epstein leveraged medical care to manipulate and control victims, and how some doctors enabled that. Gift link:

After Detention, Families Stranded in Border Town Face Harrowing Journey Home Parents and children from a detention center in Texas found themselves dropped at a border town shelter with few means to leave.

After detaining children and parents for weeks, or months, inside Dilley detention center, ICE is dumping them at a shelter in Laredo, TX. They are often thousands of miles away from where they were arrested, with no money to get back home. THREAD (1/)
www.themarshallproject.org/2026/03/02/i...

ProPublica Sues Education Department for Withholding Records About Discrimination in Schools Under Secretary Linda McMahon, the work of the Office for Civil Rights, which aims to protect students from discrimination, is cloaked in secrecy.

"The agency’s Office for Civil Rights aims to protect millions of students from being discriminated against based on disability, race and gender. Under Education Secretary Linda McMahon, that work has become cloaked in secrecy, the lawsuit alleges." www.propublica.org/article/educ...

DOGE smashed federal education research. Here’s how a consultant told the Education Department to fix it. A new report finds that too often the Institute of Education Sciences has produced redundant or low-priority work. It also defends the federal role in education research.

“They’ve let so many people go. I’m worried we’ve done tremendous damage to our ability to recruit people into government work.” - @carajackson.bsky.social www.chalkbeat.org/2026/02/27/e...

Far from being deterred by the 5th circuit, federal judges in Texas appear to be ordering the release of more ICE detainees than before on due process/constitutional grounds. Here is Judge Jason Pulliam, a Trump appointee, joining their ranks. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Science of sex and gender being misrepresented by Trump officials, experts warn Scientists say crackdown on gender-affirming care could have impact on healthcare of all Americans

"...using misinformation to limit who can seek healthcare is a warning for all patients." www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Hundreds of FEMA responders have been grounded amid DHS’s partial shutdown, stymying disaster relief efforts.

However, DHS has allowed some FEMA staffers to deploy for immigration-related work, according to agency officials and documents seen by The Post. https://wapo.st/4r00jue

Transgender Kansas Residents Sue After Driver’s Licenses Are Invalidated As Kansas invalidates hundreds of licenses and birth certificates, transgender people say their constitutional rights have been violated.

Breaking News: Two transgender Kansans sued the state over a law this week that abruptly invalidated the driver’s licenses of residents who had changed their gender designations.

Paramount and Warner Bros' deal is about merging studios, and a whole lot more The nearly $111 billion marriage would unite Paramount and Warner film studios, streamers and television properties — including CNN — under the control of the wealthy Ellison family.

The nearly $111 billion marriage would unite Paramount and Warner film studios, streamers and television properties — including CNN — under the control of the wealthy Ellison family. n.pr/4rCH4YH

This is still twice as many as they said, and almost 7 times as many as pre-surge.

NEW: When anti-ICE protesters disrupted a church service, the Trump administration vowed to stop at nothing to protect religious liberty.

But congregations across the country who welcome immigrants say ICE has been violating their rights on a mass scale.
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

Meet the Annunciation parents mobilizing to end gun violence in Minnesota The parents’ advocacy group — Annunciation Light Alliance — is prepared to push for gun violence prevention at the Minnesota Legislature and beyond.

Inside the Minnesota Capitol sit two desks with the belongings of 8‑year‑old Fletcher Merkel and 10‑year‑old Harper Moyski, killed in a mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School. The installation is part of events by the Annunciation Light Alliance, a parent-led advocacy group.

Judge: IRS broke law ‘approximately 42,695 times’ in giving DHS data A court on Thursday issued an opinion on a data-sharing agreement between the taxpayer agency and federal immigration authorities.

Breaking news: A federal judge found that the IRS violated federal law “approximately 42,695 times” when it shared confidential taxpayer addresses with immigration enforcement officials last summer.

Seized Art, Eavesdropping Guards: Parents Describe a Clampdown at Dilley Detention Center as Kids Shared Their Stories Detainees told ProPublica that art supplies have been removed in room searches, immigrants have lost access to Gmail and staff hover within earshot during video calls.

Guards at children's Dilley detention center are confiscating kids' drawings, art supplies: www.propublica.org/article/dill...

Breaking News: Immigration agents arrested a Columbia University student after misrepresenting themselves to access a building, the school said. nyti.ms/4u2Z0xw

'IT ENDS TODAY': A federal judge in NJ says the Trump admin has continued to violate court orders in immigration cases and says he's prepared to haul in DOJ and DHS officials under oath. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

When the incredible @bethhawkins.bsky.social compliments your work. ❤️ Right back at you, Beth.

A White House Staffer Appears to Run Massive Pro-Trump X Account A popular right-wing account that called a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes "a masterpiece" appears to be run by a White House staffer, according to records reviewed by WIRED.

A popular right-wing account that called a video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes "a masterpiece" appears to be run by a White House staffer, according to records reviewed by WIRED. www.wired.com/story/a-whit...

Democrats in committee yesterday also voiced support for the bill. A lawyer from Education Minnesota suggested minor changes to language that would allow exceptions for teachers to give privacy to students in emergencies. The bill will be heard in the Public Safety Committee next.

The bill is sponsored by Republican Peggy Bennet, who on Tuesday told committee members "I personally too, when I was in high school as a 10th grader, was groomed by my band director...It’s something that still sticks with me today, so it is a really important issue.”