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MINNEAPOLIS – In a short speech punctuated by punch lines, Nobel PeacePrize laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu spoke Friday against war andbloated defense budgets, calling instead for turning enemies intofriends and spending on the needy.

MINNEAPOLIS – A normal American high school student wishing to take ajob may be doing so only to earn a few dollars for a movie with agirlfriend or to buy a cool gadget like an iPod. You might see such ateenager flipping burgers at the local fast food eatery, or bagginggroceries and pushing carts at the supermarket. It is almost unheard ofto find a high school student clad in a suit and tie going to work at abank or a similar job. But that is exactly what the students of CristoRey Jesuit High School do.

When M&I Bank needed a strong manager to lead a new branch in a multiethnic neighborhood, Felicia Ravelomanantsoa stepped up to the challenge.

MINNEAPOLIS – As a little girl growing up in the African island nation of Madagascar, Felicia Ravelomanantsoa thought she already knew her destiny. Like many girls in Africa, she thought she was being raised to become a mother and nothing more. After all, her mother had quit teaching to take care of the children, while her father worked. But her thinking began to change as she grew older and went to school.

On Amie Dibba's last trip to her home country of The Gambia she stumbled across a familiar land and a familiar tune. Dibba frequently heard the polyphonic version of her favorite song “African King” - the song that she wrote for her Child of Africa album had morphed into a popular cell phone ringtone. Those bobbing their heads to the catchy R & B/Reggae beat did not recognize Dibba's face, but that was temporary. A couple years and awards later, Amie Dibba's voice and face are recognizable to her fans in The Gambia, the United States, and everywhere in between.

Sam Sam Ahmed, aka Nargis and her teenage daughter – all first-time actresses – tell the story of an African immigrant mother’s fight to keep her family together.

A movie highlighting the struggles a Somali mother to provide for her two teenage daughters and a husband stuck in East Africa is coming to the Minneapolis/St.Paul International Film Festival beginning this month.

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – A pre-screening and panel discussion of the public television film  Iron Ladies of Liberia  left many in the audience of about 125 people, some with ties to the country which the film portrayed, inspired, motivated and hopeful for the future of a nation that has experienced tremendous strife in recent years.

Vusi Mahlasela was only eleven years old when he was caught up in the horror of the June 16, 1976 Soweto Uprising, aptly also called Soweto Massacre, in South Africa.  It was that transforming event that weighed heavy on his heart and soul and every day since then as he’s struggled with apartheid. 

A global movement to end the abuse of women was the theme at the 13th annual International Women’s Day celebration at the University of Minnesota, where women from all over Minnesota gathered in March to highlight their plight.

There are so many important issues for the American people and politicians to pay attention to this election season. Sadly, many people are avoiding productive debate of those issues and are instead seeking to divide our nation along racial and religious lines.

Last month women around the world celebrated gains they have made in the quest for equality. At an annual International Women’s Day conference at the University of Minnesota it was evident that there is still a lot more work left to balance the scales. . One of the biggest crimes against women is violence at the hands of their significant others.

The swiftest, fastest swimsuit in the world has recently been released. This is the result of a partnership between Rick Sharp, a professor of physiology at Iowa State University and Dr. Herve Morvan, a lecturer in fluid mechanics in the School of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Nottingham.