Trash Debate On Fire, Springboard's Next Chapter, and Medicine Meets Art
Activists with the Zero Burn Coalition have ended a 12-day hunger strike protesting Minneapolis’ HERC trash incinerator, but what happens next? Host Sean McPherson and Racket co-owner Em Cassel dig into where Hennepin County's big trash debate goes from here. Plus, Laura Zabel reflects on her two decades leading Springboard for the Arts, and Dr. Tseganesh Selameab previews “The Art of Medicine” at the Parkway Theater, a show where doctors step onstage to share personal, vulnerable stories from their work.
Learn more about the topics discussed in today's episode:
- Hunger strikers say they'll keep pushing for closure of incinerator (MPR News)
- Why Activists Went on Hunger Strike Over a Trash Incinerator (Mother Jones)
- Roper: Hunger strikers say the government is wrong about incinerator’s risks. I don’t buy it. (Star Tribune)
- Counterpoint | Here’s what’s missing in the debate over Hennepin County’s garbage burner (Star Tribune)
- A new chapter for Executive Director Laura Zabel (Springboard For The Arts)
- The Art of Medicine: For The Moment // An Evening of Medical Storytelling (Parkway Theater)
Learn more about the sponsors of this April 28th episode:
Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastTwinCities on Instagram, or email us at twincities@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 612-217-0637.
For more Twin Cities news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, City Cast Twin Cities.
Looking to advertise on City Cast Twin Cities? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.
Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Stay connected to City Cast Twin Cities and get ready to join the local conversation.
Latest Episodes
Where Did Pig’s Eye Residents Go? Plus, The Fair Documentary
It’s been about a month since the City of St. Paul closed the Pig’s Eye encampment on Fish Hatchery Road. A new encampment formed on Shep...

Cowboy-Hat Feds at the State Fair. Plus, Southside Back in the Day and Cheese Ooze
With the State Fair in full swing, concerns about gang violence have brought a record number of officers to the fairgrounds, and some une...

The Adult Store on the Front Lines
Today we’re revisiting an episode wherein a South Minneapolis sex store used their virality and social media reach to fundraise hundreds...

Best/Worst Foods at the Fair, ‘Revenge’ in Anoka, Oktoberfests
The City Cast team tried foods new and old at the State Fair this week. We defend some eye-brow raisers and muse that you can indeed brin...

Reclaiming Sexist Songs at the Parkway. Plus, Hear Our Version of Tiny Desk
DoRe #MeToo started six years ago, featuring femme performers reclaiming sexist rock songs to fundraise for abortion access. The show ret...

Meta's $214 Million Minnesota Settlement, St. Paul's Phone-Free Schools, and Indigenous Peoples' Day at the Fair
A massive Meta settlement is sending $214 million to Minnesota. What does that mean for how kids actually experience social media? St. Pa...

Where to Poop at the Fair. Plus, 50 Years of Storytelling
Church bells toll at 8:26 a.m. today in remembrance of the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church one year ago. Sean talks about t...

Two Target Dramas, One Big Mining Ban, and Minneapolis' Lead Pipe Scramble
A racist Halloween costume lands Target in hot water AGAIN and this time teachers are calling for a full boycott. Today we dig into what...

State Fair Must-Eats, Union Bingo on Dan Patch, and a 4-H Musical That'll Wreck You
It's State Fair week at City Cast Twin Cities, and we’re going all in. But before the fair talk, we dig in to a stack of listener mailbag...

What Happens When a Restaurant Has No Prices? Plus, the Local Dinner Series Run by Grandmas
A Twin Cities dinner series is turning immigrant home cooking into radical acts of storytelling. Mecca Bos, founder of BIPOC Foodways All...
