Listen to Our Newest Episode Here!

Every city probably has its sandwich—New Orleans its Po Boy, Philly its Cheesesteak, the Chicago-style hot dog with its neon green relish.  The Twin Cities entry may not be as well known, but it is certainly a highly celebrated entity by Minnesotans: the Jucy Lucy.

A Jucy Lucy at The Nook, St. Paul, MN

(more…)

Unlike places that have been thrown into a state of crisis by a disaster, Austin, Texas, has been thrown into crisis by success. Its population has skyrocketed, but along with the economic advantages has come a considerable identity crisis. Austin has long prided itself on its funkiness, and many residents have grown worried new development and growth might jeopardize the city’s countercultural “feel.” In this hour, SOTRU looks at the tension between “keeping Austin weird” and its growing success.

To discuss this episode, please comment on this post. We would love to hear your thoughts. Start the discussion!

Did you miss State of the Re:Union’s piece about Oakridge on NPR’s Weekend Edition? Don’t fret, you can listen now:

You can listen to the full hour, watch our documentary Dear Oakridge, read the Dear Oakridge Letters and much more at our Oakridge page.

It isn’t exactly Lake Wobegon anymore… Once known as the home of Midwestern Lutherans and Scandanavian farmers, the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are now wildly diverse. They have become cities of immigrants, from Tibetans to Somalis, Iraqis to the Khmer people of Cambodia. In this episode, SOTRU explores the worlds within the Twin Cities, from Ethopian Lutherans to Hmong rappers to a Somali community struggling with a devastating mystery.

To listen to our Twin Cities episode, take a look at our pictures from the area and much more, visit our Twin Cities page.

We want you to start the discussion. To share your thought, simply comment on this post and get the conversation going!

Chattanooga, Tennessee, is nicknamed the Scenic City for a good reason. With breathtaking vistas of the Appalachian mountains and the Tennessee River flowing through it, the city is rich with outdoor beauty. To add to its resume, Forbes ranked Chattanooga as the eighth most affordable city in America in 2009. But Chattanooga hasn’t always had such a gleaming reputation. In the early 20th century, the city was a bustling industrial, railroad, and manufacturing hub. After decades of industry, pollutants hung heavily in the air, shrouding those same beautiful mountains the area is known for. In 1969, the federal government deemed Chattanooga’s air quality the dirtiest in the nation. (more…)