July 16th, 2023
By Janessa Jaye Champagne (Chris M. Stoner)
Photo by Studio 208
Guest editorial: The homophobes and transphobes forget that queer folk have been through this before.
I’m not going to lie. Celebrating Pride this year felt…different.
Obviously, last year was difficult, what with the death threats and the doxing and constant online harassment from a small group of religious fundamentalists organizing through a Facebook group.
There was less of that this year as the…
June 11th, 2023
By John Strand & Thomas Bixby
jas@hpr1.com
Our Opinion: No way to delay, trouble comin’ every day.
Whatever happened to dignity, empathy, and so much that goes into our hard-won civilization. How did we get here and where are we going?
These United States are on the brink of collapse, each in its own way. The divisiveness is so prevalent that about the only consensus is a sense of noncohesion.
The polarization of otherwise ordinary people is palpable, borderline dangerous. Except now more…
May 16th, 2023
By Sabrina Hornung
Our opinion: Keep your chins up, class of 2023
As the school year draws to a close, this seems to be the time of year when most editors offer up their best advice to the most recent graduating classes, so here are a few words of wisdom from one of the last people who should be doling out advice.
I’d like to direct these words of wisdom and encouragement to those who are having a tough time. To those who lacked encouragement, who didn’t get endless…
April 17th, 2023
By Faye Seidler
The Theme of the 2023 ND Legislative Session
In the North Dakota 2021 Special Session, Representative Bill Tviet introduced House Bill 1514, otherwise known as the Ivermectin Bill.In testimony he describes the helplessness he felt in a hospital while his wife was struggling with Covid and painted a picture of the need for medical autonomy to try what he personally felt was effective. He demanded the government overrule medical bodies and allow…
April 5th, 2023
By Faye Seidler
Guest editorial: If I can help you, I will do it. Even if you’re a legislator hurting people I care about.
Being a Republican has never been more unappealing to me than watching this 2023 legislative session unfold. We’re censoring books, taking medical autonomy away from parents, banning vaccinations, and otherwise legislating morality at a cost to small and large businesses.
A smaller state government has never seemed like a better idea and…
February 12th, 2023
By John Strand
jas@hpr1.com
Our Opinion: Who on Earth would ever want to move to North Dakota?
Let’s talk about the left hand and the right hand. Or, more correctly, let’s focus on the right hand, being as there is no left in ND to speak of, or that matters, or with any influence.
North Dakota’s right hand, the Grand Old Party that runs everything and without any counterbalance or outside voice, seems to do their level best to push our state even further back into social dark ages.…
January 18th, 2023
By Sabrina Hornung
sabrina@hpr1.com
Our opinion: The sound of ND collectively holding its breath
As the legislative session nears one may notice a certain stillness in the air as a good part of North Dakota’s population collectively holds their breath.
There’s a lot at stake this session as women CONTINUE to fight for their bodily autonomy and to be viewed as more than a brood sow by our state. If women get pregnant it’s “God’s will,” if men become impotent Viagra can be…
December 14th, 2022
By Laura Simmons
laurasimmons2025@u.northwestern.edu
Our opinion: Jesse Harris of Summit LLC: objections
Last month I wrote an article titled “Proposed Carbon Pipeline.” Summit Carbon Solutions Director of Public Affairs Jesse Harris had some follow-up comments for my article. Harris wrote in a text message that my article contained inaccurate information.
Harris requested that the High Plains Reader update the article to fix the inaccuracies. This article aims to share and address…
November 16th, 2022
By HPR Staff
Our opinion: How can it be 17 years?
It’s hard to believe that Ralph’s has been gone for 17 years. I was lucky enough to experience the tail end of its legacy, though technically I wasn’t old enough to be there (legally). If memory serves me right it was the first bar I got kicked out of. Neil Hamburger was playing that night.
To provide a bit of context I haven’t been kicked out of a bar since I was 20, if that says anything, but here’s my PSA:
1.…
October 19th, 2022
By Sabrina Hornung
Our opinion: Are nearly all ND politicians paid mouthpieces? Not Cara!
There’s a New Deputy Mayor in Town
Deputy Mayor Dave Piepkorn was stripped of his title this week for disparaging comments with regard to a couple of Native Americans outside his downtown building, Arlette Preston was voted in as the new Deputy Mayor, 4 to 1.
I have a couple of questions, comments and acute observations...
The individual voting against Arlette and questioning her…
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By Bryce Vincent Haugen More than 300 people gathered at Trinity Lutheran Church in central Moorhead on Jan. 27 for “constitutional observer” training. Led by the Immigrant Defense Network and supported locally by the West Area…
By Kooper Shagena Just off of I-94 and Highway 83 on State Street in Bismarck, an abandoned Kmart sits behind an empty parking lot, watching the cars roll on and off the interstate exchange. It has been standing there quietly since…
Friday, February 13, 7-10 p.m.Sanctuary Events Center, 670 4th Ave. N., FargoIn a world reshaped by the fall of Roe v. Wade, the commitment of The Prairie Abortion Fund (PAF) hasn’t faltered, but continues to evolve. This is…
By John Strand If you are reading this editorial and you too are worried sick about the state of our country, keep reading. Maybe we can inspire each other. It was near closing time. We were discussing our values crisis. So this…
By Ed RaymondA mind that snapped, cracked, and popped at one hundredI wasn’t going to read a long column called “Centenarian: A Diary of a Hundredth Year” by Calvin Tomkins celebrating his birthday on December 17 of 2025…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick GionSince the much-dreaded Covid years, there has been much ebb and flow in the Fargo-Moorhead restaurant scene. In 2025, that trend continued with some major additions and closings. Let’s start the New Year on a positive…
Saturday, January 17, doors at 7:30 p.m.The Aquarium above Dempsey’s, 226 N. Broadway, FargoThe Slow Death is a punk supergroup led by Jesse Thorson, with members and collaborators that include members of The Ergs!, Dillinger…
By Greg CarlsonA little more than a decade following the publication of the popular Helen Macdonald memoir upon which it is based, a feature film version of “H Is for Hawk” starring Claire Foy has been theatrically released in…
By Jacinta ZensThe Guerrilla Girls, an internationally renowned anonymous feminist art collective, have been bringing attention to the gender and racial imbalances in contemporary art institutions for the last 40 years. They have…
Saturday, January 31, 6:30-9 p.m.Transfiguration Fitness, 764 34th St. N., Unit P, FargoAn enchanting evening celebrating movement and creativity in a staff-student showcase. This is a family-friendly event showcasing pole, aerial…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com At the beginning of the movie “How the Grinch Stole Christmas," the Grinch is introduced as having a smaller than average heart, but as the movie progresses, his heart increases three…
January 31, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.Viking Ship Park, 202 1st Ave. N., Moorhead2026 marks 10 years of frosty fun! Enjoy sauna sessions with Log the Sauna, try Snowga (yoga in the snow), take a guided snowshoe nature hike, listen to live…
By Vern Thompson Benjamin Franklin offered one of the most sobering warnings in American history. When asked what kind of government the framers had created in 1787, he replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” Few words…
