Author: Correspondent

No Secret Police Force: New law requires Federal Agents to be clearly identified during a protest

When people took to the streets this year to protest racial injustice and police brutality against Black people, they faced a repressive, violent response from local police and federal agents. Some of these agents arrived with militarized uniforms, riot gear, and weapons, but, notably, no visible name labels, badges, or even insignia marking their government agency. Congress just put a stop to this corrosive and undemocratic secrecy, requiring federal agents to identify themselves. Tucked inside the National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 6395), which just became law, is a new requirement for federal military and civilian law enforcement personnel involved...

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Governor Tony Evers issues new mask mandate following GOP repeal of previous health safety order

Governor Tony Evers issued a new statewide mask order on February 4, an hour after the Republican-controlled Legislature voted to repeal his previous mandate. In October, a Marquette University Law Poll found 72% of Wisconsinites agreed that masks should be required in public places, and that support for a mask requirement exceeded 60% in all regions of the state at that time. “If the Legislature keeps playing politics and we don’t keep wearing masks, we’re going to see more preventable deaths, and it’s going to take even longer to get our state and our economy back on track,” Governor...

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Impact of COVID-19 on Milwaukee inadvertently creates “Autumnfest” as Summerfest 2021 moves to September

Milwaukee World Festival, Inc. announced on February 2 that Summerfest will move from its original June 2021 dates to give health professionals more time to vaccinate the general public. Summerfest 2021 will be held from September 2 to 4, 9 to 11 and 16 to 18. The festival will retain the three weekend format, running from Thursday to Saturday, three consecutive weekends. “While the progress made through the vaccine rollout is encouraging, we believe it is in the public’s best interest to hold the festival in September to give government leaders and healthcare organizations enough time to distribute the...

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Search completed for teams that will design and build future home of the Milwaukee Public Museum

After an extensive international search, the Milwaukee Public Museum announced the team that has been selected to bring the vision of its new museum to life in the coming years, as well as that of the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum, which will be co-located on the site. Expert consultants chosen on January 28 to design and oversee construction of the new museum include the teams at Thinc Design, Ennead Architects, Kahler Slater, Mortenson, and ALLCON. Thinc Design will be charged with developing exhibit designs that bring together the cutting-edge style of exhibition Milwaukee Public Museum has been known for...

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Milwaukee Health Department converts space at the Wisconsin Center into site for COVID-19 vaccinations

Mayor Tom Barrett was joined by members of the Milwaukee Health Department on January 11 to preview the Wisconsin Center as the City’s primary vaccination site. The Center opened on January 12 and initially will be used to vaccinate Group 1A recipients, which include City frontline healthcare workers and other emergency responders who are at high risk of getting COVID-19. The Center will not open to the general public at this time. “I think it is important for us to appreciate all the work that our health department employees have done. They have been remarkable,” said Mayor Tom Barrett....

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PrideFest 2021: Milwaukee’s LGBTQ+ celebration cancelled for second year due to COVID-19 pandemic

The parent organization of PrideFest, Wisconsin’s largest LGBTQ+ event announced on January 26 that it was officially canceling the four-day event slated for June. The festival was set to take place at the Henry W. Maier Festival Grounds from Thursday, June 3 to Sunday, June 6, 2021. This is the second year in a row PrideFest has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “After much consideration, we cannot move forward with planning a June 2021 festival without knowing how and when a vaccine will be distributed throughout our community equally” said Wes Shaver, Milwaukee Pride, Inc. President. “It...

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