Author: Correspondent

As the nation’s first national youth poet laureate, Amanda Gorman made history on January 20 as the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history. Gorman summoned images dire and triumphant as she called out to the world “even as we grieved, we grew” during the inauguration of President Joe Biden. The 22-year-old referenced everything from Biblical scripture to “Hamilton,” and at times echoed the oratory of John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. The poem’s very title, “The Hill We Climb,” suggested both labor and transcendence. Milwaukee Independent · Amanda Gorman reads "The Hill We Climb" at...

Governor Tony Evers delivered his 2021 State of the State Address on January 12. Due to the pandemic, the governor spoke to Wisconsin officials and residents in virtual format this year. Remarks by Governor Tony Evers as prepared for delivery: Good evening, Wisconsinites. Welcome, and thank you for tuning in this evening. I’m Tony Evers, and I’m incredibly proud to be the 46th governor of the great state of Wisconsin and to deliver my 2021 State of the State Address to you tonight. The Wisconsin Constitution requires that each year the governor communicate the condition of our state. Now,...

Governor Tony Evers authorized the Wisconsin National Guard to support Wisconsin’s Capitol Police on January 11. Members of the Wisconsin National Guard will mobilize to state active duty to support safety and security efforts at the State Capitol in Madison. The troops are part of the Wisconsin National Guard Reaction Force, which consists of troops trained to respond to requests for assistance on short notice. The Wisconsin National Guard will serve in a support role to local authorities and conduct a site security mission. “Once again, our state has asked our Citizen Soldiers in the Wisconsin National Guard to...

Voces de la Frontera, The Wisconsin African American Roundtable, the Milwaukee NAACP, Justice Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Muslim Civic Alliance, and the Milwaukee Hmong American Women’s Association issue the following statement in response to Trump’s act of domestic terrorism at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021: “We condemn Trump and his Republican enablers for instigating an act of domestic terrorism by white nationalists at the nation’s Capitol in an effort to disrupt and intimidate US Congressional representatives from affirming the rightful election of President Elect Joe Biden and Vice President Elect Kamala Harris. We call for Trump’s immediate removal...

By Philip Mai, Co-director and Senior Researcher, Ryerson Social Media Lab, Ryerson University In the wake of the assault on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump’s supporters, Twitter has permanently suspended the president’s account “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.” This follows a growing number of influential voices calling on social media platforms to stop enabling Trump’s inflammatory postings. Prior to Twitter’s permanent ban, Twitter and Facebook had locked Trump’s account on their respective platforms. Both companies took this unprecedented step after the president used the platforms to spread misinformation about election fraud and openly condoned...

Violent pro-Trump extremists stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, breaching the center of American government for the first time in 200 years since the it was attacked by the British during the War of 1812. Citizens of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the Nation reacted in horror to photos and videos of White Supremacist supporters of Trump, as they disobeyed the rule of law and tried to overturn the 2020 election with acts of brutality. The following statements were issued by local and state officials on January 6, in reaction to the failed coup in Washington DC and attempt to...