Author: Lee Matz

Beneath the sweeping canopy of century-old trees and towering monuments, Forest Home Cemetery celebrated its 175th anniversary on June 25. The evening gala featured a keynote address by celebrated historian John Gurda, who has spent decades chronicling Milwaukee’s past. He also counts himself among the future residents of the city’s most storied burial ground. “This may be my last chance to talk in both my first and my last neighborhood,” Gurda said. Gurda grew up on South 34th Street, just blocks from the cemetery, and recalled the landscape of his childhood stretching between Forest Home and Jackson Park. He...

Every year on March 1, Koreans pause to remember the wave of patriotic fervor that swept their country more than a century ago. Known as the March First Movement or the Samil Movement, the historic uprising on March 1, 1919, is widely recognized as a catalyst in Korea’s quest for independence from Japanese colonial rule. Over time, the 3-1 Festival Day (삼일절 Samiljeol) has become a powerful symbol of national pride and self-determination. Though the March First Movement began on the Korean Peninsula, its meaning echoes with the Korean diaspora around the globe. From solemn ceremonies in Seoul to...