Staff, Author at Milwaukee Independent

54th Shamrock Club of Wisconsin St. Patrick’s Day Parade postponed until September 2021 due to COVID-19

Posted by Staff | Jan 30, 2021 |

After careful consideration, the Shamrock Club of Wisconsin and Westown Association have made the decision to postpone the 54th Shamrock Club of Wisconsin St. Patrick’s Day Parade scheduled for March 13. Both organizations will continue to work closely with the Milwaukee Health Department and the City of Milwaukee over the coming months and intend to host a safe and successful parade on September 25. “Due to the gathering restrictions under the current Moving Milwaukee Forward Safely Order, it is unlikely we’d be able to host such a large-scale event at this time,” said Stacie Callies, Executive Director of Westown...

MCTS bus shelters feature murals by student winners from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. art contest

Posted by Staff | Jan 18, 2021 |

Murals on two Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) bus shelters now feature winning artwork from the Marcus Performing Art Center’s 2020 Martin Luther King, Jr. Art Contest, which was open to K-12 students in Milwaukee, Wauwatosa, and West Bend. The first shelter is located across the street from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School at MLK Drive and Concordia Avenue in Milwaukee. The second shelter is alongside Golda Meir School Upper Campus at MLK Drive and Pleasant Street. Each mural includes multiple designs — inspired by Dr. King’s life and values — created by children and teenagers enrolled...

Wisconsin National Guard mobilizing troops to support security at Presidential inauguration

Posted by Staff | Jan 16, 2021 |

Governor Tony Evers announced on January 13 that approximately 500 Wisconsin National Guard troops will mobilize to federal duty to support civil authorities in the national capital region in advance of the presidential inauguration on January 20. The troops, which include Soldiers from various Wisconsin Army National Guard units, as well as Airmen from Wisconsin Air National Guard units, will serve in a support role alongside thousands of other National Guard troops from other states mobilized this week to support security efforts in Washington DC. “We are once again thankful to the Wisconsin National Guard for always stepping up,...

Year In Preview 2021: Bring it on New Year, you can’t suck more than 2020 did!

Posted by Staff | Jan 2, 2021

It seemed like the pain of 2020 would never end. At least the calendar year is over, but the overwhelming effects of the past 12 months will not diminish as instantaneously. Metaphorically speaking, the mother of Baby New Year 2020 went to the hospital to give birth to her son on December 31, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. While everything would appear fine at midnight after the delivery, that child would quickly resemble the 1974 horror film “It’s Alive,” about a mutant child that goes on a monstrous rampage. After lamenting at length about all of the upheaval in 2020,...

A Pandemic Plunge for 2021: Looking back at past Polar Bear dips into a freezing Lake Michigan

Posted by Staff | Jan 2, 2021 |

As a “Supercharged” COVID mutation takes root in Europe, and irrational denial of about the pandemic continues in Milwaukee, the annual tradition of taking an icy plunge in Lake Michigan on New Year’s Day became another casualty to the 2020 legacy. 2021 started as the previous year ended, with a mix of fear and hope. The new and more transmissible strain of Sars-CoV-2, known as B117, added to the uncertainty of attending events even as the vaccine reaches more of the general public. While the 2021 Polar Bear Plunge took place outside with a sizable crowd, a combination of...

Year In Review 2020: Jacob Blake and tragedy of Kenosha

Posted by Staff | Dec 31, 2020 |

2020 has been a turbulent period beyond the conventional methods of description. In terms of COVID-years, the past 12 months have had the glacial progress and weight of 12 regular human years. Each month brought a new chapter of events for the public to process, which required an expanded vocabulary to explain the news and a library of images to show the extent of what was happening. It was a very dangerous year for photojournalism with a pandemic and civil unrest. To be embedded in the heart of events as they unfolded required physical stamina, professional skill, and a...