Staff, Author at Milwaukee Independent

Herb Kohl: Former owner of Milwaukee Bucks basketball team and U.S. Senator dead at 88

Posted by Staff | Dec 27, 2023

Herb Kohl, a former Democratic U.S. senator from Wisconsin and former owner of the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team, has died. He was 88. His death on December 27 was announced by Herb Kohl Philanthropies, which did not give a cause but said he died after a brief illness. Kohl was a popular figure in Wisconsin, purchasing the Bucks to keep them from leaving town, and spending generously from his fortune on civic and educational causes throughout the state. He also used his money to fund his Senate races, allowing to him to portray himself as “nobody’s senator but yours.”...

Year In Review 2023: Seeking the truths that connect Milwaukee to the world

Posted by Staff | Dec 27, 2023

2023 began with the fading threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. But in Wisconsin, the danger to democracy accelerated because of a gerrymandered monopoly by a corrupt political party in Madison. That authoritarian peril was echoed abroad in Milwaukee’s sister city of Iprin, where Ukraine faced a second year of brutal war crimes perpetrated by the Russian invaders. While taking place almost five thousand miles away from Wisconsin, the war remains deeply felt across America and at home in the neighborhoods of Milwaukee. During 2023, Milwaukee Independent was embedded with three Milwaukee-based humanitarian missions overseas. In Jordan at Syrian refugee...

Year In Review 2023: How external governing shapes the local outlook

Posted by Staff | Dec 27, 2023

2023 began with the fading threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. But in Wisconsin, the danger to democracy accelerated because of a gerrymandered monopoly by a corrupt political party in Madison. That authoritarian peril was echoed abroad in Milwaukee’s sister city of Iprin, where Ukraine faced a second year of brutal war crimes perpetrated by the Russian invaders. While taking place almost five thousand miles away from Wisconsin, the war remains deeply felt across America and at home in the neighborhoods of Milwaukee. During 2023, Milwaukee Independent was embedded with three Milwaukee-based humanitarian missions overseas. In Jordan at Syrian refugee...

Year In Review 2023: The partnerships and possibilities to build a better Milwaukee

Posted by Staff | Dec 27, 2023

2023 began with the fading threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. But in Wisconsin, the danger to democracy accelerated because of a gerrymandered monopoly by a corrupt political party in Madison. That authoritarian peril was echoed abroad in Milwaukee’s sister city of Iprin, where Ukraine faced a second year of brutal war crimes perpetrated by the Russian invaders. While taking place almost five thousand miles away from Wisconsin, the war remains deeply felt across America and at home in the neighborhoods of Milwaukee. During 2023, Milwaukee Independent was embedded with three Milwaukee-based humanitarian missions overseas. In Jordan at Syrian refugee...

President Biden says Trump’s support of insurrection is “self-evident” during economic tour of Milwaukee

Posted by Staff | Dec 21, 2023

President Joe Biden touted his administration’s support for minority-owned businesses and the replacement of lead pipes during a visit to Milwaukee on December 20, while also swiping at Donald Trump’s rhetoric toward migrants and his ongoing lies about his election loss. The trip showed how Biden is trying to juggle multiple political priorities in the critical battleground state of Wisconsin. Democrats want to generate excitement among nonwhite voters who are an important part of their coalition while also keeping the focus on Trump’s extremism, heightening a contrast that the White House hopes will secure a second term for Biden....

Regents reject GOP deal to enshrine conservative ideology at Wisconsin Universities and limit diversity

Posted by Staff | Dec 11, 2023

Universities of Wisconsin regents narrowly rejected a deal on December 9 reached with Republicans that would have given employees a pay raise, and paid for the construction of a new engineering building, in exchange for drastic reductions in staff positions focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion. The regents voted 9-8 during an emergency meeting to reject the deal reached Friday after being brokered by Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos. “I don’t like this precedent,” Regent Dana Wachs said during the meeting. “We need to make this a welcoming environment.” The vote was immediately panned by leaders of the Assembly...