Author: Staff

When VHS video cameras became affordable consumer products, the public was able to actively document actions by law enforcement officers as a tool to demand accountability. The iPhone and services like iCloud have made the recording and distribution pipeline for those recordings far more instantaneous. For all the filmed incidents of extrajudicial executions like Philando Castile and George Floyd, far too many other tragic interactions have not been. With the availability of video cameras within mobile phones, people of color have been able to record their encounters with police during traffic stops. The point of contact has consistently shown...

A flag that celebrates Juneteenth, the day that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, will fly over the Wisconsin Capitol for the first time in state history. It will also be displayed at a City of Milwaukee building for the first time. Governor Tony Evers announced the state’s decision on June 17. The Juneteenth flag will fly over the Capitol’s east wing on June 19, replacing the rainbow gay pride flag for one day. That flag has been up all month, flying for the first time in Wisconsin history last year. “As a state that sees...

As community murals get installed in Milwaukee to honor Civil Rights leaders and people of color who have been killed by police, social media platforms have been flooded with livestream videos from protest marches and pictures documenting nearly a month of demonstrations. These moments from local street protests, chronicled in powerful still images, flow in a linear stream each day from numerous sources like an online river. The illustrated portrait of George Floyd, who was killed by Minneapolis police, has become the memorable and historic icon of a movement seeking reforms to law enforcement and racial justice for people...

The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota filed a class-action lawsuit, on behalf of journalists who were targeted and attacked by Minneapolis and Minnesota police while covering protests over the killing of George Floyd. The lawsuit was filed on June 3 against the city of Minneapolis, the Minnesota State Patrol, and the Minneapolis police. “The power of the people is rooted in the ability of the free press to investigate and report news, especially at a time like this when police have brutally murdered one of our community members,” said Teresa Nelson, ACLU-MN Legal Director. “Police are using violence...