Author: Wisconsin Public Radio

The Wisconsin Capitol grounds are one step closer to featuring a statue of longtime Wisconsin civil rights advocate Vel Phillips after a subcommittee voted on a preliminary proposal on July 13. Phillips was a political trailblazer throughout her life, achieving many firsts, from being the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School to becoming the first woman and Black person elected to statewide office when she won a race for Secretary of State in 1978. She died in 2018 at age 94. The proposal for a statue of Phillips received preliminary approval by a...

The last time the Milwaukee Bucks were in the NBA Finals, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the star of the team and a prominent civil rights advocate. He was instrumental in the Bucks winning the NBA Finals in 1971, and he’d be named the NBA’s MVP three times in the next four years. And while Abdul-Jabbar was giving everything he had to the team, he was also bringing racial inequalities and lack of access to jobs for people of color to the forefront. Now, nearly 50 years later, the Bucks finally have another chance to bring home the championship title. But...

For almost two years, Lester Williams took the bus from Milwaukee’s Northside to suburban New Berlin, where he worked 12-hour days in quality control at Schoeneck Containers Inc. The trip took anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour, even though the factory was only about 16 miles from his home. Williams said it was one of the best jobs he ever had. But when the route was eliminated in 2019, the only bus that got him near his job brought him to Brookfield Square mall, more than 3 miles away. “A lot of times people just walked, and it’s...

More police departments in Wisconsin are adding social workers or civilian positions that will respond to crisis calls with officers at a time when law enforcement has faced increased scrutiny over its use of force when responding to mental health calls across the country. Police departments in Superior, Janesville and Eau Claire are among those who are hiring or already working with mental health professionals to better connect those in crisis to resources. Superior Police Chief Nick Alexander said he’s been seeking a position for several years in response to a growing number of mental health-related calls, which have...