Author: Lee Matz

Peaceful protest for George Floyd marches into Wauwatosa as racial equality movement grows

Peaceful protest for George Floyd marches into Wauwatosa as racial equality movement grows

Posted by | Jun 7, 2020 |

Peaceful protests demanding “Justice for George Floyd” have been held in Milwaukee since May 29, four days after the African American resident of Minneapolis was killed by a local police officer. The June 4 protest marked the seventh continuous day of marching across the city by residents of all colors. The June 4 march began at 27th and Center Streets, the same spot as the original May 29 rally. Protesters took to the street and headed west, with the goal of reaching Wauwatosa for the first time. Groups have intentionally marched through different areas and neighborhoods to build a...

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Alt-Right group threatens to assassinate Milwaukee activist Frank Nitty in effort to stop peace marches

Alt-Right group threatens to assassinate Milwaukee activist Frank Nitty in effort to stop peace marches

Posted by | Jun 4, 2020 |

Protests over the officer-involved killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis continued on June 3 for the sixth day in Milwaukee, with several concurrent marches held and a dangerous development that threatened the life of a prominent community organizer. According to information shared across social media, a plot was discovered that a White Supremacy group had targeted peace activist and Milwaukee-native Frank Nitty. They planned to track the June 3 march and murder him publicly in front of the other protesters. Nitty said the threat had been verified, and city leaders were aware that it was credible. The information was...

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Second Life Revisited: Using a virtual world to escape the isolation of social distancing

Second Life Revisited: Using a virtual world to escape the isolation of social distancing

Posted by | Apr 15, 2020 |

For most people, the term “Second Life” could easily be confused as a post-death resurrection experience. For some fans of the popular American sitcom “The Office,” it may linger in their memory from an episode where Dwight Schrute, played Rainn Wilson, entered the game with a matching avatar. For others, like myself, Second Life was an online social harbor that teased with the possibilities of the future, before Facebook came along and that dream took a nose dive. The online virtual world was launched in 2003 by the San Francisco-based firm Linden Lab. The platform gained national attention as...

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Life goes on even when it doesn’t: Streaming a funeral “watch party” in the age of coronavirus

Life goes on even when it doesn’t: Streaming a funeral “watch party” in the age of coronavirus

Posted by | Apr 5, 2020 |

The full scale social distancing order that has closed schools and many businesses, to keep the Milwaukee public “Safer at Home” as a way to contain the spread of COVID-19, has upended many normal habits of life. The condition has become more evident as developing situations require that the old ways be applied to our new reality. That example was made clear on March 31, when I attended my first watch party of a live streaming funeral service. Back in 2018 I wrote about the 2011 military funeral of my own father, and how my brothers demanded that I...

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First week of staying at home: A window of images around Milwaukee for everyone stuck behind walls

First week of staying at home: A window of images around Milwaukee for everyone stuck behind walls

Posted by | Apr 1, 2020 |

April 1 marks the first week that Milwaukee, and the entire State of Wisconsin, has been under the “Safer at Home” order issued by Governor Tony Evers, which took affect on Wednesday, March 25. I have almost no photos from my traumatic experience living in China during the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) pandemic. In 2003 I was still using a 35mm film camera, and conditions were so unpredictable – especially being a foreigner – that if I did go outside to get provisions I did not take my camera. Also, at that time, to be a foreigner walking...

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A look at past St. Patrick’s Day Parades in Milwaukee after COVID-19 concerns cancel 2020 event

A look at past St. Patrick’s Day Parades in Milwaukee after COVID-19 concerns cancel 2020 event

Posted by | Mar 17, 2020 |

The City of Milwaukee, Westown Association, and the Shamrock Club of Wisconsin made the unified decision to cancel the 54th Annual Shamrock Club of Wisconsin St. Patrick’s Day Parade scheduled for March 14, due to the growing concerns of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Parade organizers had been closely monitoring the situation and were following the direction of the Milwaukee Health Department and Center for Disease Control. A March 9 press release confirmed that the parade would go ahead as planned. But at state and local levels, in a reflection of how the national situation had quickly evolved, the Westown Association...

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