When Will Sherman Park Curfew End?
Milwaukee County Sheriff’s vehicles patrol Sherman Park as park-goers enjoy an early evening on Milwaukee’s northwest side. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Nearly two weeks after demonstrations and violence...
View ArticleBrostoff Arrest Raises Questions
More than 40 officers and six police vehicles filled the intersection of Sherman Boulevard and W. Auer Avenue after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday night. Photo by Jabril Faraj. State Rep. Jonathan Brostoff and...
View ArticleProgram Combats Foreclosures
In January, a foreclosure notice was issued for 803 S. 36th St., which shares an alley with the most recently renovated Turnkey Home. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Layton Boulevard West Neighbors (LBWN)...
View Article300+ Strong Amplifies Black Voices
Black men and boys lock arms at the event. Photo by Jabril Faraj. After a dark, rainy morning, sun finally broke through the clouds over Sherman Park as a host of orange balloons ascended into the...
View ArticleCitizens Condemn Proposal for More Cops
Patricia McManus, president of the Black Health Coalition, addresses the Public Safety Committee. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Community organizations from across Milwaukee sent a clear, unified message to...
View ArticleMPS Sets Sights on Increased State Funding
MPS Board President Mark Sain speaks before the school “walk-in” at Neeskara Elementary School. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Despite the recent news that the Milwaukee Public Schools district is not subject...
View ArticleCity Residents Hiring Program Falls Short
The Northwestern Mutual Commons, a $325 million project, has employed RPP workers. In January 2013, Fabian Hinkle had just been caught with five grams of crack cocaine. The charge, possession with...
View ArticleMore Than Downtown Development Needed
Looking toward downtown from the roof of the Century City Tower, 4201 N. 27th St. Photo courtesy of NNS. As the city enters a development boom valued at more than $3 billion, which will include a...
View ArticleLearning From Cincinnati’s Police Reform
About 60 residents and city leaders attended a panel discussion sponsored by the Community Coalition for Quality Policing at the Jewish Home and Care Center, 1410 N. Prospect Ave. Photo by Jabril...
View ArticleConnecting Students to Blue Collar Jobs
Tim Brown (right) helps a student lay a brick during the event. Photo by Jabril Faraj. After graduating from Custer High School 16 years ago, Tim Brown interviewed with company after company looking...
View ArticleCan Non-Profits Make a Difference?
Frank Martinelli speaks to a group of nonprofit employees at the Washington Park Library. Photo by Jabril Faraj. In August, sometimes-violent demonstrations engulfed the Sherman Park neighborhood over...
View ArticleMixed Reactions to Charges in Sylville Smith’s Killing
Sedan Smith (center), brother of Sylville Smith, speaks at a press conference at Inspired Word Ministries, 3410 W. Burleigh St., while cousin Thaddeus Ashford (right) and activist Vaun Mayes (left)...
View ArticleCity’s $1 House Program Criticized
Residents pack an informational meeting for developers at City Hall. Photo by Jabril Faraj. An informational meeting Monday at City Hall disappointed hundreds of city residents hoping to take advantage...
View ArticleSafe Zones Project Sees Success
Anita Aydin (left) and Shawn Hudson (center) talk with Shawn Moore on N. 25th Street. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Around dusk on a Thursday night in early August, a group of about 30 black men parade down...
View ArticleNorth Side Area’s Crime Declines 30%
Volunteers serve a free meal during a community event at Moody Park in June.(Photo by Edgar Mendez. In October 2016, James Brown, 82, a minister and 40-year resident of Amani waited for more than 12...
View ArticleA County Agenda For Black Community?
Terra McKinney (left) listens to another attendee at the event. Photo by Jabril Faraj. The Milwaukee County Office on African American Affairs recently held a listening session to solicit feedback from...
View Article“Day Without Immigrants, Refugees” Planned
Christine Neumann-Ortiz (left) speaks during a press conference at Voces de la Frontera as (from left) Salvador Rojas, Rafaela Flores, Guillermo Ramos and Rafael Sanchez look on. Photo by Jabril Faraj....
View ArticleACLU Suit Challenges Milwaukee Police
Plaintiff Tracy Adams (center) talks about her son being stopped by Milwaukee police as ACLU of Wisconsin Police Accountability Specialist Jarrett English (right) looks on. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Tracy...
View ArticleMPS School Uniform Policy Faces Criticism
Freda Fowlkes-Bell, a longtime teacher at Washington High School, speaks in support of the uniform policy at a public hearing. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Critics of a new MPS policy requiring students to...
View ArticlePushing Minorities To Become Entrepreneurs
Qaiyim El-Amin stands in front of his specialized water-sampling drone. Photo by Jabril Faraj. As early as third grade, when he built a traffic light with his grandfather for a science fair, Qaiyim...
View ArticleTechForce Center Provides Path to Jobs
Mayor Tom Barrett (left) and Employ Milwaukee Vice President of Community Relations Willie Wade (right) look on as Employ Milwaukee Executive Director Earl Buford speaks. Photo by Jabril Faraj. The St....
View ArticleToxic Chemicals Worry Residents
Plastic drums sit behind a fence at Mid-America IBC, 2300 W. Cornell St. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Residents in the area of a factory that washes large containers used to transport chemicals expressed...
View ArticleCounty Creating Community Centers
A building in Meaux Park, not far from Lincoln Park, sits unused. Photo by Jabril Faraj. The initial focus of a new Milwaukee County initiative to create “Community Restoration Centers” will be to...
View ArticleSherman Park Residents Bash Station Owner
A crowd of about 50 residents packed the Mary Ryan Boys & Girls Club gym. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Sherman Park residents expressed concerns at a recent listening session about a proposal to rebuild...
View ArticleDo Non-Profits Need New Approach?
Erica Kohl-Arenas, a professor, researcher and author, addresses a crowd of Milwaukee nonprofit leaders. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Milwaukee nonprofits must strengthen community relationships, act with...
View ArticleA Call for Clean Water
Demonstrators calling for clean water hold signs outside of North Division High School. Photo by Jabril Faraj. On a recent weekday afternoon, a group of North Division High School students, Milwaukee...
View ArticleStill Questions on Claybrook’s Death
According to accounts from area residents, the confrontation between Jermaine Claybrooks and police began on North 20th Street, just north of Hampton Avenue. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Many questions still...
View ArticleLocal Leaders Demand Clarke’s Removal
Christine Neumann-Ortiz (left) speaks during a press conference at Voces de la Frontera before the Dia sin Latinos, Immigrants and Refugees boycott and march in February. Photo by Jabril Faraj. A...
View ArticleCity Residents Meet With Assembly Committee
Andre Lee Ellis, founder of We Got This, speaks during the committee hearing. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Elected officials must understand and be responsive to the needs of residents in resource-deprived...
View ArticleBlack Leaders React to Smith Verdict
Frank Nitty addresses reporters in Sherman Park as Maria Hamilton (back center), Markasa Tucker (right foreground) and others look on. Photo by Jabril Faraj. The same night a verdict came down...
View ArticleLead Poisoning a “Public Health Crisis”
Every home on this North Side block has a lead lateral. Photo by Jabril Faraj. The issue of lead exposure for children is a “public health crisis,” according to a top Milwaukee Health Department...
View Article50 Years After the Marches: Still Fighting for Equality
Black residents, leaders and elected officials stand in solidarity at a Garden Homes press conference in early 2015 that marked the beginning of the Safe Zones Initiative. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Frank...
View ArticleA Call For Proactive Community-based Violence Prevention
Milwaukee residents are calling for more proactive community-based violence prevention strategies in the wake of the July 22 killing of 6-year-old Justin Evans Jr. Evans, who was shot and killed...
View ArticleGrassroots Group Targets Sheriff Clarke
One of the tens of thousands who marched through Milwaukee on a Day without Latinos, Immigrants and Refugees in February. Photo courtesy of milwaukeestories.org. Leaders of a new community coalition...
View ArticleCommunity Groups Hail Clarke’s Resignation
David Clarke. Photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr Creative Commons. Leaders of a community coalition and an elected official who called for Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke to step down are hailing...
View ArticleTens of Thousands Losing Food Stamps
FoodShare recipients utilize the Marcia Coggs Center on 12th and Vliet. Photo by Sue Vliet. When Derek Osborne, 48, re-applied for FoodShare in spring 2014, he didn’t know he was no longer eligible for...
View ArticleHorror Stories of State Detention Center
Former inmates of the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility described deplorable conditions at the temporary holding facility in downtown Milwaukee during a recent event hosted by Ex-Prisoners...
View ArticleAdvocates Push City On Lead Pipes
In April, Robert Miranda addresses the city’s Water Quality Task Force, including (from left) Ben Gramling, Bevan Baker and Ald. James Bohl. Photo by Jabril Faraj. A resolution that would seek to...
View ArticleCommunity Groups Want DOJ Police Reforms
Markasa Tucker speaks during a news conference as representatives from the ACLU and Coalition for Justice look on. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Community groups are taking the lead in addressing...
View ArticleCity’s Anti-Violence Effort Stalls
Safe Zones ambassadors stop at the intersection of N. 27th Street and W. Burleigh Street during a patrol in August 2016. Photo by Jabril Faraj. A comprehensive, citywide plan to address violence has...
View ArticlePoverty Driving Epidemic of Childhood Trauma
Children cross N. Holton Street, one of Milwaukee’s racial dividing lines. (Photo by Jabril Faraj) Twelve years — 4,380 days — is the difference in life expectancy between someone who lives in the...
View ArticleCommon Council Strengthens Lead Standards
A billboard near North 5th Street and West Keefe Avenue is intended to raise awareness about lead exposure. Photo by Jabril Faraj. A resolution passed by the Common Council unanimously last Tuesday...
View ArticleTown Hall Meetings Discuss Police Reforms
Nate Hamilton (left) and Markasa Tucker look on as a resident comments during the town hall discussion. Photo by Jabril Faraj. A community-led process to reform the Milwaukee Police Department recently...
View ArticleCommunity Groups Want Say On Police Chief
Edward A. Flynn. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Some community groups are viewing the recent resignation of Milwaukee Police Department Chief Edward Flynn as an opportunity to influence the selection of his...
View ArticleNew Library Transforming Mitchell Street?
A class of small children leaves the Mitchell Street Library. (Photo by Jabril Faraj) Editor’s note: This article is one of an occasional series profiling the 12 finalists for the Milwaukee Awards for...
View ArticleFinalists for Police Chief Meet the Public
Attendees look on during the forum. Photo by Jabril Faraj. After a forum where the two remaining candidates for acting Milwaukee police chief answered written questions from attendees posed through two...
View ArticleTeen Art Exhibit Hits at Sex Trafficking
This piece, titled “Puppetmaster,” portrays how perpetrators of sex trafficking manipulate their victims. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Bianca Williams had just turned 13 when her mother kicked her out of the...
View ArticleACLU Study Finds Racism By Police
A Milwaukee Police Department officer pulls over a black resident near 35th and Clybourn streets. Photo by Jabril Faraj. Community leaders are saying three reports recently released by the ACLU of...
View ArticleBlack-Led Groups Get Fewer City Grants
Tony Gibson, founder and long-time chair of the Johnsons Park Neighborhood Association, speaks during the reports presentation while Ald. Russell Stamper (partially obscured) and Sister Patricia Rogers...
View ArticleMore Community Policing Needed?
Residents discussed possible solutions to poor police-community relations at the Washington Park Senior Center. Photo by Jabril Faraj. During the tenure of recently departed Chief Edward Flynn, the...
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