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Black
History Month - not over yet! As one of the few black
legislators in Wisconsin, I spend February hosting events for Black History
Month. We members of the Legislative Black Caucus have been busy for months
planning and executing events to draw attention to the issues we face as a
community. We’ve had so many great discussions and presentations, and I’m
already thinking about next year! To end Black History, I
hosted a week dedicated to discussing the disparities in our criminal justice
system and the difficulties to successful reentry. We kicked our week off
with an art display by formerly incarcerated artists called “Beyond the
Bars.” These artists told us truly inspiring stories about how they’ve used
art to better their lives and become better citizens. Later this week, we had
members from Grow Academy set up shop in the Capitol for a Grow Academy
Farmer’s Market! These kids have been using agriculture and entrepreneurship
to rehabilitate, and I’m so proud of the work they’re doing. We also held
movie screenings, presentations, and workshops all week to draw attention to
these issues and discuss how we can reshape the criminal justice system. We’re not done just yet.
Come join us next Tuesday, February 28 at the State Capitol for Lobby Day!
Lobby Day is a great opportunity for us to meet as a community and speak
about the issues that are important to us. You can find tickets for the day
as well as information about transportation here. Registration is $20 which includes
lunch. We hope to see you there!
On Wednesday, a suit was filed by The American Civil Liberties
Union against the city of Milwaukee and its police chief over the
department's stop-and-frisk policy. The lawsuit claims that the policy
unfairly and illegally targets black and brown residents. The ACLU claims
that Milwaukee police have mimicked New York-style stop-and-frisk; the same
policy that was determined a violation of constitutional rights by a federal
judge in 2013. This behavior is unacceptable, and I have always fought for
justice and an equal protection of law. In the past, I passed legislation
calling for more accountability and efficiency by our police department.
Obviously, work still needs to be done. Our law enforcement officers are here
to serve all of us. You should have the freedom to feel safe regardless of
your skin color, and thankfully the ACLU also realizes that, and is fighting
for what’s right. Governor
Walker: afraid of protestors Earlier this week, Governor
Walker spoke at CPAC, the Conservative Political
Action Conference where he urged conservatives to “stand strong” against the
nation’s protestors, and ignore them because they don’t reflect the “reality”
of our country’s voters. Apparently Walker has forgotten the true reality of
our voters – that they gave 3 million more votes to Hillary Clinton than they
did to President Trump? Since ending his 71-day presidential campaign in
2015, Governor Walker has refused to host a single public town hall, instead
holding invite-only listening sessions with lobbyists and campaign donors. Ignoring
protestors is convenient for Walker, but I’m sorry to say that we won’t be
ignored. Our masses are mobilizing, Governor Walker, and you will have to
deal with that reality someday.
I am excited to be part of
a group of lawmakers who have drafted a bill removing the requirement of
meeting minutes to be posted in local newspapers. As part of a bipartisan
effort to save money and increase public access to information, meeting
minutes — a summary of what occurred at a public meeting, will instead be
posted on the government entity’s website and in a public place for at least
three years. People increasingly access information online, so in our digital
age, posting minutes in local newspapers is an unnecessary expense. As the
times change, so should we, especially if it means saving local government
money. This is an easy way to keep our citizens informed while adapting to
the advantages of technology. |
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Quote
of the Week: “I refuse to accept the view
that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and
war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a
reality…. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the
final word.” -Martin Luther King,
Jr. This is an official
government communication from Sen. Lena C. Taylor. If you no longer wish to
receive these emails, click here to send
me an email to unsubscribe. |
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