African-American

A program meant to promote homeownership and empower low-income residents in Milwaukee has opened the door for 30 tenants in affordable housing to become homeowners. The Metcalfe Park Homeownership Initiative is a lease-purchase program in the Metcalfe Park neighborhood on the north side of Milwaukee. Thirty single-family homes were built 15 years ago on tax-foreclosed…

A new study found patients who are Black were less likely to receive home health care after a hospital stay compared to patients of other races. Abiola Keller, associate professor at Marquette University’s College of Nursing, looked at data from more than 14,000 Medicare patients at 31 hospitals in the U.S. When patients no longer…

Milwaukee plans to address racism and health equity over the next five years by focusing on challenges like housing, maternal and child health and public safety. Those steps and others were outlined in the newest iteration of the MKE Elevate Community Health Improvement Plan announced Thursday by the City of Milwaukee Health Department. Report authors…

The Appleton Area School District is partnering with African Heritage Inc. to establish The Ọmọladé Academy, an African-centered charter school. The tuition-free academy will be open to all Appleton students enrolled in kindergarten through third grade in the fall of 2024. The school will focus on providing a “holistic educational experience that celebrates the cultural…

For a few days next July, Milwaukee will be the center of the 2024 presidential race as the Republican Party hosts its national convention. Many political scientists and commentators question whether conventions or debates do much to sway voters. But that hasn’t always been the case. Seventy-five years ago, a Midwest mayor gave an electrifying…

Wisconsin’s incarceration rates are higher than the national average, especially for Black residents, and the state has one of the largest corrections budgets in the nation, according to a new report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum. The report comes at a time of increased scrutiny of the prison system due to extended lockdowns that have…

When Sierra Lyle was in nursing school, she didn’t see pictures of people who looked like her in her textbooks. As an African-American woman, she was hurt. She thought becoming a community-based doula would give her a chance to serve people who shared her identity. “Having somebody who’s on our side, who’s educated in childbirth…

Five-gallon plastic pails holding a toxic chemical linked to cancer sat for years on the shelves of a fire department in south-central Wisconsin. Finally, in a heralded statewide cleanup, they were gathered up and shipped off. “I don’t have to worry about something being knocked over, broken open,” said Jefferson Fire Chief Ron Wegner. “So…

State Public Defender Kelli Thompson is stepping down Monday after 12 years on the job. She said now is the right time for the agency to transition to new leadership after the most recent state budget provided a significant increase in resources. Attorneys in the public defender’s office received long-sought pay increases. State-appointed private attorneys…

Five years after a historic $3.4 million settlement over the Milwaukee Police Department’s stop and frisk practices was reached, a report released Monday found Black Milwaukeeans still face higher rates of police stops. The report from the Crime and Justice Institute found that Black drivers in Milwaukee are 4.5 times more likely to get stopped…