Council Puts Milwaukee Flag Debate on Ice

People’s Flag of Milwaukee. Photo from www.milwaukeeflag.com.

You won’t have to worry about the will-they-won’t-they saga surrounding the adoption of the People’s Flag of Milwaukee for some time.

The Common Council unanimously referred the file back to the Steering & Rules Committee.

“I’ll send this to committee so we have time, options, for our next steps,” said Ald. Peter Burgelis, who had led a multi-month outreach effort to replace the city’s 1950s flag with the “Sunrise Over the Lake” design selected from a 2016 citizen design contest.

Burgelis told Urban Milwaukee he is still considering next steps. During an October meeting, the council debated a possible referendum to settle the matter, but questions about such a vote’s legality under state law remain.

As it did in 2019, the process is bogged down in concerns about the city’s racial divide and the uneven adoption of the People’s Flag. While there is clearly visible adoption in many areas of the city and by several businesses, several Black council members have expressed concern that the yellow, blue and white flag is seldom seen in their districts and its design doesn’t reflect the city’s majority-minority status. Mayor Cavalier Johnson, a champion of the flag when he was on the council, has now threatened to veto its adoption.

But one thing was clear on Wednesday: absolutely no one wanted to talk about it, or anything else.

The council suffered the tragic loss of Ald. Jonathan Brostoff, 41, to suicide Monday and many members and city employees are still openly grieving. Brostoff’s desk was decorated with flowers, his favorite drink (Sprecher root beer) and a coat of arms depicting a “Honey Badger,” Brostoff’s self-described tenacious advocacy style.

Wednesday’s meeting was the first time the council had met since Brostoff’s death. It also came the morning after Vice President Kamala Harris lost her presidential bid in a race where Wisconsin wasn’t called until 4:45 a.m., less than five hours before the meeting.

For more on the flag debate, see our prior coverage.

The council will meet again Friday to adopt the 2025 city budget.