And you expect me to remain silent?

Why are we afraid to speak the truth about the homicide crisis that is impacting the City of Milwaukee’s social and economic fabric? If a Black child from our community was six years old in 1994, here’s what he or she experienced: the introduction of crack cocaine to our community through Ricky Ross on the West Coast during the end of the Reagan Administration; Gangsta Rap in the music industry; and the release of Nelson Mandela with the end of an apartheid system in South Africa.

That child in 2004 would now be 16 years old and faced with extreme social and economic challenges regarding poverty in Milwaukee that will, in all certainty, lead them to the unjustly criminal justice system. That same child now would be 27 years old and dying on the streets of our city because of gun violence (as would his little brother who was five in 2004 and now is 16 years old).

More than 85% of folks dying in Milwaukee to violence are Black and under 30 years old, and we know many Black children are being slaughtered also, kids in their early teens. So violence is not something that just started to happen; in my assessment it has grown due to a lack of will to provide a better standard of life for Black folks here in Milwaukee. In 2004, Milwaukee’s poverty rate was around 26% and now we are the 2nd poorest city in the country only behind Detroit with a poverty rate of almost 30%.

So it’s time for us to understand the economic facts and take control of this serious situation that has been neglected by Mayor Barrett. And don’t fall for the excuse that “this isn’t about race,” because it is. On our streets of Milwaukee, Black folks are dying, Black children are dying, and the Black community is getting poorer.

And you expect me to remain silent?

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.

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