Mayor Barrett, I respectfully disagree
Alderman Donovan calls for all-out curfew
The mayor has announced a strict 10 p.m. curfew for anyone under 18 in the City of Milwaukee.
While I’m not at all interested in piling on to the mayor’s already full plate during this period of crisis in Milwaukee, I feel compelled to make it clear that although I support the curfew move, in my mind it simply doesn’t go far enough.
During the riots of 1967 a strict curfew for EVERYONE was enforced, and I honestly believe the current unrest and violence is no different. The all-out curfew was needed then (I know, I lived through it!), and it’s needed now.
And we need a much firmer hand tonight with the protestors so that order is restored. We have the resources, and the National Guard has been activated by Governor Walker. I believe it’s time to deploy and utilize those Guard members and to make the arrests when needed to protect officers and citizens.
Honestly I cannot in good conscience stand by and say nothing and watch one more night of our officers being pelted by bottles, bricks, and rocks (and possibly shot at with bullets!), and them just standing there taking it. Seriously, how many more nights are we going to allow our officers to be punching bags?
(And now we are hearing that individuals are coming up from Chicago to instigate violence and confrontations with our officers; all the more reason to get a better handle on these protests.)
We cannot be proactive until an all-out curfew is enforced. I sure hope I’m wrong, but the 10 p.m. curfew the mayor just announced does not sound like it will be at all effective.
With all due respect mayor, we should be more proactive because we owe it to our officers and their families.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by State Rep. Bob Donovan
Who is Bob Donovan & why is his opinion relevant?
I do not support violence against police anymore than I support violence against people of color or protestors in general. That said, protest is not meant to be convenient for society. Regardless of the event which immediately preceded these protests, there are problems of respecting citizen rights all over our country. Donovan’s support for an all out curfew is similar to Trump’s ideological call for extreme vetting. Neither are sound in practical or ethical terms. Curfews should be made only in proportion to the events on the ground, and in the context of the rights to free expression and free movement.
Donovan is not helping improve police/community relations in this city. The event he participated in Sunday is a prime example. My parents attended the Support the Blue event. My sister’s husband is MPD and his mother helped organize it with her church. There was not a single person of color present. It was held in a suburb and featured a lineup of Republican speakers. My parents said Clinton and Democrat bashing was nonstop. I don’t think events like that help, however good the intentions are. Rhetoric from Clarke, Donovan, and Crivello makes relations worse.
Well bar stool Bob did it again. Shift blame, bury your head in the sand and wear blinders.
And of course suggest draconian methods to control a segment of the population .
More cops, National guard, lock e’m up. Make their lives even more miserable and then slink back to your bunker and wait for the next incident to occur so you can rant and rave again.
Donovan, your part of the problem, a political hack who runs for public office for the $75,000 + a year that you get for being a bomb thrower.