Milwaukee Embarrassed Yet Again

On a video that has quickly gone viral, County Supervisor Peggy West told attendees at a county meeting that if Arizona shared a border with Mexico, she would have to re-think her position on boycotting Arizona's immigration law.  The problem, however is that Arizona does indeed share a border with Mexico just like Texas, New Mexico and California.

The video of West's remarks circulated on YouTube where it received nationwide attention from political pundits like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, and a hoarde of Arizona blogs and newspapers.

Local personalities like Charlie Sykes and Mark Belling also spent considerable time poking fun at it.  Belling said that in his 21 years of doing his program, this was the dumbest thing any Milwaukee liberal has ever said.  He went on to say how sorry he was for County Executive Scott Walker for having to deal with people like her on the County Board.

Oddly, and yet not surprising, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel covered the story only after national news networks like Fox broke the story.  Like other pundits, I have my opinions.  There are so many things to say and so many ways to say it, so let's get started. 

First, this incident underscores a problem we have in liberal havens like Milwaukee sheltered from the rest of the real world.  We have activists like Peggy West voting on measures that they know nothing about using little more than gut feelings to guide their way.  Arizona passed an immigration bill precisely because it shares a border with Mexico.  If it were not directly paired with Mexico, Arizona wouldn't have episodes of violence with the Mexican drug cartels.  Most people know this, and it is expected that a prominent leader in the Hispanic community should know this as well.   

Second, the Milwaukee County Board was just moments away from a vote that could have negatively impacted Arizona's economy.  The supervisor who co-sponsored the resolution didn't know where Arizona was on the map let alone the contents of the law she was allegedly protesting.  Perhaps there should be a rule specifying that in order to boycott a state, you should know where it is and why you're boycotting it.  It's not a terribly high standard to set.

At least one good thing resulted from all of this.  Peggy West now knows where Arizona is thanks to Job Kyl, a U.S. Senator from Arizona, who sent Peggy West a letter accompanied by a handy map showing that Arizona was indeed on the border of Mexico.  The letter also urged West to "actually read the Arizona law before forming an opinion about it."

Third, Peggy West represents nearly 50,000 residents on the Milwaukee's south side.  She serves as Milwaukee County's 2nd Vice Chair; she is the Chairwoman of the Health and Human Needs Committee; and she is a member of the Economic & Community Development and Finance & Audit Committees.  In other words, she is very politically connected and has the ability to influence policy in Milwaukee County.  The Milwaukee County Board, whether informed or not, should stick with issues that pertain to Milwaukee County, not the politics of other states.  This is a safe and wise policy.

And fourth, in 2004, Peggy West won the Hispanic Woman of the Year award from UMOS - a non-profit that helps low income migrants.  Does anyone see the irony here?  Arizona is the biggest gateway for Hispanic immigration into the United States, and our Hispanic Woman of the Year doesn't know that Arizona is attached to Mexico.  Oh, and it gets better.

Peggy West is not just an award winning Hispanic woman, she is on the Cesar Chavez Drive Advancement Committee, on the Esperanza Unida Board of Directors, and on the Latina Resource Center Advisory Board.  How does a person so involved in Hispanic issues know so little about both Arizona and Mexico?  And even more interesting, news reports from Arizona are now saying Peggy West's Facebook profile listed "Mexican History" as one of her interests.  Since then, however, she has scrubbed it from her Facebook page.  Apparently, she has some catching up to do on her own heritage. 

Peggy West's Explanation

After Peggy West became an overnight sensation, she interviewed with TMJ4 saying she "simply misspoke".  She meant to say that if Arizona shared a border with Mexico as large as Texas, then she might understand the need for an immigration law.

But there are a few inconsistencies with this explanation.  Earlier, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel quoted her saying that the Arizonan law was "racist".  But if the Arizonan law is racist, what else is there to understand?  Having a larger border doesn't make the law any less racist than if the border were smaller.  Below is a quote of her comments.  She said,

"If this [Arizona] was Texas, which is a state that is directly on the border with Mexico, and they were calling for a measure like this saying that they had a major issue with undocumented people flooding their borders, I would have to look twice at this. But this is a state that is a ways removed from the border,"

The video clearly showed that West didn't realize that Arizona "directly" bordered Mexico, but in fact believed that Arizona was "a ways removed" from the border, neither of which are true.  Here is a good question, how far is "a ways removed"?  We're not exactly sure.  For all we know, she could believe Arizona is on the Canadian border.  But even if we took West at her word, there are problems.  The Texan border with Mexico may be the largest, but the Arizonan border is the most frequented thanks to miles of fencing built in Texas and California.  

Conclusion

For the Hispanic community, I think now is as good a time as any to get new leadership.  For years, we had a Latino State Legislator that refused to fight for Wisconsin's Choice Schools, which is a program that provides school vouchers to low-income families so their children can receive the same quality education received in private schools.  Not only did Pedro Colon refuse to support the program, but he tried to cripple it by introducing legislation that, if it had passed, would have crushed many of the smaller private school participants.

And now, we have a "celebrity" county supervisor who has initiated a boycott on the premise that Arizona doesn't share borders with Mexico, only to receive a geography lesson from an Arizona Senator showing that Arizona does indeed border Mexico.  West has become the joke of the nation and has won the "pinhead" award from Bill O'Reilly last week.  Some leadership we have Wisconsin, right?

Leaders in the Hispanic community, both nationally and locally, have done a poor job representing us.  The Hispanic community is still a socially conservative body retaining values consistent with being pro-life, pro-marriage, and pro-education.  But we have not seen these values in our local leadership.  Instead, we see open-border advocates coordinating marches.  We see Latino leaders fighting for government-run health care.  And we see Get-Out-the-Vote drives by the National Council of La Raza that encourages people to vote who don't know who or what they're voting for.

It's time that we take back our community and elect representatives that embody our core values.  Until we do this, we will continue to see the wrong sort of Hispanic leaders bring national embarrassment to our community.   

A Terrible Tragedy In Milwaukee

A couple weeks ago, a 27,000 lbs. slab of concrete fell from the O'Donnell Parking Structure killing a child and injuring two others.  Although it continues to headline in the local news, it doesn't fully convey the political ramifications of the incident.  The parking garage is owned by Milwaukee County, and it just so happens that Scott Walker, the Milwaukee County Executive, is the top gubernatorial candidate in the race.     

Fifty-eight minutes after the incident and while a dead body was still buried beneath the rubble, County Chairman Lee Holloway hurried a press release calling for a complete investigation into all county properties saying that a backlog of maintenance raised serious public safety concerns.  The effect of the Holloway's release signaled that Walker's penny-wise budgeting would become a target for weeks to come.

When Walker arrived on the scene, he was briefed by emergency personnel.  Afterward, he released a statement indicating that there was no known report suggesting the O'Donnell ramp had deferred maintenance.  He also criticized Holloway for politicizing the tragedy.

The O'Donnell Incident Raises a Few Points

First, what caused the slab to fall? Shortly after the parking garage was first built, stress cracks developed in the weight-bearing supports indicating they weren't properly rated.  To remedy the problem, tons of soil were promptly removed from the top level of the garage while engineers strengthened the steel-and-concrete skeleton of the structure. The building's architect was subsequently fired and then sued by Milwaukee County for a botched job.  But cracks in the structure do not mean it caused the slab of concrete to fall.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel recently headlined an article stating that only two connecting rods were used to support the 13 ton decorative facade when the original specs had called for four connecting rods.  It is quite possible that this shortcut played a role as to why slab fell killing the 15 year old.  In terms of possible liability, therefore, it will also include a county leadership from the 1990s headed by Democrat Dave Schultz.     

Second, The county released an itemized report to the media listing all of the recent repairs done to the O'Donnell Parking Garage.  A 2009 audit flagged certain problems like "roll down fire doors", "corroded connections on electric panels", and "missing ceramic tile".  After examining the audit, it is clear that none of the problems noted in the audit could have lead to the dislodgement of the facade.  And even more important, Walker corrected all of the "critical", "potentially critical", and "necessary" problems noted in the audit before the tragic collapse.  Therefore, Holloway's comments were premature and disgraceful.

And third, it's inspiring that how Holloway used this tragedy to make himself into the County's harbinger of building maintenance.  Less inspiring is how Holloway's own apartment buildings became the focus of a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel investigation.  Holloway's nine properties had had more than 150 building code violations.  Violations such as holes in walls, roach infestation, doors without handles, windows that don't close, and kitchen sinks with no running water are serious issues for tenants.  Holloway's violations were so severe, in fact, that the city placed him on a special enforcement list dedicating a single inspector for his apartment buildings.  In simple terms, Holloway is a slumlord of major proportions.   

Politicizing a Tragedy

Ultimately, we need to find out what happened and how to ensure this doesn't happen again.  But pointing fingers before the facts are gathered are both irresponsible and disingenuous.  For example, Jim McGuigan, a former county supervisor, wrote a hit piece on his blog called "Watchdog Milwaukee" saying that Walker allowed the structure to erode causing the death of a 15 year old.

The irony, of course, is that former Jim McGuigan was ousted from his job for a $50 million pension scandal that rocked Milwaukee County and continues to create budgetary problems til this day.  Watchdog Milwaukee?  No, not really. 

But Mr. McGuigan isn't the only one chiming in without all the facts.  The Neumann campaign issued a press release blaming government for not providing a safe infrastructure for its citizens.  Neumann said,

"Government’s legitimate functions include providing safe infrastructure for its citizens. This concern must be paramount.

It is clear that along with this latest tragedy, the county courthouse, the Zoo Interchange, and the Hoan Bridge, a number of structures in Milwaukee County are in various stages of disrepair. A full investigation and safety review is absolutely warranted, particularly for structures and facilities that have already been flagged for critical problems."

Neumann's statement is a new low even for his campaign.  Neumann knows that engineers are currently examining the structure to determine the cause of the event.  This means, of course, that the precise cause or cluster of related causes is still unknown.  Neumann should let the engineers do their work and let the facts speak for themselves.  Politicians only muddy up the waters.

And second, Neumann's campaign stated that the Zoo Interchange and the Hoan Bridge are in disrepair.  This is true, but the inference is that since these structures are in Milwaukee County, they are county problems.  The Zoo Interchange and the Hoan Bridge are not owned or managed by the Milwaukee County government.  By listing them, Neumann's campaign misled readers to think that Scott Walker is somehow culpable. 

Conclusion

All of the finger-pointing aside, we must keep in mind that a real tragedy occurred.  Many of us who are parents understand how heart-wrenching it is to see things happen to our children.  Our hearts go out to the family who lost their child.  May God strengthen them during this terrible time and may they find peace in a storm of calamity.

Problems in Our Own Backyard

On June 17th, the Milwaukee County Board Committee and the Milwaukee School Board endorsed resolutions calling for a boycott of Arizona.  Larry Miller, author of the resolution, called Arizona's immigration law racist and compared it to the apartheid in Africa.  In a statement on his blog, Miller said that as an institution, MPS is obligated to stop the expansion of Arizona's immigration policy.   

As a practical concern, some parents at home wonder why the school board is obligated to address illegal immigration when there are obvious systemic problems at MPS.  For instance, MPS Student attendance is substantially lower than any other school district in Milwaukee County.  Reading scores at MPS are among the lowest in the nation.  Graduation rates at MPS below 50%.  And just recently, 482 teachers were laid off because the teacher's union wouldn't make concessions on their health care insurance.  At what point will the school board take corrective action on any of these important issues?

The Troubles of MPS

In a recent study, MPS was deemed the second worst school district in the nation for reading scores in two different grade levels.   In 2003 and 2004, the graduation rate at MPS was 46% placing MPS 38th of 50 school districts. 

Educational mediocrity isn't MPS' only problem.  The violence at MPS is on an upward trend with 127 MPS employees reported being assaulted by students in a single semester. The number of students expelled for bringing drugs to school has doubled in the past 5 years, and the total MPS expulsions have tripled in the past 15 years.  To put this into proper perspective, more students from MPS are getting expelled for bringing firearms to school than all of Chicago's Public Schools, and Chicago has 4.5 times the population of Milwaukee.  

The recent school board resolution did not address our low reading scores, our paltry graduation rates, the alarming upsurge in school violence, or a school system that now has 482 fewer teachers.  Instead, they spent taxpayer resources to weigh in on state statutes that do not affect Milwaukee and ultimately distracts school board members from dealing with pandemic failure.  

Education in the Hispanic Community

Arguably, there is no greater benefit to the Hispanic community than a good education.  According to the Pew Hispanic Research Center, Hispanics viewed education as the top issue of the day.  It was considered more important than health care, jobs, the economy, and even immigration reform.  Surprisingly, immigration reform ranked 4th on the list of important concerns for the Hispanic community.

Currently, the only educational refuge for the Hispanic community is the school choice program.  Schools like St. Anthony's in Milwaukee for example, provide quality education to low income communities through an innovative voucher program.   The voucher program allows low income parents to send their kids to private schools like St. Anthony's for a better suburban-styled education, a more disciplined environment, and at a more fiscally responsible cost to taxpayers.    

Conclusion

At a time when the threat of mayoral control looms over MPS' school board, it was unwise for them to weigh in on affairs that don't concern or affect them.   The issue of Arizonan immigration, although an important issue for the Hispanic community, has no bearing on the quality of education students receive in here in Milwaukee.  There are better ways to address Arizona's  questionable decisions than to boycott the state.

Economic boycotts financially harm the very people that MPS has proposed to help.  Remember, 30% of Arizona's population is Hispanic, and 10% of Arizona businesses are also Hispanic.  The effect of boycotting Arizona will cause more harm to the Hispanic community and will unlikely push the Arizonan government into repealing their law.

The resolution of the school board should serve as a reminder that they, while failure abounds, cannot bring themselves to let educational priorities supersede personal politics.  School Choice, however, provides Hispanic families an escape from politics and educational mediocrity.  Choice schools are not bound by the same bureaucratic nonsense we see in public schools, and it provides parents an option that puts their children's needs above ideological obstacles.

Wisconsin has a mandated cap or restriction on how many children are eligible to receive school vouchers.  It is important, therefore, that we elect state representatives that understand the importance of promoting a policy that expands school choice.  As a Hispanic community, we cannot afford to elect candidates that will not fight for us and our children.  Hold candidates accountable and ask them if they will fight for the school choice program.  If not, they have no businesses running for office.