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[Goro Majima]

I actually feel like Milwaukee is making a rebound (I think Detroit is too). Milwaukee downtown is booming with tons of new development and even more to come. The east side is still booming and I really believe river west is about to get new developments too. Bay view is the hottest housing market in Wisconsin and tons of residents are starting to "discover" the south side and see that it's actually not dangerous at all. Milwaukee is even focusing now on the water industry and tech jobs (and it has made great strides in both but especially water tech). With our universities, Marquette and UWM, our residents tend to be highly educated.

Of course, and this is the kicker. None of this applies to the north side (which is mainly black residents). Here is where Milwaukee becomes hopeless. Again, for tons of reasons but external and internal. My heart goes out to black people trying to make something of themselves in Milwaukee. Talking to them, you can hear how disappointed they are in their community. It didn't use to be this way in the past. Restaurants and bars would thrive in the north side. Now you have to order food or get cash from a bank from the other side of bullet proof glass. And the children suffer the most. Imagine what is must be like being told, "if you are smart, you are a sell out and trying to be white". It makes no sense at all.

I really want to understand why being smart is frowned upon in the hood. It can't be blamed on rap music either. Rappers for the most part rap about reading and figuring out the truth and activism all the time.

Been in St Louis for about 4 months and from what I gathered there's a similar problem here. The west side and along the I-64 corridor it's a boomtown for professional services and other white collar jobs. St. Charles county as a whole is growing and building. Meanwhile the whole entire north side that is a predominantly black area isn't benefiting at all from the rest of the city's success.

I'm white so I'm not touching why academic success is shamed in poor black neighborhoods with a 10 foot pole. I'm aware of it but I can't even begin to know why it's going on...

 

[johnny956]

I actually feel like Milwaukee is making a rebound (I think Detroit is too). Milwaukee downtown is booming with tons of new development and even more to come. The east side is still booming and I really believe river west is about to get new developments too. Bay view is the hottest housing market in Wisconsin and tons of residents are starting to "discover" the south side and see that it's actually not dangerous at all. Milwaukee is even focusing now on the water industry and tech jobs (and it has made great strides in both but especially water tech). With our universities, Marquette and UWM, our residents tend to be highly educated.

Of course, and this is the kicker. None of this applies to the north side (which is mainly black residents). Here is where Milwaukee becomes hopeless. Again, for tons of reasons but external and internal. My heart goes out to black people trying to make something of themselves in Milwaukee. Talking to them, you can hear how disappointed they are in their community. It didn't use to be this way in the past. Restaurants and bars would thrive in the north side. Now you have to order food or get cash from a bank from the other side of bullet proof glass. And the children suffer the most. Imagine what is must be like being told, "if you are smart, you are a sell out and trying to be white". It makes no sense at all.

I really want to understand why being smart is frowned upon in the hood. It can't be blamed on rap music either. Rappers for the most part rap about reading and figuring out the truth and activism all the time.

This is happening in many urban centers of cities in the Midwest. St Louis is doing the exact same thing, downtown and central corridor are booming but that doesn't help the black residents in north city who haven't received any benefit to their neighborhoods. So is very easy to understand where they are coming from when they feel it doesn't matter who they vote for

edit: wow beaten

 

[MHWilliams]

You aren't going to mobilize people with that message.

If somebody is struggling telling them it can get worse doesnt light a fire under them.

Perhaps not.

Doesn't change the ultimate potential result on their lives.

 

[RDreamer]

I actually feel like Milwaukee is making a rebound (I think Detroit is too). Milwaukee downtown is booming with tons of new development and even more to come. The east side is still booming and I really believe river west is about to get new developments too. Bay view is the hottest housing market in Wisconsin and tons of residents are starting to "discover" the south side and see that it's actually not dangerous at all. Milwaukee is even focusing now on the water industry and tech jobs (and it has made great strides in both but especially water tech). With our universities, Marquette and UWM, our residents tend to be highly educated.

Of course, and this is the kicker. None of this applies to the north side (which is mainly black residents). Here is where Milwaukee becomes hopeless. Again, for tons of reasons but external and internal. My heart goes out to black people trying to make something of themselves in Milwaukee. Talking to them, you can hear how disappointed they are in their community. It didn't use to be this way in the past. Restaurants and bars would thrive in the north side. Now you have to order food or get cash from a bank from the other side of bullet proof glass. And the children suffer the most. Imagine what is must be like being told, "if you are smart, you are a sell out and trying to be white". It makes no sense at all.

I really want to understand why being smart is frowned upon in the hood. It can't be blamed on rap music either. Rappers for the most part rap about reading and figuring out the truth and activism all the time.

Yeah, it's sad that most residents aren't sharing in the good that's going on. It's because the entire city is so ridiculously segregated. If you're white you do not go to the north side town. It's no wonder their businesses can't take part if no one wants to go there and participate.

Personally I'm glad that where I work has at last one supplier that's a black (woman) owned business in the north side. I don't go over there much, and honestly I do get a bit stressed when I have to pick something up, but nothing's ever actually happened and the people there are great.

 

[Dickleson]

Liberals are so brainwashed into believing that the only way to change things for the better is voting in bourgeois elections.

 

[Monocle]

Liberals are so brainwashed into believing that the only way to change things for the better is voting in bourgeois elections.

Tell us more about liberals.

 

[Snaku]

You aren't going to mobilize people with that message.

If somebody is struggling telling them it can get worse doesnt light a fire under them. You have to inspire them towards a better future. Obama was able to do that. Hillary couldnt.

Do people really need to be inspired to get off their asses for self preservation? Trump and his neo Nazi supporters have spent the last year making it absolutely crystal clear what they stand for and the white American future they envision. Sorry Hillary didn't treat them like special snowflakes, but that makes as much difference in the grand scheme of their lives as her email non-scandal.

 

[SL128]

I was wondering when the centrist anger against 'lazy' black voters would emerge on GAF, and it seems to have arrived.

Hint: The point of campaigning is to get people to vote, and Hillary didn't where it's ended up mattering.

 

[jehuty]

Yeah, it's sad that most residents aren't sharing in the good that's going on. It's because the entire city is so ridiculously segregated. If you're white you do not go to the north side town. It's no wonder their businesses can't take part if no one wants to go there and participate.

Personally I'm glad that where I work has at last one supplier that's a black (woman) owned business in the north side. I don't go over there much, and honestly I do get a bit stressed when I have to pick something up, but nothing's ever actually happened and the people there are great.

Can't blame you. I won't even go to the north side. reminds me of the worse parts of jersey (Camden, Newark).

 

[ezrarh]

I do empathize with them. Poor urban communities are fucked either way, especially in old midwestern cities. A lot of his concerns can be addressed by those in local government but more often than not, white liberals (and conservatives) are not willing to do what it takes to improve all areas of a city.

 

[Brinbe]

It's really unfortunate that many felt that way, but I can't blame them too much. Similar to those White rural voters they're a class of people that have been actively ignored for decades and their lives haven't gotten any better.

And it's easy to say make more inroads to get their votes, but that's easier said than done.

The easiest path may be just though straight-up education, but as others have expressed there's a segment of people in that lower class, whether you are rural or urban that doesn't appreciate education at all, and you're in fact clowned on for being learned in any way at all.

So how do you reach that person? It's close to impossible when their lives are shit and they're also governed by Republicans at the state level who actively do make their lives worse. It's hard to get through to people without that education as that midterms actually fucking matter and are arguably more important than Presidential elections. And that goes for every uneducated lower class downtrodden voter.

The time for blaming is over. What are the solutions?

 

[Rentahamster]

I'm also amused by this "she didn't go to a state(winning handily in most polls, mind you), therefore people said fuck you", as if every person in America didn't already know everything they needed to know about these two candidates already, I mean, are you fucking kidding me? It's nice for Trump though that's he's a man who wasn't specifically targeted by Russia, Wikileaks, and FBI fuckery during the last two weeks of the election, all during early voting, on top of the voter suppression tactics already in place!


She never came to my state either, and guess what, I'm not some irrational needy idiot that needs to feel coddled to do what needs to be done. I get out and vote, and sometimes I vote strategically if need be. (all of this operates under the assumption anyone would've actually been swayed by her personally visiting a state. It certainly saved Ohio and Florida... Oh wait. it wasn't even close)

This kind of condescending attitude doesn't help to convince people to get out and vote.

 

[LegendofJoe]

I can't muster any anger over this, only sadness. Apathy like what is described in the article is a symptom of someone that has given up hope. It's made even worse because the message of hope that Obama campaigned on in 2008 was exactly what downtrodden communities like this one needed to hear. They need to hear and see people that can inspire them to dream again and believe that there is hope for a better future. The GOP did everything they could to block Obama's efforts and as a result his message of hope was forgotten.

Obama himself and leaders all over the country need to pick the mantle of hope back up again and campaign forcefully on it. There is ALWAYS hope as long as people of good will work together to create positive change. Each and every one of us can take part in that. Show people like this that the future is worth believing in by doing everything you can to fight for it.

 

[Dynomutt]

The level of disconnect here is probably one reason why Trump won.

A lot of potential voters just don't have the education or the attention span to understand big issues, or track which policies or programs actually benefit or hurt them. It's much easier to vote based on shitty soundbites and mindless meme spam, even if they made no sense, and Trump had plenty of those to appeal to his base.

This election feels like a Twilight zone episode. I agree that there has been alot of misinformation but that is the internet. I don't think that's necessarily fair to say these people are uneducated and impatient that is maybe a rush to judgement. Why did these voters have the attention span and knowledge when Obama ran? She lost the same young voters and African-Americans who voted for Obama.

I understand party alliance but you still have to work for the vote. What about the four states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin - Donald Trump won 47 counties that Barack Obama carried in 2012!

The onus is on Hilary Clinton to earn their vote not the other was around. We've been show shown time and time again how disconnected she was. She planned a Fireworks Show in anticipation of winning!

She did the political equivalent of this:

Put your finger on the pulse of this election and can tell me Hilary was making moves like Obama? She lost plain and simple.

 

[aeolist]

I'm also amused by this "she didn't go to a state(winning handily in most polls, mind you), therefore people said fuck you", as if every person in America didn't already know everything they needed to know about these two candidates already, I mean, are you fucking kidding me? It's nice for Trump though that's he's a man who wasn't specifically targeted by Russia, Wikileaks, and FBI fuckery during the last two weeks of the election, all during early voting, on top of the voter suppression tactics already in place!


She never came to my state either, and guess what, I'm not some irrational needy idiot that needs to feel coddled to do what needs to be done. I get out and vote, and sometimes I vote strategically if need be. (all of this operates under the assumption anyone would've actually been swayed by her personally visiting a state. It certainly saved Ohio and Florida... Oh wait. it wasn't even close)

the point is that she took wisconsin and these voters completely for granted, as she did with many other communities. she assumed that donald trump being horrible would drive them to vote and spent her campaign fundraising, trying to flip red states that she couldn't win, and appealing to the mythical moderate republican vote. assuming that someone will vote for you without even making it look like you're trying to earn it is exactly how she lost against the worst candidate in american history.

 

[aeolist]

The level of disconnect here is probably one reason why Trump won.

A lot of potential voters just don't have the education or the attention span to understand big issues, or track which policies or programs actually benefit or hurt them. It's much easier to vote based on shitty soundbites and mindless meme spam, even if they made no sense, and Trump had plenty of those to appeal to his base.

it's great that the clinton supporter memes went from "bernie bros think black people are too stupid to vote for their own interests" to "black people are too stupid to vote for their own interests"

 

[hodayathink]

I'm straight up amazed at the people in this thread saying that Hillary didn't campaign towards these people. She may not have visited Milwaukee specifically, but the people in this article were the people she was attempting to campaign to. The real truth is that, for the most part, she didn't lose these people, the Republican Congress did. These people didn't vote for her not because of anything she did or didn't say, but because 6 years of an obstructionist Congress meant that the president that campaigned directly on trying to help them wasn't really able to (with the exception of attempting to help on health care, which the Republicans then proceeded to fight at every opportunity on the federal and state level to the point where they sabotaged that as well). And once that happens, why would they think that anyone could help them? Hillary could have said and done the same things Obama did, but it's not easy to overcome this level of disillusionment, and like I said earlier, she'd still have to get these things through a Republican controlled House of Representatives, which would have been a struggle to say the least. So, more than likely, she would have ended up not helping them just as much as Obama did, and become another in a long line of presidents that did nothing to help them.

 

[SL128]

I'm straight up amazed at the people in this thread saying that Hillary didn't campaign towards these people. She may not have visited Milwaukee specifically, but the people in this article were the people she was attempting to campaign to. The real truth is that, for the most part, she didn't lose these people, the Republican Congress did. These people didn't vote for her not because of anything she did or didn't say, but because 6 years of an obstructionist Congress meant that the president that campaigned directly on trying to help them wasn't really able to (with the exception of attempting to help on health care, which the Republicans then proceeded to fight at every opportunity on the federal and state level to the point where they sabotaged that as well). And once that happens, why would they think that anyone could help them? Hillary could have said and done the same things Obama did, but it's not easy to overcome this level of disillusionment, and like I said earlier, she'd still have to get these things through a Republican controlled House of Representatives, which would have been a struggle to say the least. So, more than likely, she would have ended up not helping them just as much as Obama did, and become another in a long line of presidents that did nothing to help them.

Meaning she didn't campaign to them. Even visiting a state will make it into their news cycle, but that didn't happen either.

 

[Apophenia Overload]

Please. More people voted for her than anyone not named Obama and her being the infinitely better choice doesn't go out the window just because of a because of a bunch of idiot rural rust belt voters turned heel, or a because a stupid amount of uneducated(and racist, and sexist) white men found their messiah.

Calling rural rust belt voters idiots and calling people uneducated is the reason why we're in this mess in the first place.

 

[Apophenia Overload]

As a Milwaukee resident and minority, I kinda understand black people in Milwaukee (and around the country) issues with democrats. Thing is, at least here in Milwaukee, the black leaders plain suck or are corrupt. Even in light of these things, the black community keeps electing these so called leaders that do nothing for them and are just there to collect a pay check or try to get money off of the public (read up on Michael Mcgee jr and sr).

Not to be flippant, but it sounds like it would be great to get a spotlight on the issues bringing down the city in a The Wire sort of spiritual sequel. Or some sort of documentary series.