The Wisconsin Legislative Black Caucus recognized Black History Month in a ceremony at the Capitol on Tuesday. Speakers at the event included Caucus Chair Sen. Dora Drake, D-Milwaukee, Vice Chair Rep. Sequanna Taylor, D-Milwaukee, and other community leaders.
“Black History Month is American History Month,” Drake said in her opening statement.
The event mainly focused on the contributions of Black Wisconsinites, including those of Attorney Lloyd Barbee, Vel Phillips and Linda Hoskins, the president of the Dane County Branch of the NAACP.
Featured in the event were scholars from One City Schools, a local nonprofit organization that provides “high-quality educational opportunities for young children,” according to the Madison Chamber of Commerce. One City School operates a preschool and an elementary school in Madison. Students from the elementary schools performed drumming to kick off the event and after the speeches.
“Our future is wrapped up in the future of our young people,” said Rep. Supreme Moore Omokunde, D-Milwaukee. “We want to create a world that's best for them, including a world that has clean land, air and water.”
Beyond the more famous names in Wisconsin’s Black History, the resolution introduced by the caucus recognized Black Wisconsinites who contributed to the state.
These included Paul Higginbotham, the first African American judge to serve on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals; Shakita LaGrant-McClain, the executive director of the Milwaukee County Department of Health and Human Services and Marcia Anderson, a retired senior officer of the United States Army Reserve from Beloit, Wisconsin, who was the first Black woman to become a major general.
“Black history is about learning the truth of our collective experience in this country, this world, and creating movements that will hold the United States accountable,” author and educator Linetta Alexander Islam told the crowd gathered in the Capitol Rotunda.
While the event marked the achievements of those in the past, speakers also noted the future of advocacy and Black culture.
“When we think about all the things that our young people inhabit in themselves today, please know that that's not where their journey ends. Their movement is just beginning,” said Rhonda Stovall, a community organizer in Milwaukee.
In his closing remarks, Rep. Kalan Haywood, D-Milwaukee, referenced recent cuts to diversity, equity and inclusion under the Trump administration.
“Right now is not the time to sit on the sidelines and watch what’s happening,” Haywood said. “We’ve got to be as bold and aggressive about protecting the past and the future so that we can move forward.”
Gabriella Hartlaub is the former arts editor for The Daily Cardinal. She has also written state politics and campus news. She currently is a summer reporting intern with Raleigh News and Observer. Follow her on Twitter at @gabihartlaub.
