Milwaukeeans back Office of Violence Prevention, Election Commission at budget hearing
"The Milwaukee Common Council has a responsibility to the people of Milwaukee to reduce the police budget and to invest into community needs through participatory budgeting," - Jordan Terry
Oct 3, 2023 by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
African American Roundtable Relaunches LiberateMKE Campaign for Fifth Budget Cycle
"My desire to join LiberateMKE stems from AART’s efforts in creating a culturally safe environment that’s structured for political education and empowering actions towards Black liberation," - Alana McDonald
June 19, 2023 by Urban Milwaukee
Black leaders criticize ARPA spending in Milwaukee
"The ARPA dollars actually provide an opportunity to move forward from words to actions. To create policies, to address the divestment in the resources our city so much needs," - Angela Harris
May 26, 2022 by CBS 58
African American Roundtable in Milwaukee wants more community say on how federal pandemic relief funds are divvied
“We believe that these funds should be used to expand and improve the quality of life of people, particularly Black people of Milwaukee,” - Devin Anderson
May 26, 2022 by La Risa R. Lynch
African American Roundtable calls for more resident participation in the spending of American Rescue Plan Act funds
“These funds could help create educational enrichment opportunities that prioritize and benefit young people…We no longer should allow decisions to be made top-down, they need to be made bottom-up.” - Markasa Tucker-Harris
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
May 27, 2022 by PrincessSafiya Byers
Wisconsin police departments were already struggling to draw and keep officers. Calls for accountability have made it even harder.
"What we do know is what we've been doing isn't working, and we can't continue to waste money," said Markasa Tucker-Harris. "We can't continue to allow lives to continue to be destroyed and lost."
October 18, 2021, by Danielle Kaeding
LiberateMKE Wants the People to Decide the City's Money Should be Spent
“We know that the work we started in 2019 is far from over,” Markasa Tucker-Harris, the executive director of the African American Roundtable, said. “This is our money; this is our city.”
October 09, 2021, by Ana Martinez-Ortiz
The African-American Roundtable and Liberate MKE have a plan to solve "Milwaukee’s pension crisis: defund the police."
“For too long police have had a blank check and unlimited resources to arrest, harm, and kill people in our communities. Politicians continued to vote to hire more police, adding to the problem. Over the same period, we have seen divestments in public services that produce safety like housing and income support,” - Markasa Tucker-Harris and Devin Anderson.
October 01, 2021, by Jeramey Jannene
Liberate MKE collaborates with Heal The Hood
"We're making sure that the children are engaged. They're making sure that the adults have a space to have intergenerational space with the young people. They're giving away free food, and this is the form of violence prevention because you're bringing people together, you're helping people to develop relationships, you're creating spaces for people to come together and know one another, and that's where violence prevention starts. It starts with self-work, of course, but also the importance of relationship building." Markasa Tucker
July 19, 2021, by Teran Powell
Liberate MKE argues for a smaller Milwaukee Police Department
“Milwaukee’s police spending comes at the direct expense of its communities, argues Anderson, who says his hope is police could one day be defunded entirely. ‘Because we’ve seen this grossly disproportionate spending on police, we’re not able to build the communities and neighborhoods like our people deserve,’ he says. ‘It creates this chicken and egg scenario. People will say, ‘well, crime is going up.’ Yeah, crime is going up because we’re not funding anything that prevents crime. We’re not funding anything that builds community. We’re not funding any other social safety net that our folks need. We’re only funding police.“ 88Nine
May 25, 2021, by 88Nine Radio Milwaukee
Opinion: No more money for the Milwaukee police. Use new federal dollars to help those devastated by the coronavirus pandemic
“Let's be clear: Not one dollar should be used for police, particularly since the Milwaukee Police Department already received $9.8 million of CARES Act funding.” Devin Anderson
May 5, 2021, by Devin Anderson - African-American Roundtable
Milwaukee has the president’s ear
Voices from across Wisconsin bring urgent concerns to Biden’s town hall meeting…“I’ve seen firsthand the impacts of investing in criminalizing our communities instead of caring for our communities,” Markasa Tucker
Wisconsin Examiner
February 16, 2021 By Isiah Holmes
Milwaukee Activist Markasa Tucker Says Defunding Police Means Building Up, Not Just Tearing Down
“We have to continue to remind people in these contexts that we're not just tearing down. We're building up. We want to build up alternative organizations, there's tons of organizations that are already doing alternative type work in our city.” Markasa Tucker
WUWM 89.7 NPR
February 1, 2021 By MAAYAN SILVER & JACK HURBANIS
Our Demand Has Not Changed!
We believe that investing in programs that meet people’s needs like housing and public health is true safety, not continuing to fund police that harm us.
Urban Milwaukee
January 18, 2021 by LiberateMKE
We don’t want the COPS grant today, tomorrow or in January
Hundreds of voices that spoke at budget hearings over the past two years said they don’t want the COPS grant today, tomorrow or next year!
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
December 17, 2020 by Markasa Tucker
Milwaukee Is A Microcosm Of Biden's Challenge On Police Accountability
“People are going to want to pile money into reform. And people are going to be disappointed, you know, years later when they find out that that money they piled into that doesn't work because people are still getting murdered by police.” Markasa Tucker
NPR
December 7, 2020 by ADRIAN FLORIDO
A Blueprint for Racial Healing in the Biden Era
Systemic racism will not be undone with a new president. But progress is possible. Here’s what it could look like.
POLITICO
November 21, 2020 By SHERYLL CASHIN
Are Cities Willing to Cut Police Spending and Invest in Community Violence Prevention?
We know that a public health approach can reduce gun violence. With budgets tight, funding those programs will take divesting from law enforcement.
September 11, 2020 by ANTHONY SMITH AND RACHEL DAVIS
Redistributing or “defunding” the Milwaukee Police Department Budget: What is being asked by community groups and why?
Markasa Tucker, Director of the African American Roundtable at WI Voices, will provide an overview of the LiberateMKE campaign and what role local government and Milwaukee residents can play in the effort to achieve local safety.
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
August 30, 2020 by United Nations Association
Moving Milwaukee Forward, Part 2
In part 2 of our roundtable, local leaders offer further insight on the region’s slow march toward racial equity.
“One of the obstacles is the mismanagement of the taxpayers’ dollars. …No city can thrive with neighborhoods, the Health Department and libraries getting less than 4 percent each in the budget regularly.” Markasa Tucker, Director of the African American Roundtable
August 21, 2020 by NAN BIALEK
‘We keep leveling up’: Liberate MKE continues campaign to defund the police
Markasa Tucker, the director of the African American Roundtable, said the mission of LiberateMKE is to divest money from the police budget and put it toward things the community wants.
Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
July 30, 2020 by Ana Martinez-Ortiz
Activist Markasa Tucker talks the past, present & future of "defund the police"
Markasa Tucker has her eyes on defunding and reinventing policing as we know it.
July 28, 2020 by Max Mitchelson
INTEGRATED CIVIC ENGAGEMENT IS ESSENTIAL TO ELECTORAL JUSTICE
“In Wisconsin, transformative work is being done with the Liberate MKE campaign, a movement to divest from police and invest in the community in Milwaukee from the African American Civic Engagement Roundtable.”
June 30, 2020 by Alexis Anderson-Reed
Devin Anderson Calls for a Liberated Milwaukee
“Our collective energy, our collective brains are much more powerful.”
June 24, 2020
What "Defund the Police" Would Mean for Wisconsin
“Liberate MKE feels MPD's slice of the budget pie is too much.”
June 16, 2020 by BY Coutny Gerrish
Again and again, Milwaukee has protested police brutality and racist policies. What legacy will these marchers leave?
"We want investment back in the community. People want to live, they want to thrive," said Markasa Tucker, director of the African American Roundtable. "We want the elected officials to do their job."
June 3, 2020 by Ashley Luthern, Gina Barton, and Alison Dirr
Black Lives Matter: The Urgency of This Moment Requires Immediate Policy Action. In Wisconsin and Milwaukee, What Could That Be?
“People are beyond fed up. And words are no longer enough.”
June 2, 2020 by Dan Shafer
“The African American Roundtable Shares a List of Some of Our Current Demands”
“You cannot judge a victim by the way they fight back. The Black community is being choked and we are fighting for their lives.” Morathi Adams, The Movement for Black Lives and Freedom, Inc
June 2, 2020 Media Contact: Markasa Tucker, Markasa@WisconsinVoices.org , 414-699-5195
DOJ Grants $9.7 Million To Milwaukee Police For New Violent Crime Reduction Program
The surge in federal agents comes along with a financial commitment of $9.7 million that will be used to hire 27 new police officers in Milwaukee, pay overtime and benefits, and provide new equipment and technology.
May 14, 2020 by ANGELINA MOSHER SALAZAR
“Community Outpouring Over City Budget”
Dozens of residents object to nearly half of budget paying for police.
October 14, 2019 - By Isiah Holmes, Wisconsin Examiner