how to fix milwaukee's segregation problems (Waukesha, Wausau: fit in, crimes, credit)
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This is the way I see it. I'm glad Fr. James Groppi did what he did. He helped to get some injustices addressed, and as an African-American and a Catholic, he has an honorable place in my eyes, along with Dr. King. Laws needed to be changed. A person ought to be able to live where he or she pleases and shouldn't be prevented from buying a house anywhere. At one time, African-Americans couldn't buy houses in certain parts of Milwaukee, also known as restrictive covenants. That is illegal now and I'm glad it is. One segment of the population not being allowed to buy homes or live in certain places isn't what I call a free nation or a nation of freedom and equality. I call it a nation of hypocrisy. Thanks to the laws changing, I can live in Kosciusko Park, Riverwest, or anywhere else I please.
That being said, you can't change a person's heart. You can change the laws, and I'm glad the laws changed. But the heart of a person also has to change. There are some nice people who might want to have me as a neighbor. There are also many people who will still judge me by the color of my skin. There are still people out there who will look at the Riverwest incident, and then look at me with suspicion, which angers me alot.
That is my stance on segregation. There should be no laws prohibiting any person from living wherever he or she pleases and race should not matter. If any community tries to discriminate based on skin color, race, or ethnicity, then I think the federal government should slam down on it and stop that discrimination. At the same time, it doesn't change a person's heart. A person has to want to change. And there are people who want to change, or are not racist to begin with. There are still some people who are racist.
Okay, I don't know where all you guys are from, but I'm from the northside. I grew up in a neighborhood that's less than 5% white. My sister was gang raped by blacks, my dad got his nose broken by some black guy at the GS on the corner of S.S. and Appleton, my mom taught in the inner-city at Auer Avenue school and was assaulted twice, her car broken into 10 times, I've personally been robbed and jumped (or at least attempts) probably over 30 times, all done by blacks, and when I was little (around age 11) teenage age blacks would come by and tell me I had to get my "white-ass" inside and just bother me calling me racial slurs. Now, going through this growing up, do you think I would want my kids to grow up like that??? I mean c'mon. The black community is never held accountable for their racism against whites and the white people that grew up like me know this and they know that they will never get justice, so they just decide to avoid black people. That is not racist, that is common sense!! When you're a kid and you touch something hot, you get burned, its the same thing. Look at what happened at RiverWest. This sort of mob attack thing happens all the time, the victims are always white and the attackers always black. If there was ever such a disparity like this and it was the whites who were perpetrating the crime, you would be able to perfectly understand if blacks chose to avoid whites. Get out the suburbs, wake up, and realize that the media and society has actually trained you to look for fault in the whites instead of reasons and explanations.
Okay, I don't know where all you guys are from, but I'm from the northside. I grew up in a neighborhood that's less than 5% white. My sister was gang raped by blacks, my dad got his nose broken by some black guy at the GS on the corner of S.S. and Appleton, my mom taught in the inner-city at Auer Avenue school and was assaulted twice, her car broken into 10 times, I've personally been robbed and j.
I understand you very good but do you understand black people? Do you know what white people did to them? And this happened not so long ago. And as amerifree wrote "...and who is first in line for govt. assistance programs, ..." is true but why? Because all jobs are reserved for white people. And Wisconsin is as I red one of the top state of segregation...
Okay, I don't know where all you guys are from, but I'm from the northside. I grew up in a neighborhood that's less than 5% white. My sister was gang raped by blacks, my dad got his nose broken by some black guy at the GS on the corner of S.S. and Appleton, my mom taught in the inner-city at Auer Avenue school and was assaulted twice, her car broken into 10 times, I've personally been robbed and jumped (or at least attempts) probably over 30 times, all done by blacks, and when I was little (around age 11) teenage age blacks would come by and tell me I had to get my "white-ass" inside and just bother me calling me racial slurs. Now, going through this growing up, do you think I would want my kids to grow up like that??? I mean c'mon. The black community is never held accountable for their racism against whites and the white people that grew up like me know this and they know that they will never get justice, so they just decide to avoid black people. That is not racist, that is common sense!! When you're a kid and you touch something hot, you get burned, its the same thing. Look at what happened at RiverWest. This sort of mob attack thing happens all the time, the victims are always white and the attackers always black. If there was ever such a disparity like this and it was the whites who were perpetrating the crime, you would be able to perfectly understand if blacks chose to avoid whites. Get out the suburbs, wake up, and realize that the media and society has actually trained you to look for fault in the whites instead of reasons and explanations.
I'm not trying to downplay your experiences, as I'm sure this does happen. At the same time, some of what you have to say disturbs me and I have to ask some questions. I'll also tell you of my experience.
I spent a middle school and high school in an area that was 90% White, 1 hour west of Atlanta,GA. I was the only African-American in my 6th grade homeroom, and maybe one of a few African-Americans I would see in my middle school, at least in the 6th grade. African-Americans would increase in numbers eventually.
I got bullied alot by some of the kids there. Majority of them were White. I got jumped a few times by African-American men, but most of the time, I was being victimized by White kids. A few kids took my backpack and threw it up a pine tree. One teenager shot me with a paintball gun, in broad daylight in front of the school bus stop. The mailbox to my house was vandalized to the point of being destroyed. On Halloween 1998 my house got egged. When I first moved out there, there were a few kids who tried to put me in a sewer and sit on the sewer cap. I remember two boys who kicked my crutches from underneath me, while I was in a leg cast, leaving me on the ground, and they behaved as if it was funny. Let me tell you what happened. Me and my father went to the principal's office to tell what happened. Neither kid was held responsible because they somehow lied their way out of it. These kids were never held accountable for the stuff they did. I was walking around a creek one afternoon looking for some peace and quiet. A few kids, both of them White, threw rocks at me. One of them threw a golf ball at me. And this wasn't the last time rocks were thrown at me. It happened to me in gym class one day in the 8th grade. When I got to high school it was more brazen. I got jumped in the classroom as soon as the teacher left the classroom. Both perpetrators were White. In all of these incidents, no one was held responsible. Why? Hard to prove anything when it's my word against their's and it's only one of me. I still have memories of students who threatened "to lynch me" or "hang me by their noose". A few times people have screamed the "n" word at me from on the road, in their cars.
Given some of my own experiences in middle school and high school, some people might argue "hang with other Black kids". Well, if only it were that simple. I'm not going to judge by race. And another thing to note was that some African-American kids thought of me as "not Black enough" because I talked different, I had different interests, and in general, I had issues fitting in. I wanted to hang with White kids as well as Black kids. It didn't matter to me. I just wanted someone who was similar in personality and interests to me, or at least could relate to me.
The times I was victimized, it was in the suburbs, the outer suburbs specifically.
It brings me to this question: How is it that you now have a disparaging view of African-Americans, but I can still go on and judge each White person individual, and not by their race? How come I don't avoid Whites, or anyone of any ethnicity based on their ethnicity? I'm sorry if you have been victimized alot, but the way I see it, the majority of African-Americans don't do those things, and I know the majority of Whites don't do the things that were done to me. I look at it this way: How would it be fair for me to judge you based on the experiences I've had with other White people? Part of the problem I have is that some of what you say gives no room for the individual who wouldn't do those things to you. I am African-American and I'm not going to scream foul things at you, or steal from you. It's wrong and I was taught better than that.
Last edited by green_mariner; 07-09-2011 at 07:40 AM..
And there was something else I wanted to add. It was mentioned that the "Black community" is never held responsible for the bad things that some Black individuals do. The keyword I am focusing on here is "individual". These are individuals who have committed horrible crimes. Why should the whole Black community in the USA be held responsible for things individuals do? Me, personal, as a Black person, I have nothing to do with the persons who did what they did in Riverwest or Mayfair. I don't even live there. I can't do anything about that. I can take personal responsibility for myself. My father can and has been taking responsibility for his children.
Okay, I don't know where all you guys are from, but I'm from the northside. I grew up in a neighborhood that's less than 5% white. My sister was gang raped by blacks, my dad got his nose broken by some black guy at the GS on the corner of S.S. and Appleton, my mom taught in the inner-city at Auer Avenue school and was assaulted twice, her car broken into 10 times, I've personally been robbed and jumped (or at least attempts) probably over 30 times, all done by blacks, and when I was little (around age 11) teenage age blacks would come by and tell me I had to get my "white-ass" inside and just bother me calling me racial slurs. Now, going through this growing up, do you think I would want my kids to grow up like that??? I mean c'mon. The black community is never held accountable for their racism against whites and the white people that grew up like me know this and they know that they will never get justice, so they just decide to avoid black people. That is not racist, that is common sense!! When you're a kid and you touch something hot, you get burned, its the same thing. Look at what happened at RiverWest. This sort of mob attack thing happens all the time, the victims are always white and the attackers always black. If there was ever such a disparity like this and it was the whites who were perpetrating the crime, you would be able to perfectly understand if blacks chose to avoid whites. Get out the suburbs, wake up, and realize that the media and society has actually trained you to look for fault in the whites instead of reasons and explanations.
I've worked for the city for over a decade and know many whites who live on the northwest side and some in the area where you lived. I have never heard of any of them even having 1/10 the problems you have had. I not saying they haven't have issues from time to time, but your problems seem over the top. My friend lives on 91st and Appleton for the past 30 years and he never complains of problems and he is white.
I understand you very good but do you understand black people? Do you know what white people did to them? And this happened not so long ago. And as amerifree wrote "...and who is first in line for govt. assistance programs, ..." is true but why? Because all jobs are reserved for white people. And Wisconsin is as I red one of the top state of segregation...
and when they do get a job they don't show up for work half the time. Sorry but you can't help people who don't want to help themselves. Like others have said, I don't see any problem with segregation. Some people just like to live amongst those with a similar set of cultural mores.
It's not so much even about skin color, it's about cultures. Raise a black kid with white parents in a middle class neighborhood who acts white and nobody will give them a second thought.
One can't deny that black males raised in a predominantly black area have a much higher tendency towards violent behavior. They might not like to list the race in the newspapers when some gruesome crime is committed, but I know what goes through my mind when I read most of those stories where it says "young male" killed such and such. Facts are facts.
Want to integrate? Stop being violent and doing drugs, get a job, and show up on time. Simply giving them handouts is not the answer. Obviously this post is not directed towards all blacks, mostly black males, and just the violent, 'ghetto' ones. And all the whites that act 'ghetto' as well.
To me what happened in the past is no excuse. Most people including me don't remember what happened last week, and we often forget the lessons learned by past generations. It's only the media that pounds the 'victim' mentality into blacks over and over again.
Allan Trafton: I never stated that I lived on 91st and Silver Spring, but rather stated that that is where my father was when a black man attacked him. And Auer Avenue School, where my mother worked, is near 20th & Burleigh. I do currently live on the norhwest side; but, I grew up around 39th & Florist. I HAVE met numerous whites over here that have gone though very similar things and I have also experienced a lot of racism from blacks since moving out here. One of my friends, who lives by Madison High, had his house broken into and the robbers (black) decided to rape his mother while they were at it. I even know people that worked up here around 76th that will atest to how bad it is. Move in here and then you'll see.
Allan Trafton: I never stated that I lived on 91st and Silver Spring, but rather stated that that is where my father was when a black man attacked him. And Auer Avenue School, where my mother worked, is near 20th & Burleigh. I do currently live on the norhwest side; but, I grew up around 39th & Florist. I HAVE met numerous whites over here that have gone though very similar things and I have also experienced a lot of racism from blacks since moving out here. One of my friends, who lives by Madison High, had his house broken into and the robbers (black) decided to rape his mother while they were at it. I even know people that worked up here around 76th that will atest to how bad it is. Move in here and then you'll see.
So why do you continue to live in a place where you don't feel safe? Why do you continue to live around those that you (to put it mildly) don't like.
First and foremost, I would like to say thanks for opening up and taking the time to share your experiences, as I have. I'm also sorry for everything you have had to go through. One thing to note though, is that in the midwest things are different for blacks. You're talking about growing up in the deep south, way south of the mason-dixie; but, whites in the north strive to differentiate themselves from southern whites. The north, and the midwest in general (think Chicago) have traditionally been safe havens for blacks and other minorities. That is part of the problem. Most of the settlers and the people that built these cities (Chicago, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, etc.) were European settlers. All they wanted to do was work, have a family, go to church, and enjoy life. They possessed a lot less hateful attitudes then their southern white counterparts. But this calmness, over the years, has resulted in pacifism, pacifism to the point where blacks and other minorities know that they can commit a hate crime and a violent act without paying the consequences. This is why you have rising racial tensions. Whites are starting to realize that enough is enough and the pacifism is slowly running thin. Our being nice has resulted in us being stomped on.
I have had many of the things you stated earlier happen to me (eggs and other things thrown at me, fights in school, etc.) but what has happened in my life extended to my loved ones and my family. The racism I experienced was on another level. Not to say what you went through wasn't bad, but rhetoric is one thing, and action, another. This racism was all over up here. Even my sisters boyfriend got shot at and his father killed when some blacks robbed his shop on silver spring.
Blacks in Milwaukee are all I have to go off of, so it might be different in Georgia. But, just this week at Summerfest I saw 10 black youths run up to some middle age white guy and start to beat him down. When my friends and I ran over to help, they just scattered and disappeared into the crowd. On top of that I saw some black guys walking by white girls trying to feel them up and walking by them yanking at their hair. You don't ever see the young whites in Milwaukee EVER doing such things for fun. Not to blacks, not to hispanics, just never. When whites do things like that, we get down on them. If I would have seen a white kid walking around the fest doing these things, I would have been sure to teach him a lesson if you know what I mean. But, while these blacks were doing these things, there were other blacks standing there not saying a word. Most whites know that others in our race can make us all look bad, so we straighten out those people. Other whites did racist things from over 100-50 years ago, and they're STILL calling us racist. Mexicans and blacks will rob and beat down whites, and justify it by saying "Oh, it's okay because whites are racist." We have a nation that blames everything on the white man. I've even been to schools where the black "community leaders" teach the children to hate whites and go on and on about some nonsense "white devils". Where are the blacks standing up and ostracizing these blacks for their actions and racist comments. Then, while this stuff happens you have people like Jesse Jackson trying to talk about white-on-black racism. The fact is that black-on-white hate crimes are more than ten times as likely than the reverse. The only respectable black men I see standing up and saying anything to the black community about these things are Larry Elder and Thomas Sowell. Every other black "leader" will just downplay the statistics and blame it on somebody. Where is the accountability? Where are the people taking the responsibility and then trying to make a "true" difference in the black community? You can't shut them up about black-on-black crime, but when do you ever hear them mention black-on-white crime? That is what I mean when I say blacks aren't held accountable.
Now me, I judge on values, but I cannot escape facts. I didn't make this clear before, but I do have black friends, I'd say about half of my friends are black. One of my black friends I met when he moved up here from Chicago. One thing that stands out about the friends I have that are black is that they and their families echo my views. They too will be amazed at how blacks up here act. Aside from my friends, though I barely see any other non-racist blacks. Your situation is different, you can easily be assured that not that many whites are racist. Whites have been fighting for blacks for centuries. What was the Civil War over? Look at the Civil Rights protests from the 60's and you'll see many whites in there protesting. Even the NAACP was started by 3 white people. In some universities you even have a white African studies teacher. And what about all these white kids you see running around trying to act "black". You can turn on the T.V. and see white people fighting and arguing against racism (almost too much, to the point where they call everything racist). I, as a white male, don't have that same affirmation and support from blacks in society.
Also, tying into why I won't raise my family in the city; black men always try to mess with white women. It was even proven that Martin Luther King Jr. himself use to sleep with white prostitutes and then beat them afterward. If I end up having a daughter that has any good looks about her whatsoever, why should I expect what happened to my sister to not happen to my child. At 6' 3'' and 240 pounds I've come a long way since when I was 5' 9'' in high school. It would be a lot harder for some punks to jump me now than when I was younger. But, remembering how older blacks would always jump me when I was young, I would know that if I were to raise my family in a black community, that my son would go through the same challenges of having to fight men twice his age and size. Even though I can defend myself from violent blacks, my wife and kids most likely will not. That's why I would only raise them in a white community and hence why there is "segregation" in Milwaukee.
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