Editorial by Mg - Mary Glass, September 14, 2011 - Milwaukee's Revolts/Protests in Violence CASE LEARNING

L-R; Pemba Mwepu, Brandon Methu, Micala Queary, Rick Banks
Second Row: James Methu

September 14, 2011

MPA TOP-of-the-LINE CASE LEARNING - Call for ALL HANDS ON DECK
by: Mary Mg Glass

So often we find this-n-that in our public square that is offensive, counter to harmony of the people, love-for-one-another, and how much we really are so blessed but have the many overlays of the world that causes us to lose our way in building a better place for ALL to live. For certain, if you have not completed maturity or the 25-year mark, your brain has not reached the acceptable level of critical thinking for risk. Nevertheless, you should know right-from-wrong.

For a vast population, too often privilege has turned into greed, into arrogance, into expected advantage, into thought-of-as a “right”. The ME-ME blinders. It is thinking that the world is made only for me and those I care for.

It is as if WE have another option of a place to live other than Earth – that WE are above everyone else, that includes the disasters of Mother Nature and the evils of cancer and other debilitating diseases that WILL take you out of here no matter what is in your bank account or what public title you hold or have held. It is if though we think we can escape death.

For so many, they have been disenfranchised for most of their lives and for the most part given up HOPE and just seek survival day-to-day.

Each day, I am called to Channel development (re-defining, re-branding and un-trapping) to replace “enduring concentrated poverty” in the City of Milwaukee with a bottom-up NEW Middle Class of “critical mass” made-up of hidden talent, emerging markets and submerging markets at the neighborhood level. It requires that I get up every day, touch base with my maker for guidance and hit-the-floor running/working as smart as I can to make me, those I work with, those my office represents/work for and the public square better.

Since creating the ALL HANDS ON DECK Initiative, January 23, 2010, it is with vigor that re-defining, re-branding and un-trapping over a half-million Milwaukeeans from Enduring Concentrated Poverty is a daily focus of Milwaukee Professionals Association/MPA.

New Phenomenon
One of MPA’s “re-defining”, “re-branding” and “un–trapping” efforts that is “morphing” into another stage of channel development calls upon service by hidden talent, especially at the neighborhood-level.

We will look at the WHY – the cause/effect/behavior/wellness of the recent and not so recent/reoccurring, “Revolts/Protests in Violence” through CASE LEARNING with an emphasis on evidentiary research.

The public square issue of Revolts/Protests in Violence is a phenomenon seen globally. This year the push has been so great that entire leaderships of countries have collapsed as a result of the citizenry seeking revolts/protests – all with violence of some kind. Whereas we will look at Revolts/Protests in other countries, our main focus is that of Milwaukee and other cities in America.

Caught by surprise
The violent disturbances appear to be pre-planned – word-of-mouth and through some media. The grouped behavior is done in a FLASH of moments in the public square, largely urban cities. The participants are predominately African American.

It has caught us by surprise. WHY? Since the environmental hypotheses are many, MPA Safety Matters Response Network and MPA Safety Matters Exploratory Team will work on creating a well-thought out argument/debate for presenting to the public square for problem solving. We will have it ready for the 2012 Election campaign for support by those who want to be elected or re-elected.

The fact that there are individuals injured – wounded, offended and have loss of retail, the clamor has escalated. Additionally, since Caucasians and business owners are often the ones injured in these “flash events”; we have seen an outcry of demonstrative anger, fear and punitive responses from our elected officials and others. For the long-haul, for sustainability, this will not solve the problem.

Yes. There are problems.
Since we live in an environment that grows further and further from what we say verses what we do, we send many messages that come back to haunt us.

Since we have tales of two cities in a city – haves/have nots and racial/segregation/discrimination – by design enduring concentrated poverty that have robbed families of their male and female head-of-household as well as rightful assets. For generations a lack of quality of life issues (family supporting jobs, education/technology attainment, affordable housing, by design contributors to crime) as well as human-legal-civil rights that create a framework of the culture of fairness has left the citizenry of Milwaukee and like urban environments in disarray for the last 50 years.

As a civilized society, we owe the public square more than angered epithets, broad brushing racial stereotypes, blaming parents - especially the “single-parent”, posturing, ducking accountability and a host of “holier than thou” comments that fuel the fire.

My office sees this phenomenon as an opportunity to address the phenomenon with the capable engagement of youth-teens-young adults and older adults in MPA TOP-of-the-Line CASE LEARNING.

l-r: Pemba Mwepu, James Methu, Brandon Methu, Micala Queary, Rick Banks CLICK PHOTO for enlargement.

As a matter of fact, we are enthusiastically engaging “hidden talent” in the recently created MPA Safety Matters Exploratory Team. Our bright, set-to-go Charter team members are:

-- Pemba Mwepu - Senior, Human Resources Management and Finance, International student from Africa - UW-Milwaukee

-- Micala Queary - BA Mass Media Arts - Public Relations Graduate, Clark Atlanta University

-- Rick Banks - Political Science Major, Speaker of the Senate, UW-Milwaukee

-- Brandon Methu - Economics Major, Senate Chair - Diversity and Inclusion Council, UW-Milwaukee

-- James Methu - Financial Representative, Northwestern Mutual Insurance.

Their focus/MISSION: Leadership-Citizenship and Problem Solving.

They will be CASE LEARNING trained; they will train others, lead problem solving groups, do research-outreach-recruitment, create videos, public service announcements and a documentary. They will also organize the Annual 2012 Safety Matters Diversity Conference.

Safety Matters Exploratory Team
We started Saturday, September 10, 2011. Our first data practitioner facilitator was WI Public Defender, Tom Reed from Milwaukee. His holistic talk was most informative, concrete and state-of-the-art with age-specific data, cost, ideas, marketplace trends, comparative analogies, and present research for background. His engagement and extended services of his office and his staff to our Exploratory Team was refreshing and supportive.

We look forward to many hours over the next 8 months to create avenues of re-defining, re-branding and un-trapping opportunities to address the growing crisis of Revolts/Protests in Violence.

Get involved
The Safety Matters Response Network calls for a core team consisting of youth-teen-young adult leaders in the City of Milwaukee working with a sponsor group. The sponsor groups are identified as:

-- a parent
-- a neighborhood block club
-- a neighborhood association
-- a church organization
--a school, or
-- an organization that receive government funding on behalf of Milwaukeeans.

Baseline requirements of a SPONSOR is to ensure that there is neighborhood-level outreach, in-house education and training for the youth-teen-young adult representative, facilitating meetings, built-in chaperones, marketing, assisted fundraising (per decision of SMRN), encouragement and engagement of principled-centered leadership AND collaboration for Annual Diversity Conference.
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Data Facilitator
Practitioner Facilitators are sought to provide core information to address legal, health-medical-human services, economics, employment, neighborhood-level entrepreneurship and media communications. We seek journalists, financial analysts, educators, researchers, engineers, architects, artists, videographers, motion picture creators, producers, choregraphers, graphic designers, outdoor advertisers, mass transit administrators, taxi company owners, bike company owners, car dealer owners, retail store management (laptops), school bus owners, computer information structuring and programming experts.

We Call for ALL HANDS on DECK. Let us know you are out there – ask questions, offer your hand. Help make the City a better place.

JOIN US!

Our next SATURDAY TALK - September 24, 2011 - UW-Milwaukee, 1:15pm - 3:15pm

Go to CLICK for information and signing up.
www.mpapublicpolicyreview.blogspot.com
Email: mpapublicpolicyreview@gmail.com