Gannon brings urban committee to Milwaukee

Outspoken state Rep. Bob Gannon (R-West Bend) brought his urban revitalization committee to the heart of one of Milwaukee’s struggling neighborhoods Thursday to hear residents and others speak out about issues facing the city.

Gannon, a pistol-packing suburban Republican, has come under fire in the past for comments he has made about Milwaukee, including his fiery “Murder, Mayhem and Jobs” news release last year that said the state’s economic situation could be significantly improved if its largest city “would clean up the murder and mayhem on their streets.” His comments outraged Democratic lawmakers.

But on Thursday, Gannon and his fellow committee members seemed more focused on listening.

The Assembly Committee on Urban Revitalization heard about the importance of things such as education, mentoring, stable housing, healthy food and job opportunities during a public hearing on W. Burleigh St. in Milwaukee’s 53206 ZIP code.

“When there is one economy that’s supposed to be for everyone, but doesn’t work for everyone, they will find other ways to put food on the table,” said Sister MacCanon Brown.

Brown, who serves as president of the MacCanon Brown Homeless Sanctuary, urged the panel to “change the narrative” when it comes to how young men in Milwaukee’s troubled neighborhoods think about themselves and their future — as well as how people living in the suburbs think about those living in the city.

“Race, poverty and incarceration is not a partisan issue,” Brown said. “They are a human issue.”

Mentoring also was a major topic of discussion.

Kenneth Harris, who recently retired from the Milwaukee Police Department, talked about the importance of teaching life skills in schools and the importance of boys and girls scouting programs.

And Andre Lee Ellis, the founder of We Got This!, talked about the overwhelming response he has received from young men he has inspired to start cleaning up their neighborhood and learning about gardening.

Others stressed the importance of involving residents in efforts to address neighborhood problems.

“Please do not build programs without the input of the community,” said Sister Patricia Rogers, executive director of the Dominican Center for Women.

Activist Shawn Moore said, “If you want to fix the community, involve the community.”

Some warned of problems such as human trafficking and racial inequality.

“We believe that racial disparities hold our entire region back,” said Marcus White of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation.

Debbie Lassiter, executive director of the Convergence Resource Center, said human trafficking is in all of Wisconsin’s counties, not just Milwaukee. But she also stressed the seriousness of the problem here.

“Commercial sex trafficking is ravaging our neighborhoods,” she said.