Groups Behind the ‘Blue Wave’ Urge Voters to Make Their Voices Heard

MILWAUKEE — Representatives of Black Leaders Organizing for Communities (BLOC), Voces de la Frontera, Women’s March Wisconsin and One Wisconsin Now gathered today to discuss how Attorney General Brad Schimel along with Gov. Scott Walker and Republican legislative majorities have failed on the issues important to their organizations and supporters. The constituencies represented today underpin progressives’ hopes of an electoral “blue wave,” and their turning out to vote will be critical to the results of the elections less than three weeks away.

“We are the ones who will do what it takes for our community to thrive unlike Brad Schimel and Scott Walker, who don’t care about black people. They are complacent in Wisconsin being the worst place to raise a Black child and home to the worst incarcerated zip code in the world,” said BLOC Executive Director Angela Lang.

She continued, “BLOC has been out knocking doors since last November, building relationships and listening. We have helped increase voter turnout because we have been educating folks on the importance of this election. When our community comes together we are a powerful voting BLOC as evidenced in the Supreme Court election and the election of a new Sheriff.”

Women’s March Wisconsin Co-Founder and Co-Chair Sarah Pearson said the energy and determination to be heard that spurred her group coming together in January 2017 continues, “Women and survivors in Wisconsin deserve so much more, and we will remember Brad Schimel’s failures on Election Day next week. Brad Schimel has failed survivors of sexual violence in Wisconsin time and time again. From thousands of rape kits that remained untested for far too long to his unapologetic support for Brett Kavanaugh to his refusal to open a legitimate investigation into child sex abuse and its concealment within Wisconsin dioceses, Schimel has chosen to be an apologist for abusers rather than a champion of justice for abuse survivors.”

“Besides being part of the ongoing lawsuit to take away protections from people with preexisting conditions, Brad Schimel was also part of the lawsuit that blocked protections for immigrant parents of US Citizens. His lawsuit has left thousands of Wisconsin children vulnerable to being separated from their parents. Schimel is anti-immigrant,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, Executive Director of Voces de la Frontera Action.

Earlier, One Wisconsin Now provided research they compiled on the abysmal record of Scott Walker on issues of racial equity, women’s rights, immigrant rights and gun violence. One Wisconsin Now Program Director Analiese Eicher today noted how Schimel has failed similarly. In addition to the issues raised by Lang, Pearson and Ortiz she cited Schimel’s unsavory association with the anti-LGTBQ hate group the Alliance Defending Freedom and his proposing to put more guns in schools as a solution to the scourge of gun violence.

“Our choice is to either stay home on Election Day, like Walker, Schimel and the Republicans want us to, or to show up and make our voices heard,” concluded Eicher. “With our votes we can reject the racism, sexism, xenophobia and indifference to the scourge of gun violence.”