By Cassandra Lans
Milwaukee’s African American community demonstrated that celebrated fun and culture can be done without incident. This past weekend several events took place, and there were no negative incidents that erupted.
The 17th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Back to School Festival was held, an event were children are provided with backpacks of school supplies, and fun activities. This event was founded by State Representative Elizabeth Coggs when she served on the County Board.
African World Festival returned again with a one day event filled with educational information, fun, entertainment, cultural activities and food. This year national and local entertainment performed, people from all ages participated in the festival. No flash mobs, no fights and preventive measures were in space through security in the event that some incidents would have taken place.
Milwaukee County Supervisor Evon Biddle, Sr. even weighed in on the events:
“With all the rhetoric about the “deteriorating African American culture” in this city, I saw some awesome events this weekend. They really showed the haters that there are many positive things going on in the Black community that we can all be proud of.” Biddle said. “Kudos to all those who worked tirelessly for months organizing these great events for the benefit of both youth and adults.”
With all of the continued rhetoric regarding the State Fair incident, little has been said regarding the responsibility of the organizers of State Fair in providing some crime prevention tools. Last year, the fair did hire security that had the expertise to identify the brewing of incidents, and prevent them before they erupt into fights and more. This year, organizers went into the fair cutting corners, and didn’t put anything in place.
“What happened at State Fair is State Fair’s fault,” a security officer for Summerfest said.
“Not to say that the incident should have happened, because it should not have, there is no excuse for young people of any color acting in that fashion. But, at the same time, when fights break out at clubs, and any other establishment or events that are open to the public, providing effective security is a must and State Fair failed to do that.” she concluded.
It has also been stated that smaller situations had occurred that signaled a bigger incident could erupt. Some workers stated that they brought these situations to the attention of State Fair staff, and nothing was done.
