(MADISON) – August 12, 2017 – Today, State Senator Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) in response to the unrest associated with the march of White Nationalists at the University of Virginia on Friday night and the “Unite the Right” rally today in Charlottesville, VA released the following statement:
“Today’s unrest in Charlottesville, VA represents a void in leadership at both the national and state levels. When Americans are pitted against one another to disguise ineffective policies around job creation, educational opportunities, and affordable access to healthcare, we must look to the source of these divisions.
The decisions that are being made that have harshly impacted the lives of those who feel marginalized or left behind, are not being made by immigrants, Muslims, Mexicans, or any other minority groups. We have elected leaders that have fanned the flames of racism and intolerance to advance personal ideologies, protect legislative seats or continue political partisanship. They have skirted the edge of decency and quite frankly, played with psychological fire.
Acknowledging the storied history of race and inequity in this country, political and elected leaders must ask what their role has been in perpetuating the climate that helps to support the civil unrest in Charlottesville, VA. “
