Milwaukee, WI
Congressman James Clyburn meets with Milwaukee Civil Rights Activists – Milwaukee Courier Weekly Newspaper
Congressman James Clyburn (Photo/Karen
Stokes)
By Karen Stokes
Congressman James Clyburn visited Milwaukee on Monday, where he met with local leaders and activists at the Milwaukee Civil Rights Community Meet and Greet, held at the African American Women’s Center, to talk about the importance of the 2024 election.
In an approximately 30-minute speech, Clyburndisplayed humor, wisdom,and experience, and reflected on losing three elections running for office.
“When I lost the third time a friend of mine said what are you going to do now, you just lost for the third time and you know what they say, three strikes and you’re out. I said to my friend, “That’s a baseball rule. Nobody lives their lives by baseball rules. If I had quit after losing the third time, I never would have become the number three guy in the U.S. Congress.”
“If something were to happen and you’re not victorious, don’t give up. Stay in the fight,” he said.
The message of the day was for voters to stay engaged, emphasizing that this is the most consequential election of our lives.
As a former history teacher, Clyburn provided an important lesson on how history can repeat itself.
“People say America has never been like this before, let them know it’s been like this before, it’s been like this when we first formed the country.
Representative Supreme Moore Omokunde and Congressman James Clyburn (Photo/Karen Stokes)
The Congressman quoted Thomas Payne in 1776, Payne who was not an American saw how Americans were plotting against each other. He wrote a pamphlet called ‘The American Crisis’ and wrote, “THESE are the times that try men’s souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country but he that stands it NOW, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. . . .”
“This is going to be a hard conflict,” Clyburn explained. “But we can’t be summer soldiers, we can’t be sunshine patriots that run from the fight when the storm comes, we have to be soldiers and fight, we cannot sit aside.”
Citing an example of how history can repeat itself. Clyburn explained that in 1876, the election got thrown to the House of Representatives because at that time, to win the presidency you needed 185 votes in the electoral college. When the election was over, a man named Samuel Tilden from New York had 184 votes, one vote short.
Local leaders and activists at the Milwaukee Civil Rights meet-and-greet (Photo/Karen Stokes)
Rutherford B. Hayes, from Ohio, had 165 votes, the election then went to the House of Representatives, the House appointed a committee of 15 people and the committee met with both candidates. Hayes told them if you give me these votes, I’ll bring an end to Reconstruction. I’ll remove all federal troops, I’ll leave the Negro to your devices. The committee voted 8-7 giving 20 votes to Hayes. Hayes went from 165 to 185 making him president of the United States by 1 vote. One vote brought an end to Reconstruction, one vote started Jim Crow.
“This is what they were trying to do on January 6, 2021, send the election to the House of Representatives, so they would have a chance of keeping Trump,” said Clyburn. “Don’t certify the vote, send it back to the states and we’ll take care of it from there, that’s what they were trying to do.”
The question was asked if you were better off than four years ago? Businesses were shut down four years ago, schools were closed, people were sick and dying, people were watching their loved ones expire, and Trump suggested injecting bleach as a solution. That’s the kind of leadership he offered. That’s how he left the country.
Representative Kalan Haywood (Photo/Karen Stokes)
“Thanks to the work Joe Biden did like The Rescue Plan, which reopened businesses so people could go back to work, reopened schools, and lifted children out of poverty, that plan passed without a single Republican vote, and he didn’t stop there.”
Clyburn shared that he keeps two books by his bedside: the Bible and McCullough’s biography. He studies both religiously. From the Bible, he highlighted an important lesson: “Faith without works is dead.”
The Congressman’s closing remarks were “If we sit on the sidelines and don’t get out to vote we can’t make a difference. Get involved, let’s make sure we win this election.”
Take flight over the Milwaukee area
Get a bird’s-eye view from a drone over downtown Milwaukee, American Family Field, the Mitchell Domes, and along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
Former Milwaukee Common Council member Don Richards died on Dec. 26 at age 89.
Richards served on the Milwaukee Common Council between 1988 and 2004, representing District 9 on the city’s north and northwest sides until his retirement due to health reasons, according to his obituary.
During his tenure at the city, Richards was a member of the Judiciary and Legislation Committee, Zoning, Neighborhoods and Development Committee, as well as the Housing Authority and City Records Committee.
Although the two had a brief overlap in city government, former Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, who was first elected in 2004, recalled Richards as “always smiling and always caring.”
“He was a wonderful man. A very Christian man who cared deeply about the community and the people who live here,” Barrett told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Before becoming a city alderman, Richards participated in the citywide marches protesting a lack of open housing legislation in the city in the 1960s and was a priest in the Milwaukee Archdiocese for almost two decades, starting in 1963. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the St. Francis Seminary and Catholic University in Washington, D.C.
Following his time on the Common Council, Richards began to teach local government classes at Alverno College. He also worked as an economic development specialist with the Northwest Side Community Development Corporation, his obituary said.
Richards is survived by his brother, Bob (Joanne), and was preceded in death by his wife, Doloros; his parents, Gregor and Rose Richards; and his brothers, Jim Richards and Ed Richards, according to his obit.
A visitation is planned at 10 a.m. Jan 8 until his funeral Mass at 11 a.m. at Alvina of Milwaukee Chapel, 9301 N. 76th Street.
Milwaukee, WI
Teen passenger dies in fiery crash after fleeing driver crashes into Milwaukee roundabout
MILWAUKEE — A police chase that began in West Milwaukee on Sunday morning ended in a fiery crash on Milwaukee’s south side, killing 18-year-old Izack Zavala.
The Medical Examiner’s Office identified Zavala as the passenger who died in the one-car crash at 37th and Mitchell streets. His family said he was a 2025 Milwaukee Public Schools Alexander Hamilton High School graduate who loved soccer and would do anything to help his loved ones.
Provided by family
The West Milwaukee Police Department said officers attempted to pull over the driver for a traffic violation near Miller Park Way and Lincoln Avenue, but the driver fled and crossed into Milwaukee.
TMJ4
About a mile later, police say the fleeing driver hit a roundabout, lost control, and crashed into a tree, ejecting both the driver and passenger.
“If they were trying to avoid one of those, and with the weather being cold and slick, and you hit a patch of ice, and you’re gone. You’re done,” Barbie, who witnessed the aftermath, said.
The loud crash woke up neighbors like Barbie in the middle of the night.
Watch: Teen passenger dies in fiery crash after fleeing driver crashes into Milwaukee roundabout
Teen passenger dies in fiery crash after fleeing driver crashes into Milwaukee roundabout
“Like thunder struck the building. The entire building shook. It was insane,” Barbie said.
TMJ4
Looking out her kitchen window, Barbie saw the devastating scene unfold.
“The whole thing just lit up like a torch,” she said.
Steven Huppenbauer
A day after the flames were extinguished, crash debris still surrounded the tree and Barbie’s backyard.
“The car was right there in the center,” she said.
Zavala’s family said his cousin was driving the vehicle. The 19-year-old driver was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
Barbie, who has witnessed crashes before, said seeing this one up close was different.
“I’ve seen plenty of crashes, had people that I care about die in crashes, but to see it up close is something different. I feel bad for the kid’s family,” she said.
The witness hopes the tragedy serves as a warning to others who might consider fleeing police.
“I feel for their family, and I wish to God that that wouldn’t have happened, obviously, but there comes a point, ‘what were you doing’, you know?” Barbie said. “I just think that people need to think before they do, and that’s just not a thing anymore.”
TMJ4 asked the West Milwaukee Police Department if it plans to refer charges for the 19-year-old driver who remains seriously injured at the hospital. The department declined to comment, saying it’s still an active investigation.
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Milwaukee’s real estate market likely ended 2025 in much the same place as 2024, real estate analysts say.
A report from the Greater Milwaukee Association of Realtors released in December estimated that total home sales in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee and Washington counties will remain flat from 2024.
In Milwaukee County, home sales were down 9.2% in November 2025 compared to November 2024, according to the report.
Still, year-to-date home prices in the four-county Milwaukee metropolitan area rose 7.7% to an average of just over $431,000, the report says.
Here are a few of the oldest homes recently sold in Milwaukee, according to Milwaukee Metropolitan Multiple Listing Services data:
1913 Milwaukee bungalow sells for $365,000
A 113-year-old bungalow on South Wentworth Avenue in Milwaukee sold for $365,000 on Dec. 22.
The 1,500-square-foot home has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, according to the listing from Tom Horigan with Realty Experts, and it sits on a 0.11-acre lot.
The home features hardwood floors, a built-in buffet and leaded glass windows but updated home and garage roofs, according to the listing. It also has an enclosed front porch.
19th-century Bay View home sells for $295,000
A 1,250-square-foot Milwaukee home built in 1890 sold for $295,000 on Dec. 22.
The three-bedroom, two-bathroom home is located on East Euclid Avenue in Milwaukee’s Bay View neighborhood, according to the listing from Alexis Ruzell with Coldwell Banker Realty. It sits on a 3,050-square-foot lot.
The home features wood flooring and a second-story bedroom leading to an elevated porch, according to the listing.
Another century-old bungalow sells for $475,000
A bungalow on North 39th Street in Milwaukee’s Roosevelt Grove neighborhood sold for $475,000 on Dec. 23.
The home was built in 1922 on a 0.96-acre lot with four bedrooms and two bathrooms, according to the listing from Kendrick Taylor with Keller Williams Realty. It spans 2,250 square feet.
The home features a modern kitchen with quartz countertops and a dry bar in the living room, according to the listing. It also includes a finished lower level.
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