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I’ve come up with this grand theory about people leaving Milwaukee for places like Houston and Atlanta. I call it the “Batman vs. Superman Complex.” Batman was a locally grown hometown hero. He had money, power and success. He could do what he wanted, but he chose to stay home and fix his community with all of those abilities. On the other hand, you have Superman, who had to move from where he was born because his planet was about to explode. But, when he got to his new home, he developed extraordinary powers that, if he had stayed home, wouldn’t even be noteworthy.
Many African Americans in Milwaukee face those same options. Stay in Milwaukee and save it from the things that can destroy it (lack of educational funding, poverty, hyper-segregation, mass incarceration, the menacing caravan of Subarus beginning to show up near North Avenue) or leave Milwaukee and move to a place where their abilities are way more powerful, accepted and nurtured.
I’ve explored both options. I went to college out of state. Full disclosure, I am a proud descendant of the state of Mississippi via my grandmothers from Baldwyn and Kosciusko, respectively. I am also a proud alumnus of Mississippi State University. I was once told that “one of the saddest days in Mississippi is college graduation day.” Why? Because most Mississippi students who are graduating from college typically pack up and head out to other places like Tennessee, Texas or Atlanta. I was an out-of-state student myself, so I headed back to Milwaukee. Mississippi is a wonderful state with a vibrant culture and pleasantly enjoyable people; despite its dubious history, it’s a fun place to sit a spell. Mississippi, though, is a net exporter of its most highly educated people.
Wisconsin has joined the ranks of Mississippi in being a net exporter of its most educated residents. The “great” job market that you hear about from the White House has left much to be desired, especially outside of major American cities and the coasts. You shouldn’t have to work two jobs and drive for Uber/Lyft to make a living wage. Milwaukee will hopefully get some assistance in the form of the new Evers/Barnes administration in Madison. Unless this happens, the surge will continue of minorities and educated people leaving the city and state to other, more forward-moving, much more progressive-thinking and proactive local and state environments.
We need leaders who will create and fight for policies and systemic changes that will balance the scales—not in the direction of being just “open for business,” but open for everyone in the state. As a citizen of our fair city, I believe there needs to be a change of perception about Milwaukee from the entire state of Wisconsin. Wisconsin would not exist as it is without Milwaukee. Our diversity, economic power and national reach is unrivaled. Milwaukee is the California of Wisconsin. But what are the solutions to fix the problems? How are our elected leaders, blue ribbon panels and numerous nonprofits actually going to fix the problems that exist here, both perceived and real?
As a millennial, I lament the fact that the “real jobs” that our parents and grandparents worked either no longer exist or are about to become automated and removed from the scene in the not-so-distant future. We need to bring 21st-century jobs to the state if you want to create more “Batmans” than “Supermans.” Instead of talking about what the millennials are “destroying,” let’s talk about how to interest them. Good, reliable public transportation would help retain them. Affordable housing is crucial, since we can’t afford to buy houses because our degrees have already given us a mortgage-level of student loan debt.
I don’t know what the answer to this problem is, honestly, but this is a problem we need to figure out, or at least start working on, before the next college graduates walk across the stage to their waiting cars in June 2019.
